Do you need to change the connections in your flow to use a service account?

A crucial aspect of creating flows is managing the connections, which enable your flows to access and interact with data from different sources.

For example, during the building and testing of your flows, you might use a test account. Then when you’re finished testing the flow, you’ll want to switch the connection account used.

This post will show you the different ways that you can change the connections used in your flows.

What is a Connection in Power Automate?

Power Automate enables you to create automated workflows between various applications and services.

Connections are essential components in Power Automate that allow you to access and manipulate data within different services, such as Dynamics 365, SharePoint, Outlook, and other third-party platforms.

By establishing the connections, you can integrate various services seamlessly. They allow you to enter the necessary authentication details once, and maintain access to the connected service for your flow.

Change Connections from the Connections Menu

Connections are such an important part of Power Automate that there is a dedicated menu for them.

This menu will list all your connections and allow you to manage them from a single location.

Here’s how you can change a connection with the Connections menu.

1. Click on the Connections option in the left hand menu of the Power Automate portal. This option might be hidden, but you can show and pin it to the menu by going to the More options and clicking on the Pin icon next to the Connections option.
2. Click on the Ellipses icon for the connection you want to change.
3. Select the Switch account option from the menu.

You’ll also notice when you click on any connection the same options will appear in the top menu.

Either way, this will open a window that will allow you to sign into a new account for the connection.

4. Click on the Use another account option and provide the new account details as needed.

This will update and change the connection for all your flows.

Always be cautious when making changes to connections and ensure the new connection has the required permissions needed to run your flows.

For example, suppose you have a flow using the Get items action in the SharePoint connector. If you change the SharePoint connection to a new account, this new account would need to have access to this list or the flow will fail.

Change Connections from an Action Settings

If you want to change the connection for a particular action within a particular flow, this is possible.

You’ll first need to locate that flow, then you’ll be able to update the connection from within the flow builder.

Here’s how to change the connection for any trigger or action within your flow.

1. Click on the Ellipses icon in the action whose connection you want to change.
2. Select a different connection under the My connections section or click on the the Add new connection option.

When you select a listed connection the action will be updated to use this connection. Otherwise, selecting to add a new connection will open a new window that allows you to enter the details of the new connection account.

This will only change the connection for the selected action. This means if you want to change the connection for the entire flow, you need to change it within each action.

Change Connections by Exporting and Importing the Flow

If you want to change all the connections but only within a single flow, then you will need to export and import the flow.

Export the Flow

You can easily export any flow from the My flows list.

1. Click on the My flows option in the lefthand menu of the Power Automate portal.
2. Click on the Ellipses icon for the flow which you want to export and change the connections.
3. Select the Export option.
4. Select the Package (.zip) option.

This will take you to the Export package screen where you will be able to customize the export.

5. Give the export package a Name. You can also fill in the Environment and Description details, but they are not required.
6. Choose whether you want to Update the existing flow when you import the export or Create as new. Choose the Create as new option if you don’t want to overwrite the original flow during any import. Otherwise, choose the Update option.
7. Ensure that the Select during import option is selected for each connection you want to change.
8. Press the Export button to export and download the flow zip package.

This will download the zip package to your usual download folder.

Import the Flow

Now that you have an export package, you will be able to import it and change the connections during the import.

Here’s how to import your flow and change the connections.

1. Go to the My flows menu.
2. Click on the Import menu at the top.
3. Select the Import Package (Legacy) option from the submenu.

This will open the Import package menu which allows you to choose the zip file and upload it to the Power Automate portal.

4. Press the Upload button and choose the zip file you want to upload.

This will open the Import package setup screen.

5. Click on the IMPORT SETUP link in the Flow to change the type of import. This allows you to either update the flow or import it as a new flow.

6. Choose either Update or Create as new for the Setup option. Choose Create as new if you don’t want to overwrite the original flow.
7. Add a Resource name for the flow. This should be a unique name from any of your current flows. This will be the display name shown in the My flows list.
8. Press the Save button.

9. Click on the IMPORT SETUP link for each of the Related resources connections listed.

10. Either click on Create new button to create a new connection or select the existing connection to use from the list.
11. Click the Save button.

When you click on the Create new button it will open another tab that shows you the Connections menu. You can click on the New Connection options to create your new connection. Then you’ll need to click on the Refresh list button in your import tab to see the new connection listed.

12. Press the Import button to import the flow as configured.

The flow will be imported and you should eventually see a success message.

Now you will be able to find the new flow listed in your My flows menu. Note the flow is disabled and will need to be enabled if you want it to run.

Click on the Ellipses icon for the flow and select the Turn on option to enable your flow.

You now have a copy of your flow with your updated/changed connections!

Conclusions

Power Automate’s connections play a crucial role in linking services used within your flows. Changing connections can be a necessary step when managing your automation processes.

The Connections menu allows you to see and manage all the connections used by your flows. This is an easy place to quickly update the connection in all places it’s used.

You can also update the connection used by individual actions from the action settings menu.

If you want to change connectors for a single flow without updating each action individually, this can be done by exporting and importing the flow.

Have you ever changed or updated the connections for your flow? Do you have any tips? Let me know in the comments!