Desktop flows and RPA

Automating old desktop software with Power Automate Desktop.

📖 Key ideas

Power Automate Desktop records and replays clicks and typing on Windows apps and websites.
It suits old systems with no API.
UI elements are found by selectors, which must be stable.
Desktop flows can be called from cloud flows.
Attended runs need a person present; unattended runs on a machine by themselves.

💡 Real-life example: Like teaching a very patient assistant to copy data from one screen to another, exactly as you showed them.

Desktop flowAutomation of desktop and browser actions

RPARobotic process automation

SelectorHow a flow finds a screen element

UnattendedRuns without a person present