Edit related records in subgrid

[flscheire]

Hello everyone,

I have the following tables:

Each record I create in the "Package" table is associated with a single "Package type".

Each "Package type" can be linked to multiple "Materials" that need to be delivered for packages of that type.

Conversely, each "Material" can also be associated with multiple "Package types" as it might be used in different types of packages.

In my "Package" form, I was able to show the related materials based on the selected "Package type". I would like to have a toggle or similar option for each related "Material". This way, I can indicate whether each material was approved or not. 

I don't have a lot of experience and I would like to do it the right way. Any help would be appreciated!

[parvezghumra · Accepted solution]

@flscheire If I understand your requirements correctly, the Material approval toggle is specific to the specific use of that material on the specific package? And not for the material in general? Is my understanding correct?

If this is the case, you need to introduce a new 'Package Material' table, which will have a N:1 relationship to Package, and your approval toggle will be a Two Options Choice/Boolean column on this new table. Your subgrid on the Package form should then show records in this new table that are related to the Package. You can use an editable grid to allow in-line editing for approval purpose to improve the user experience.

Upon create (and update of Package Type column) of Package, you then need to use a Power Automate Cloud Flow (or plugin) to retrieve the Materials related to the selected Package Type, and use these to auto-generate a set of records in this new "Package Material" table related to the Package in question. The default value for the approval toggle should be set to No.

You can then design the Package Material approval process as required.

[flscheire]

Thank you @parvezghumra 

I created a manual many-to-many relationship between "Package" &"Material" + a Power Automate flow. When someone updates the package type of a package, I made sure my flow deletes all previously made PackageMaterial records related to the package.

Since we're working with a flow, it might take some time and a couple of refreshes before all PackageMaterial records are visible in the subgrid. What's the best way to indicate users of this delay? At the end of my flow, I could update a field in my Package table to indicate the status but I was wondering if maybe there's a better way.

Thanks in advance!

[a33ik]

Hello,

If you don't want to confuse users develop a sync plugin that will do whatever your Power Automate Flow is doing and there will be no lag between updating the form and data that is available in the grid.

[parvezghumra]

@flscheire As @a33ik suggested, a synchronous plugin would negate the need for the Cloud Flow, the delay and the refreshes needed.

If you want to continue with the Cloud Flow approach, yes, add a column or 2 to the Package table to indicate the start and end of the Cloud Flow running. You could optionally use either setFormNotification/clearFormNotification or showProgressIndicator/closeProgressIndicator to keep the user informed/engaged using JavaScript. If you use this approach, use the Xrm.WebApi.retrieveRecord to check the value of the columns you create on Package (recursively using setTimeout) to determine whether the Cloud Flow has completed execution, and refresh the record when complete using refresh

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-apps/developer/model-driven-apps/clientapi/reference/formcon...

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-apps/developer/model-driven-apps/clientapi/reference/formcon...

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-apps/developer/model-driven-apps/clientapi/reference/xrm-uti...

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-apps/developer/model-driven-apps/clientapi/reference/xrm-uti...

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-apps/developer/model-driven-apps/clientapi/reference/xrm-web...

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-apps/developer/model-driven-apps/clientapi/reference/formcon...