Missing Dependencies Error for Primary Name Column of Tables Created in Table Visual Designer Experience

With the recent introduction of the
new table visual designer in Power Apps, creating tables has become a streamlined, intuitive process. Accessible
through make.powerapps.com, this
designer provides an Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD) experience, allowing
users to define tables by simply describing their needs to Copilot.
Additionally, it enables importing data directly from sources like SharePoint
lists, Excel, or CSV files, making it even easier to build a data structure
from existing sources.

First Impressions: Benefits and Limitations

For those familiar with the conventional table creation process, the visual
designer can feel like a breath of fresh air. It simplifies and speeds up what
used to be a multi-step procedure. However, there are a few limitations to
keep in mind:

• Lack of Activity Table Creation: Currently, the designer does not
  support the creation of activity tables for which we still need to go to the
  Table “advanced properties” experience.
• Sync with Global Choice: For choice columns, it is not possible to create a global choice column with an existing set of choices or even a new one and share it among other choice columns created in the same table.
• Inability to Create Relationships with Existing Tables: Relationships
  can only be defined within tables created directly in the visual designer,
  which could disrupt data integration in complex models with pre-existing
  tables.

These limitations aside, the visual designer is a valuable tool for speeding
up table creation and enhancing the overall experience.

The Missing Dependencies Issue

Workaround Solution

While testing out this new designer, I encountered a more serious issue that
only appeared when moving tables between environments. After creating tables
in the visual designer, I exported the solution containing these tables, then
attempted to import it into another environment. Unfortunately, I was met with
an import error due to “Missing Dependencies.”

Diagnosing the Problem

Upon closer inspection, I found that the missing dependencies were related to
columns—specifically, the primary name columns of the tables created in the
visual designer. Oddly, these columns were listed as missing even though they
were part of the solution. It turns out that the solution.xml file had
unintentionally flagged these primary name columns within the
<MissingDependencies> tag, likely due to a bug in the designer, which is no longer in the
public preview.

Workaround Solution

Here is another workaround solution to update the solution.xml to bypass the “Missing
Dependencies” error:

1. Extract the Solution .zip File: Extract the exported solution .zip
   file.
2. Edit the solution.xml File: Open the solution.xml file and look for
   the <MissingDependency> tags that correspond to the primary name
   columns of the tables you created in the visual designer.
3. Remove the Tags for the Affected Columns: Delete the
   <MissingDependency> tags associated with these primary name columns.
   This step removes the erroneous dependency listings.
4. Repackage the Solution: Compress the modified files back into a .zip
   format.
5. Import the Solution: Re-import the solution. This time, it should
   successfully import without the missing dependency errors.

Conclusion

The new table visual designer in Power Apps offers a fantastic user
experience, speeding up table creation while integrating Copilot’s AI
capabilities. However, for those of us working in multi-environment setups,
this missing dependencies issue serves as a reminder to thoroughly test and
verify our solutions when using new tools and features.

If you face this issue, following the above workaround can save time and
prevent the frustration of an interrupted import. It’s a small but valuable
fix that can keep your project moving forward smoothly while Microsoft
addresses this bug.

Original Post http://linnzawwin.blogspot.com/2024/11/missing-dependencies-error-for-primary.html