Microsoft has launched a new feature as part of Power Platform called Power Pages. This allows you to create secure externally facing business websites quickly and easily. This product comes in place of PowerApps Portals and offers extended functionality beyond what was possible with the previous solution. Based on the first impressions of the trial, we can clearly see a heavy lean toward an easier-to-use, low-code focus on the new offering.
The new look design studio makes it easy to get started and the templates hub gives a list of suggested demo items letting you jump-start creating your website. The WYSIWYG editor makes it very easy to customise without a heavy development focus.
However, as well as being a low code solution you can use Visual Studio Code to expand the capabilities using JavaScript and other web APIs. This means that professional developers can improve on existing templates available within the system.
Given its role within the Power Platform, Power Pages are deeply integrated with the other Microsoft Power Platform components.
- Dataverse allows for the storage and management of data connected to other business applications, you can then use model-driven apps to construct forms and views of this data and surface it with other Dataverse data.
- Power Apps have been used extensively to create applications that use SharePoint to store content for internal business processes. Power Pages is not ideal for creating websites aimed at external audiences that require secure access to data and business information.
- Power Automate allows for workflows to be created to interact with the data that is being generated and created within Power Pages.
- Power BI will allow for insights into the data that has been generated and for connecting with other data that sits outside the Dataverse or within other Microsoft business applications.
- Power Virtual Agents can allow for chatbots to be created on your power pages site to allow for externally facing users to handle common FAQs quickly and easily.
The system is now available for a 30-day trial with a Microsoft work or school account. Reach out to the Biz Apps Team if you need help getting started.
Ian Jones - Biz Apps Solutions Architect
Ian has been working with Aspira for the past 9 years, with a heavy focus in developing solutions for business using Microsoft Technology. He works as a solutions architect with the business applications team, delivering solutions using SharePoint, Dynamics, Project Online and the Power Platform for a variety of clients across many industries.
