Two Automation Models: Cloud and Desktop
Power Automate offers two distinct automation models. Cloud flows run entirely in Microsoft's cloud, connecting to services via APIs and connectors, and are triggered by events like a new SharePoint item or a scheduled time. Desktop flows are Robotic Process Automation (RPA): they record and replay mouse clicks, keystrokes, and UI interactions on a Windows machine, automating legacy desktop apps and websites that have no API.
Cricket analogy: Cloud flows are like a live scoring system pulling data directly from the stadium's electronic sensors, while desktop flows are like a scorer manually replicating a colleague's exact pen strokes on a paper scoresheet.
When to Use Cloud Flows
Cloud flows are the right choice whenever the systems involved expose an API or a Power Automate connector, since they run reliably in the cloud without needing a dedicated machine to stay on, and they scale automatically with Microsoft's infrastructure. They're ideal for automating modern SaaS integrations, notifications, approvals, and data synchronization between systems like SharePoint, Dynamics 365, and Salesforce.
Cricket analogy: Choosing a cloud flow is like relying on Hawk-Eye ball-tracking technology, which works because the stadium already has the sensor infrastructure built in, rather than sending someone out to manually judge each delivery.
When to Use Desktop Flows
Desktop flows step in where cloud flows can't reach: legacy Windows applications, mainframe terminal emulators, or websites without a usable API. Built with Power Automate Desktop, they use UI element recognition (or, as a fallback, image and coordinate matching) to interact with applications exactly as a human would, and they require an on-premises data gateway or an attended/unattended machine to actually execute the recorded actions.
Cricket analogy: Desktop flows are like a substitute fielder trained to mimic a specific player's exact catching technique, stepping in only where no automated sensor system exists to do the job.
// Example Power Automate Desktop action sequence (pseudo-script view)
Launch Excel -> ExcelInstance
Read from Excel worksheet -> ExcelData (Range: 'A2:C50')
Loop for each row in ExcelData
Attach to window 'Legacy Order Entry'
Populate text field 'CustomerID' with %CurrentItem.CustomerID%
Populate text field 'OrderQty' with %CurrentItem.Qty%
Press button 'Submit'
Wait for image 'confirmation_banner.png' (timeout: 10s)
End
Close ExcelDesktop flows can be run in attended mode (a user is logged in and can watch, useful for semi-manual processes) or unattended mode (runs on a schedule without a logged-in user, requiring a Process Automation license and an unattended machine registered with a gateway).
UI-based selectors in desktop flows are fragile: if a legacy application's window title, button label, or layout changes after an update, the recorded selector can silently fail to match. Always add explicit Wait and error-handling actions (On Block Error) rather than assuming the UI will always look the same.
- Cloud flows run in Microsoft's cloud and connect via APIs and connectors.
- Desktop flows perform RPA, automating UI interactions on Windows machines.
- Cloud flows are preferred whenever an API or connector exists for the target system.
- Desktop flows fill the gap for legacy apps, terminal emulators, and API-less websites.
- Desktop flows can run attended (user present) or unattended (scheduled, headless).
- Unattended desktop flows require a Process Automation license and gateway-registered machine.
- UI selectors are fragile and should be paired with explicit error handling.
Practice what you learned
1. What is the primary distinction between a cloud flow and a desktop flow?
2. When would a desktop flow be the appropriate choice?
3. What does 'unattended' mode mean for a desktop flow?
4. Why are UI selectors in desktop flows considered fragile?
5. Which licensing/infrastructure item is typically required to run unattended desktop flows?
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The Flow Designer
A tour of the Power Automate flow designer canvas, how to work with dynamic content and expressions, and how to test and debug a flow.
Your First Flow
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