Conditionals in Power Automate Desktop

What are Flow Conditionals in Power Automate Desktop?

In Power Automate Desktop, a conditional is a way for your automation to make decisions based on certain conditions. It’s like telling your computer: "If something is true, do this; otherwise, do that."

Think of it like a fork in the road. Your flow will go one way if the condition is true, and another way if the condition is false. This helps you control how your automation behaves based on different situations.

Real-Life Example:

Imagine you have a flow that checks if a file is in a folder. If the file exists, it will open the file; if the file doesn’t exist, it will show a message saying "File not found."

Here, the condition checks if the file is there. If the condition is true (the file exists), it opens the file. If the condition is false (the file doesn’t exist), it shows the message.

Types of Flow Conditionals in Power Automate Desktop

There are several types of flow conditionals in Power Automate Desktop. Let’s explore the most common ones.

1. If-Else Condition

The If-Else condition is the most basic and common type of conditional. It lets you ask a question, and based on the answer, the flow will take different actions. You can think of it like a simple yes/no question.

If the condition is true: Do one set of actions.
If the condition is false: Do another set of actions.

How it Works:

You create a condition that asks a question, like "Is the file in the folder?" If the answer is yes (true), it does one thing (like opening the file). If the answer is no (false), it does something else (like showing a "File not found" message).

Real-Life Example:

Let’s say you want to send a reminder email if an assignment is due tomorrow. You can use an If-Else condition to check if today’s date is equal to the due date.

Condition: "Is today’s date equal to the due date?"
- If yes (True): Send reminder email.
- If no (False): Don’t send email.

2. Switch Case Condition

The Switch Case condition is useful when you have multiple conditions to check. Instead of asking just one question, you can check for many different possibilities and decide what to do based on each one.

Think of it as a series of options. You check for different cases and take different actions for each case.

How it Works:

With a Switch Case, you’re asking: "Which of these options is true?" Then, based on the answer, you execute the right set of actions.

Real-Life Example:

Let’s say you want to automate a flow that assigns different grades to students. You can use the Switch Case to check the grade and then do different actions for each grade.

Condition: "What is the student’s grade?"
- Case 1: If the grade is A: Send a "Great Job!" message.
- Case 2: If the grade is B: Send a "Good Job!" message.
- Case 3: If the grade is C: Send a "Needs Improvement" message.
- Case 4: If the grade is anything else: Send a "Please meet with your teacher" message.

3. Loop with Conditional Checks (For Each/While)

Sometimes, you need to check conditions multiple times, especially when you're working with lists or repetitive tasks. In this case, loops combined with conditionals are super helpful.

There are two common types of loops:

For Each Loop: Loops through every item in a list.
While Loop: Loops as long as a condition is true.

You can combine loops with conditionals to check each item in a list and take different actions based on the condition.

Real-Life Example:

Let’s say you have a list of students, and you want to check if each student has completed their assignment. You can use a For Each loop to go through each student and check their assignment status.

Loop: For each student in the list, check if the assignment is completed.
- Condition: "Is the assignment completed?"
  - If yes: Send "Thank you for submitting!"
  - If no: Send a "Reminder to submit" message.

How to Use Flow Conditionals in Power Automate Desktop

Now, let’s go through a simple example of how to use the If-Else condition in Power Automate Desktop.

Example: Check if File Exists and Open It

Imagine you have a folder with a document called "Assignment.docx", and you want to automatically open the file if it exists.

Create a Condition:
- Check if the file exists in the folder. This is our condition.
Add Actions Based on Condition:
- If True: If the file exists, open the file.
- If False: If the file doesn’t exist, show a message saying "File not found."

Here’s how this would look in the Flow Designer:

Action 1: Use the Check if file exists action to check if the file "Assignment.docx" is in the folder.
Action 2: Add the If-Else action:
- If True: Add the action to open the file.
- If False: Add an action to display a message saying "File not found."

Key Differences Between If-Else and Switch Case

Both If-Else and Switch Case help you make decisions in your flow, but they work in different ways. Here's a simple comparison:

Feature	If-Else	Switch Case
Use Case	Best for simple yes/no decisions.	Best for multiple options/choices.
Number of Conditions	Usually checks one condition.	Can check many different conditions.
Flexibility	Can have just two outcomes (true/false).	Can have multiple outcomes for each case.
Example	Check if a file exists or not.	Check a student’s grade and send a message.

Conclusion

To wrap it up, flow conditionals in Power Automate Desktop allow you to make decisions in your automation, telling your computer to take different actions based on certain conditions.

Here’s a quick recap of the types of conditionals:

If-Else: Best for simple yes/no decisions.
Switch Case: Great for handling multiple conditions or choices.
Loops with Conditions: Useful when you need to check conditions repeatedly (for lists or repetitive tasks).

With conditionals, your flows become smarter because they can adapt to different situations. You can automate more complex tasks, like checking if an assignment is due or sending reminders based on student grades!

I hope this helps you understand flow conditionals in Power Automate Desktop. If you have any questions or want more examples, feel free to ask. Happy automating! 😊

KT Sessions

Conditionals in Power Automate Desktop