Force App Updates In Power Apps

I’m pretty sure every Power Apps maker has experienced publishing an app update but the end-user doesn’t receive it. There a few reasons why this might happen including the device has the old version stored in cache or the user didn’t click on the update prompt at the top of the screen (why is that optional?). Today I’m going to share a solution with you designed by my good friend Gareth Prisk. In this article I will show you how to force app updates in Power Apps so you’ll never have to worry about it again.

Table of Contents:
Introduction: The Inspections App
Power Apps Versions SharePoint List
The Four Screens Approach
#1 - Loading Screen
#2 - Success Screen
#3 - Incorrect Version Screen
#4 - Admin Screen
Checking The App Version
Making An App Update

Introduction: The Inspections App

The inspections app is used by mechanics at an automobile parts manufacturer to log the results of equipment inspections. When the I/T department publishes an updated app the mechanics receive a new version of it on their device. If the app fails to update for any reason the mechanic is not allowed to proceed with the inspection and is prompted to force an app update by following a set of simple instructions.

Power Apps Versions SharePoint List

Start Create a new SharePoint List called Power Apps Versions with two columns:

• Title (single-line text) – name of the app
• VersionNumber (text) – current app version number
  
  

Input the following data:

In this example we are making the Inspections App together but I wanted to show this table can hold the version number for as many apps as you like.

The Four Screens Approach

The inspections app has four screens. Before writing any code we will design each one of them.

1. Loading Screen
2. Success Screen
3. Incorrect Version Screen
4. Admin Screen

#1 – Loading Screen

Open Power Apps Studio and create a new app from blank called Inspections App. Make a new screen called Loading Screen. When the mechanic opens the app this is the first screen they see. The app checks to make sure the version number matches the current version in the SharePoint List then it loads any required data.

We’ll get back to the code version checking code soon. For now just design the screen. If you like you can make it look fancy with loading spinners or a progress bar.

To set the app version number put this code inside the OnStart property of the app.

Set(varAppVersion, "1.00");

Then use this code in the text property of the version number label.

"v"&varAppVersion

#2 – Success Screen

If the app version number on the device is the current published version number the app data will begin to load and the mechanic will see a success message. Make a simple screen that looks like the one below.

#3 – Incorrect Version Screen

If the app version on the device does not match the current published version number a warning message will appear. The screen below shows the mechanic instructions on how to force an app update on a tablet/phone.

Forcing an app update on a desktop/laptop computer is done different. Although our example uses a tablet I’ve made a sample screen below.

#4 – Admin Screen

The mechanic never sees this screen but it is important for the app maker to have a way to disable the app’s loading process. Loading starts automatically so without an off switch the app would never allow edits after the 1st version.
Place a toggle on the screen called tog_AutoLoad….

…and set the Default property of the button to true. Then immediately press the toggle and set it to false. We need to disable the autoload while we write the version checking code.

true

Checking The App Version

Now that we’ve created all of the required screens go back to the loading screen and insert a button called btn_Loading_Process.

When mechanic opens the app it triggers the button is automatically pressed. Write this code in the OnVisible property of the Loading Screen.

If(
    tog_Autoload.Value,
    Select(btn_Loading_Process)
)

Then write this code in the OnSelect property of the button. If the app version number matches the current version number in SharePoint the success screen will be shown, otherwise,

If(
     varAppVersion = LookUp(
         'Power Apps Versions',
         Title = "Inspections App",
         VersionNumber
     ),
     Navigate('Success Screen'),
     Navigate('Incorrect Version Screen (Tablet)')
 )

Make sure to set the Visible property of the button to false. The mechanic doesn’t need to see it.

false

That’s it, we’re done! Go ahead & test the Inspections App with a matching version number and a non-matching version number to make sure it works.

Making An App Update

Remember, with the forced updates system in place everytime a new app version is released you must:

1. Increment the app version in the OnStart property to the next number.
2. Update the Power Apps Versions SharePoint List with the matching number.

This doesn’t mean you have to do it each time the app is published. Rather, you should change the version when transferring an app from your development environment to the production environment.

Questions?

If you have any questions or feedback about Force App Updates In Power Apps please leave a message in the comments section below. You can post using your email address and are not required to create an account to join the discussion.