In the first article, we learned how the Power Pages was created at the backend. Actually, there was no difference with Portal creation. So, in this part, we will go thru some benefits and differences between Power Pages studio and Power Apps Portal studio.
When I tried to edit the Pages from make.powerapps.com- I got an error that I first need to navigate to Power Pages preview, where the Portal was created – make.powerpages.microsoft.com
Some Administration functionality (Site details, Admin settings) doesn’t work yet, the security and table setup works the same as in the PowerApps maker portal. So we will move on with the site editor where you can put your blocks, set up the layout and configure the content.
I have added the text and a list on a Subpage:
Go to Subpage settings to change the name and url:
You can add an entity list directly in the editor:
But you can’t add an entity form here:
Let’s try to create a page that will allow us to create records.
Here is the good part. Nice UX and the functionality actually works
Select the form mode, a more advanced set up is available in the Portal Management app.
And setup On submitting action. It is the same as in Portal Management:
Use drag and drop to rearrange pages:
The new page with Create record mode is immediately available for the list set up:
I navigate to a preview of the website, but I don’t have permissions as I am not logged in, so I log in and now I see the Create button:
When I navigated to a Create form I saw an old form without correct fields in it. It looks like this form editor does not work. Or the form is not updating for a table. I tried to clear the cache, and the link is the same as for Portal – https://<portal_url>/_services/about
So the form set up doesn’t work yet.
But the layout and UI settings work much better than in Portal editor. It is easy to separate section into several proportional parts. You can add new images directly from the editor and then set up the layout of the new image.
Changes are reflecting almost emmediately. Sometimes you need to click Sync button to refresh the page view.
The set up of the buttons is pretty easy. Spacer can also be ajusted by it’s height.
You can also add Power BI, iFrame, YouTube video in the page sections.
So, there is still many things for improvement and fixing on the Pages maker portal. For now, you can enjoy the UI setup as it works perfectly and much better than it is in Portal editor.