Custom Connector Creation for Azure Web App REST API | PL-400 Exam Preparation

Tools for API Definition Creation

Question

You create an Azure Web App and want your Power Apps app to use a custom connector to consume the Azure Web App REST API.

What tools should you consider for the creation of API definition?

Answers

Explanations

Click on the arrows to vote for the correct answer

A. B. C. D. E. F.

Correct Answers: A, C and E

A custom connector is an API wrapper around the REST API.

You can create such a wrapper for Azure Functions, Azure Web Apps, Azure API apps.

When you create your application using one of these services, you need to describe the API's operations before you can export your application's APIs.

There are three approaches to how to create the API definitions: Using a blank custom connector.

Using an Open API definition.

Using a Postman Collection.

Then you need to secure your Web APIs and set the authentication type for your custom connector.

In the end, when you test a new custom connector, you can use it in Poser Apps, Power Automate, and Azure Logic Apps.

All other options are incorrect.

For more information about creating API definitions, please visit the below URLs:

To create a custom connector in Power Apps for your Azure Web App REST API, you need to define the API's schema, including endpoints, operations, parameters, and responses. There are several tools you can consider for this task:

A. OpenAPI: It is a widely used standard for defining REST APIs, formerly known as Swagger. With OpenAPI, you can describe the API using YAML or JSON syntax, and generate documentation, SDKs, and server stubs. Power Apps supports importing OpenAPI documents to create custom connectors automatically.

B. Web API: It is a framework for building RESTful services in .NET, using C# or Visual Basic. Web API allows you to define routes, controllers, models, and middleware to handle HTTP requests and responses. You can create an Azure Web App and deploy a Web API project to it, and then use a custom connector in Power Apps to call its endpoints.

C. Blank custom connector: It is a template in Power Apps that lets you create a custom connector from scratch, without importing any API definition. You can define the connector's base URL, authentication, headers, and actions, and map the request and response data using Power Apps expressions. This option is suitable if you have a simple API or want to have full control over the connector's behavior.

D. PCF Component: It is a framework for building reusable components in Power Apps, using TypeScript, React, and other web technologies. PCF components can interact with data sources and APIs using custom connectors, and expose their functionality as user interface elements. However, PCF components are more suitable for building UI components than defining APIs.

E. Postman Collection: It is a format for organizing and sharing API requests and responses, using the Postman app or a JSON file. With Postman, you can create collections of API calls, including headers, parameters, and tests, and run them in sequence or parallel. You can export a Postman collection to an OpenAPI document, and then import it into Power Apps as a custom connector.

F. Organization service: It is a web service provided by Dynamics 365 and Power Platform to interact with Common Data Service (CDS) data and metadata. The Organization service exposes a SOAP and a REST endpoint, and supports authentication using OAuth 2.0 or Active Directory. While the Organization service is not designed for generic APIs, you can use it to extend CDS entities and operations, and then consume them in Power Apps using custom connectors. However, this option is more complex and specific than the others.

In summary, the best tools for creating an API definition for your Azure Web App REST API and using it in a custom connector in Power Apps are OpenAPI and Web API, followed by Postman Collection and Blank custom connector. PCF Component and Organization service are less suitable for this scenario.