Excel action Get Tables error, string is invalid for File field

[MateiC]

I've encountered a behaviour I don't understand with the Excel action Get Tables. I'm aware that this is a preview action, thus it's expected to raise issues.

I manually fill the Location, select the Doc Library from the UI dropdown, the brows for the file location through the UI dropdowns. This correctly grabs the file.

I need a flow that uses logic to determine which Excel file it needs from a Library, and then get that file from the Library. I created a SharePoint list that contains 3 columns, for the Location address, Doc Library name and File name.

If I then fill in the Get Tables fields with dynamic contect from this list, I get an error:

{
"status": 400,
"message": "The parameter 'file' has an invalid value '/Translation.xlsx'."
}

Translation.xlsx being the file name.

I then tested the Get tables action with Location and Doc Library manually selected, and the File field filled out through dynamic contect, which again triggered the error.

Finally I tried typing out the file name in the field, which again triggered the error.

From all this I assume that the File field is the only one that needs some kind of object type passed to it, instead of a string. My question now is if anyone understands the issue and has a workaround for this limitation, if I could Compose a string into the object type the File field expects.

[litus2002]

I have exactly the same problem.

[AlanPs1]

Would you mind posting a picture and some detail of your Flow and I will attempt to recreate?

[litus2002]

Hi!

This is what I tried to do in Flow:

The problem is that the "file" input ("archivo") does not accept a variable.

I finally found an alternative way of doing this. Just a little trickly, but working at the end..

[MateiC]

I am interested in the alternative solution you found, if you could post it.

[moutinhoabreu]

I've exactly the same problem with the field "file" in all excel Actions when using dynamic data.

Every time you try to fill the file location thtough a dynamic field it returns an error: 

The bold is the archive name,.

{

"status": 400,

"message": "The parameter 'file' has an invalid value '/Documentos Partilhados/IT/Templates Mbc/Mapas recapitulativos 12.xlsx'."

}

My scenario is:

1. Blank excel in a sharepoint location
2. get the content from blank excel - Sucesss
3. create a copy from that content. (dynamic data from previous action) - Sucesss
4. Get excel worksheets - Failed with error
5.  Fill in table with data from an SQL data.  - Failed with error

 Does anyone was able to solve this issue ?

[litus2002]

I solved it in a weird way:

1. When a file is created in a sharepoint library...
2. Create a new file in another sharepoint library (using the blob object the step 1 gives to you). This file will work as a temporal file, with a pre-fixed name that it's always the same file name.
3. Browse rows of a excel file. I created previously that temporally file, so this time this action works well, and will work also when the flow is executed.
4. Filter matrix... (to select the rows I want based on the value of one column)
5. For each .... Insert a new item in a sharepoint list

Something like this:

And it works  

[moutinhoabreu]

Could you show the excel action "Enumerar las filas de una tabla" aka Get rows of a table.

Not sure if i understood .

Trigger: Everytime an file is created in a specific location

Action: Create a file with dynamic content file from trigger.

Action: Get rows of a table in excel. " but the excel file was created manually" 

(...)

But at the end you're not using dynamic fields on the excel action ?

[litus2002]

The key is that, in step #2, you overwrite always the same file.

In step #3 you always do a query over the same excel file name, but different contents, as the step #2 overwrites that file with the one in step #1

I'm sorry if I can't explain better this solution

[moutinhoabreu]

It seems a good workaround while this feature isn't in place.

Gracias !!!

[teqs]

Any news on this?

{ "status": 400, "message": "The parameter 'file' has an invalid value '/xxx.xxx/yyy.zzz.xlsx'." }

Even with a 100% correct file path. I tried a lot of things to solve, but nothing works. Still no real solution for this available?

I have really problems in my solutions without getting done to use a dynamic file path. I hope for a solution. 😞

[DataViz]

I am having the exact same error. Any updates on this?

[jimbul]

@MateiC  @DataViz @teqs  @moutinhoabreu  @litus2002  i've also found any kind of dynamic input to the filename/path breaks the excel connector in Flow.

BUT if you use the file ID as your file name - instead of a dynamically generated file name - the flow runs succesfully. After banging my head against  a wall for a few hours i tried the following using an expression in the 'File' field that pulls the ID from my OneDrive for Business Create file action further up in the Flow:

And hey presto:

woohoo 🙂

[MateiC]

Thank you for sharing jimbul. Your solution works when the files you need are created in the same Flow, and can refer to those objects in the Excel action. This is good to know.

If the files you need are already created outside of the Flow (e.g. located on SharePoint), then you would still need to refer to them within Flow dynamically through any action, to get the file's ID first.

[jimbul]

Absolutely - does get files/use ID not work with excel and files in sharepoint? @MateiC 

[MateiC]

My initial unresolved problem is in using the same action to call different files depending on other previous conditions. Even if I used an ID instead of composing a file name, I cannot use a specific file ID unless I add it to a variable, with the variable being used in the Excel action, but I remember this didn't work. It's been a year since I've needed this workaround, but now I'm curious to look at it again and see if I can get it working.

[teqs]

I also still have the same problem. Is no MVP arround who can help us or Microsoft to make a fix?

How long it takes that MS fix something?

The path in Excel-Action should be able to be generated also by text or with concating text with text-variables. But I still get no solution for this.

I have a variable file-name and variable folder-names, which should be dynamically entered in the Excel-action path to the specific related excel file at execution of the flow. 

This must be possible!

[rifbukalan]

I encountered the same issue as well. However, I was able to resolve this by using the 'File Identifier' instead of "File Path', 'File ID' or 'File Name'.

@MateiC @teqs @jimbul @DataViz @moutinhoabreu 

[panterra]

That worked for me too. Thank you very much for sharing.

[BambaSeye]

By using "Get file properties" action, you can get the "Identifier" and use it for filename.

Thanks !