How to Manage Knowledge Base in PowerApps Portal

A knowledge base within a customer portal is an invaluable resource that brings convenience and efficiency to customers’ fingertips. It is a centralized information hub, empowering users to find solutions, troubleshoot problems, and gain deeper insights into products and services.

With a well-curated knowledge base, customers can access a wealth of self-help materials tailored to their needs. It provides comprehensive documentation, tutorials, FAQs, and best practices, enabling users to become self-sufficient and find answers to their queries independently. Instead of waiting for customer support or sifting through multiple channels, customers can simply search the knowledge base and find the information they need in a matter of seconds.

If you’re a Dynamics 365 CRM user, let’s take a look at the knowledge base offered for the PowerApps portal:

How to add a knowledge base in the PowerApps portal

Using different methods to display the KB article content on the webpage.

1. Table Permissions:

• Create a new Table Permission record and select ‘Knowledge Article’ as the Table Name.
• Choose the appropriate Website Lookup and set the Access Type as ‘Global.’
• In the Privileges sub-grid, choose ‘Read’ and save the record.
• Add Web Roles to the Table Permission record to specify who can access the KB Articles.

2. Add Fetch Query on Custom Webpage:

• Insert the fetch query inside the main block (e.g., `{% block main %}`) of your custom webpage.
• Customize the fetch query based on your requirements.

3. Add KB Article to the Portal from Web Template:

• Use Liquid syntax to retrieve the KB Article content in the web template. Assign the retrieved article to a variable (e.g., `{% assign article = articlefetch.results.entities[0] %}`).
• Display the article content within a `< p >` tag on the portal using Liquid syntax (e.g., `< p class=”description” id=”content”>{{article.content}}< /p >`).

4. Add KB Article to the Portal Using jQuery:

• Retrieve the KB Article content in the web template using Liquid and store it in a JavaScript variable.
• To avoid issues with special characters, use backticks (`) instead of double quotes (“) to wrap the content (e.g., ``).
• Use custom JavaScript to manipulate the webpage and insert the KB Article content at a specific location. In your example, you append the content after a lookup field using the `append()` method (e.g., `$(“#mag_occupation_name”).parent().after(articleContent);`).

Challenges and limitations of adding KB in the PowerApps portal

When adding Knowledge Base (KB) Articles to a Power Apps Portal, there can be several challenges and limitations to consider:

1. Configuration Complexity: Configuring the Power Apps Portal to display KB Articles can be complex, especially when it involves setting up table permissions, creating fetch queries, and customizing web templates. It may require a good understanding of the portal’s configuration and customization options.
2. Access Control: Ensuring proper access control to KB Articles can be challenging. You need to carefully manage table permissions and web roles to restrict access to authorized users while still allowing the intended audience to view and modify the content.
3. Search and Filtering: Implementing robust search and filtering functionality for KB Articles within the Power Apps Portal can be a challenge. It may require custom development to provide efficient and user-friendly search capabilities based on specific criteria or keywords.
4. Content Synchronization: If the KB Articles are managed in Dynamics 365 or another external system, keeping the content in sync between the external system and the Power Apps Portal can be a limitation. Any updates or changes made to the KB Articles in the external system may require manual synchronization with the portal.
5. Performance Considerations: Depending on the size and complexity of the KB Articles, loading and displaying the content on the Power Apps Portal pages can impact performance. Care should be taken to optimize the retrieval and rendering of the articles to ensure a smooth user experience.
6. Customization Limitations: The customization options within the Power Apps Portal may have certain limitations that can affect the way KB Articles are displayed or interacted with. Customizing the portal beyond the available options may require advanced development skills and might be subject to platform constraints.
7. Versioning and Approval Processes: If the KB Articles undergo versioning or approval processes, managing these workflows within the Power Apps Portal can be challenging. Ensuring that only approved versions are displayed, tracking changes, and managing the review process may require additional customizations.
8. Multilingual Support: If the Power Apps Portal needs to support multiple languages for KB Articles, handling translation and localization of the content can be a challenge. It may involve implementing language-specific templates, managing language variations, and ensuring consistent translation across the portal.
9. Scalability and Performance: As the number of KB Articles grows, scalability and performance can become a concern. The Power Apps Portal should be able to handle a large volume of articles without compromising performance or usability.

It’s important to thoroughly assess these challenges and limitations before implementing KB Articles in a Power Apps Portal project. Planning and understanding the specific requirements of your customers can help mitigate these challenges and provide an effective solution.

Overview of Dynamics 365 customer portal and how to manage KB in Dynamics 365 customer portal

Dynamics 365 Portal is a feature-rich third-party portal offered by CRMJetty. One of the first things we wanted to include when we made this product was an easy-to-configure and easy-to-use knowledge management system. So we did. Here’s how to manage knowledgebase in Dynamics 365 customer portal.

Customer Portal offers features like a Drag-and-Drop builder, configurable widgets, 360° Entity Management, Role-based access, and more.

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