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You can create business rules and recommendations to apply logic and validations without writing code or creating plug-ins. Business rules provide a simple interface to implement and maintain fast-changing and commonly used rules.
Important
Business rules defined for a table apply to both
canvas apps
and
model-driven apps
if the table is used in the app. Not all business rule actions are available on canvas apps at this time. More information:
Differences between canvas and model-driven apps
To define a business rule that applies to a form in a model-driven app, see
Create business rules to apply logic in a model-driven app form
.
By combining conditions and actions, you can do any of the following with business rules:
Set column values
Clear column values
Set column requirement levels
Show or hide columns
Enable or disable columns
Validate data and show error messages
Create business recommendations based on business intelligence.
Differences between canvas and model-driven apps
Model driven apps can use all actions available on business rules, however not all business rule actions are available for canvas apps at this time. The following actions are
not
available on canvas apps:
Show or hide columns
Enable or disable columns
Create business recommendations based on business intelligence.
Column type support with business rules
Business rules work with most column types including text, number, choice, date, lookup, owner, and image. However, business rules don't work with the following column types:
Choices (multi-select)
Language
Create a business rule
Sign in to
Power Apps
, on the left navigation pane, and select
Tables
. If the item isn’t in the left navigation pane, select
…More
and then select the item you want.
Open the table you want to create the business rule for (for example, open the
Account
table), and then select the
Business Rules
tab.
Select
Add business rule
.
The business rule designer window opens with a single condition already created for you. Every rule starts with a condition. The business rule takes one or more actions based on that condition.
If you want to modify an existing business rule, you must deactivate it before you can modify it.
Add a description, if you want, in the description box in the upper-left corner of the window.
Set the scope, according to the following:
If you select this item...
The scope is set to...
Add conditions.
To add more conditions to your business rule:
Drag the
Condition
component from the
Components
tab to a plus sign in the designer.
To set properties for the condition, select the
Condition
component in the designer window, and then set the properties in the
Properties
tab on the right side of the screen. As you set properties, the Microsoft Dataverse creates an expression at the bottom of the
Properties
tab.
To add an additional clause (an AND or OR) to the condition, select
New
in the
Properties
tab to create a new rule, and then set the properties for that rule. In the
Rule Logic
column, you can specify whether to add the new rule as an AND or an OR.
When you're done setting properties for the condition, select
Apply
.
Add actions.
To add an action:
Drag one of the action components from the
Components
tab to a plus sign next to
Condition
component. Drag the action to a plus sign next to a check mark if you want the business rule to take that action when the condition is met, or to a plus sign next to an x if you want the business rule to take that action if the condition isn't met.
To set properties for the action, select the
Action
component in the designer window, and then set the properties in the
Properties
tab.
When you're done setting properties, select
Apply
.
Add a business recommendation (model-driven apps only)
. To add a business recommendation:
Drag the
Recommendation
component from the
Components
tab to a plus sign next to a
Condition
component. Drag the
Recommendation
component to a plus sign next to a check mark if you want the business rule to take that action when the condition is met, or to a plus sign next to an x if you want the business rule to take that action if the condition isn't met.
To set properties for the recommendation, select the
Recommendation
component in the designer window, and then set the properties in the
Properties
tab.
To add more actions to the recommendation, drag them from the
Components
tab, and then set properties for each action in the
Properties
tab.
When you create a recommendation, the Dataverse adds a single action by default. To see all the actions in a recommendation, select
Details
on the
Recommendation
component.
When you're done setting properties, select
Apply
.
To validate the business rule, select
Validate
on the action bar.
To save the business rule, select
Save
on the action bar.
To activate the business rule, select it in the Solution Explorer window, and then select
Activate
. You can't activate the business rule from the designer window.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you work on business rules in the designer window:
To take a snapshot of everything in the
Business Rule
window, select
Snapshot
on the action bar. This is useful, for example, if you want to share and get comments on the business rule from a team member.
Use the mini-map to navigate quickly to different parts of the process. This is useful when you have a complicated process that scrolls off the screen.
As you add conditions, Actions, and business recommendations to your business rule, Dataverse builds the code for the business rule at the bottom of the designer window. This code is read only.
Example: Create a business rule for tasks older than 30 days
This business rule example creates a condition that triggers a message in the task description field when a task is more than 30 days old.
Sign in to
Power Apps
, on the left navigation pane, select
Tables
. If the item isn’t in the left navigation pane, select
…More
and then select the item you want.
Open the
Task
table, and then select the
Business rules
area.
Select
Add business rule
.
Select
New Condition
on the business process flow canvas, and enter or select the following properties:
Display name
:
Task is more than 30 days old
Entity
:
Task
Rule 1
Source
:
Entity
Field
:
Created On
Operator
:
+
Type
:
Value
Days
:
30
Condition Expression
(automatically created):
(Created On Is greater than [Created On + 30])
Select
Apply
.
Select
Add
>
Add Show Error Message
.
In the
Show Error Message Properties
tab, enter the following properties:
Display Name
:
Task is more than 30 days old
Entity
:
Task
Error Message
:
Field
:
Description
Message
:
This task is more than 30 days old!
Localize error messages used in business rules
If you've more than one language provisioned for your organization, you'll want to localize any error messages that you have set. Each time you set a message, a label is generated by the system. If you export the translations in your organization, you can add localized versions of your messages and then import those labels back into the Dataverse, so that people using languages other than your base language can view the translated messages.
Common issues
This section describes common issues that may occur when you use business rules.
Composite attributes not supported with Unified Interface apps
Actions or conditions that use
Composite attributes
aren't supported in apps based on the Unified Interface. Alternatively, you can use actions or conditions on the attributes that comprise the composite attributes. For example, instead of using the
Full Name
(fullname) attribute, you can use the
First Name
(firstname) and
Last Name
(lastname) attributes.
A business rule may not execute because the field referenced in the business rule isn’t included with the form.
Open
solution explorer
. Expand the entity that you want and then select
Forms
.
Open the form that you want and then on the form designer ribbon select
Business Rules
.
In the form designer, open the business rule.
In the business rule designer, select each condition and action to verify all the fields referenced in each condition and action.
Can business rules unlock fields on a read-only form?
Yes, a business rule can unlock fields and edit actions on a read-only form.
How do I troubleshoot a business rule that isn't working?
See
Is your business rule not firing for a form?
in this article.
Do business rules react to changes made by an onLoad script?
No, they'll execute before an onload script is executed.
When I update a business rule, is it executed against all existing records?
No. Business rules are run on clients. For example, they run when a form is opened by a user and when a field value changes on that open form. They aren't executed inside Dataverse.
See also
Apply business logic in Microsoft Dataverse
