How to still export excel when parameter doesn't exist

[TheBigrLebowski]

Hello all,

Currently working on a project where a paginated report contains a parameter so when users are using the web report they can filter.  I'm trying to use this report to send emails daily with a parameter set so that the excel is filtered to the data that needs to be seen.  Sometimes this parameter value does not exist because the data simply wasn't generated for the prior day.  When this happens, the flow fails and gives this error "Some parameters do not have valid values."  I understand why this happens but the report still needs to send out the excel file even though the excel will be blank so that we know the flow ran correctly and there just wasn't any data to review.  As it is now, we'll get a failure error when it doesn't really fail, just doesn't have data.  I know we could just make a report that only pulls the filtered data we need but if we keep doing that we will clutter our workspace with multiple versions of essentially the same report. 

The flow is very simple:

-Recurrence step at top to trigger flow.

-Export to file for paginated reports (parameter is passed).

-Send an email v2 (with the attached excel).

A simple example looks something like this:

Report contains yesterdays data with category A,B,C,D,E.  A parameter is used so that users can pick between A,B,C,D,E on the web version.  The automated report needs to only pick category D when exporting the excel.  But category D may not always exist yesterday.  When category D does not exist, we get this error "Some parameters do not have valid values." and the email does not send.  When category D does exist, the flow works as intended.

We would like the email and attached excel to still send even when category D does not exist.

[NelsonYan]

Hi @TheBigrLebowski ,

Email not sent is because above action failed, this is a normal and default behavior, since Run After setting is set to success by default!

Run After setting can be found in more options of SendEmail action.

In you case, i would say change the RunAfter setting to both succeed and failed, to make SendEamil run even if above action failed!

Hope this helps

Nelson

[TheBigrLebowski]

Thanks for the quick reply.  I just tried that and it will send but the excel gives a corrupted error when opening.  Would like the excel to still open, show the header information such as report name and formatting.

[NelsonYan]

You may need to share more details with snapshots about how flow actions are configured!

Nelson

[David_MA · Accepted solution]

Add a parallel branch where you send the e-mail. Set your original e-mail to only send on success and you can include your attachment. Then on the other side of the parallel branch, add another e-mail action without the attachment. Set that e-mail action to only send if the above action failed. You can word your failed e-mail to say "no data available" or something like that.

[TheBigrLebowski]

This is essentially what I did but added a condition to the failed branch as well.  In the condition I look for the error that populates when the data doesn't exist, if the error exists then it sends an email out to everyone in the normal distribution list with a message in the body that no data was available. If a different error is to populate, then it will send an email to our team instead and include the error in the email body.