Skip to content

Let's POWER Automate

From no-code to low-code

Menu
  • Expressions
  • Filters
  • General
  • Problems
  • Triggers
  • Application specific solutions
    • Excel
    • Forms
    • Planner
    • Outlook
    • SharePoint
    • Teams
  • Resources
Menu

Update SharePoint column without new item version in Power Automate

Posted on March 21, 2021January 6, 2022 by Tom

“I’m using Power Automate to update a backup column with each user update on the item, how can I do it without doubling the item version?”


For some solutions, e.g. when triggering a flow on SP column update, you might need a ‘backup’ column. A column you’ll use to store a previous value of another column when user updates it. But if you have a separate action to update only that one column, it can mess up your versioning. Each user update will trigger the flow, and the flow will do another ‘sync’ update. One extra item version only to keep the columns synchronized. There has to be a better way to keep the versions under control.

SharePoint sync double version

Use HTTP request for the update

The solution is to use HTTP request for the ‘sync’ update. With HTTP request you have more control over the update than with the ‘Update item’ action. While the action allows you only to update columns, with HTTP request you can define additional parameters. And one of the parameters is ‘bNewDocumentUpdate’. By adding the parameter to the request Body you can tell the update to not create another item version.

"bNewDocumentUpdate": true

The full HTTP request format should be as below.

Uri: 
_api/web/lists/GetByTitle('<ListName>')/items(<ItemID>)/validateUpdateListItem

Body:
{
    "formValues":[
	{
	    "FieldName": "<FieldToUpdate>",
	    "FieldValue": "<ValueToUpdate>"
	}
    ],
"bNewDocumentUpdate": true
}
Power Automate HTTP update SP column without version

Updating the item with an HTTP request as above will add the ‘sync’ update to the already existing item version.

SharePoint sync single version

Summary

Even though Power Automate doesn’t offer such functionality directly, you can still update item column without a new item version. But you should use the ‘bNewDocumentUpdate’ parameter only to update system columns, never to update user columns. For user columns it should be always clear which user and when did an update, and you should never ‘overwrite’ it.

But if you just need to keep the number of ‘sync’ versions under control, it might be an optimal solution. Just keep in mind that even if it doesn’t create a new item version, it’s still an update that can cause infinite trigger loop.


Do you struggle with the various expressions, conditions, filters, or HTTP requests available in Power Automate?

I send one email per week with a summary of the new solutions, designed to help even non IT people to automate some of their repetitive tasks.

All subscribers have also access to resources like a SharePoint Filter Query cheat sheet or Date expressions cheat sheet.

Zero spam, unsubscribe anytime.

2 thoughts on “Update SharePoint column without new item version in Power Automate”

  1. Kevin says:
    September 24, 2021 at 1:08 pm

    It seems that this solution is not valid anymore. I tried this my own now and I get a error:502 BadGateway.

    {
    “error”: {
    “code”: 502,
    “source”: “europe-002.azure-apim.net”,
    “clientRequestId”: “a6b7f709-37f0-4bd5-954a-428a9608b913”,
    “message”: “BadGateway”,
    “innerError”: {
    “status”: 502,
    “message”: “Additions to this Web site have been blocked.\n\nPlease contact the administrator to resolve this problem.\r\nclientRequestId: a6b7f709-37f0-4bd5-954a-428a9608b913\r\nserviceRequestId: 639af29f-908c-1000-07d7-773ff2c67fab”,
    “source”: “https://***.sharepoint.com/sites/ndt-document-center/_api/web/Lists/GetbyTitle(‘Approved%20Documents’)/items(4626)/ValidateUpdateListItem”,
    “errors”: [
    “-2130575258”,
    “Microsoft.SharePoint.SPException”
    ]
    }
    }
    }

    Reply
    1. Tom says:
      September 26, 2021 at 7:26 pm

      Hello Kevin,
      that’s not a flow error, but an error on the side of SharePoint, maybe this: https://technologyblog.rsmus.com/microsoft/microsoft-365/office-365-error-additions-web-site-blocked-mystery-solved/.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

NOW AVAILABLE:

The Ultimate Power Automate expressions cheat sheet
Spend your time thinking about what the flow should do, not how to do it!

Do you struggle with the various expressions, conditions, filters, or HTTP requests available in Power Automate?

I send one email per week with a summary of the new solutions, designed to help even non IT people to automate some of their repetitive tasks.

All subscribers have also access to resources like a SharePoint Filter Query cheat sheet or Date expressions cheat sheet.

Zero spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Hello and welcome!

My name is Tom and I'm a business process automation consultant and Microsoft MVP living in the Czech Republic. I’ve been working with Microsoft technologies for almost 10 years, currently using mainly Power Automate, SharePoint, Teams, and the other M365 tools.

I believe that everyone can automate part of their work with the Power Automate platform. You can achieve a lot by "clicking" the flows in the designer, but you can achieve much more if you add a bit of coding knowledge. And that's what this blog is about.

To make the step from no-code Power Automate flows to low-code flows: using basic coding knowledge to build more complex yet more efficient flows to automate more of your daily tasks.

  • How to create a new SharePoint list column with Power Automate flowMay 22, 2022
  • How to combine expressions in your Power Automate flowsMay 18, 2022
  • Import Planner tasks with checklists into various buckets (Power Automate)May 15, 2022
  • How to get notified when Planner task was reassigned (Power Automate)May 11, 2022
  • How to extract value from XML using Power Automate flowMay 8, 2022

Power Automate blogs worth visiting

Damien Bird
Dennis (Expiscornovus)
Paul Murana

© 2022 Let's POWER Automate | Powered by Superbs Personal Blog theme