You create a canvas app that uses a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet as a data source. The spreadsheet contains a list of pets. Each column in the spreadsheet is a different attribute about a pet. You need to create an interface to allow users to save a new pet record to the spreadsheet. What is the minimum number of controls you need to implement to create the interface?

The most efficient and minimal way to create an interface for adding a new record to a data source in a canvas app is by using an Edit form control and a Button control. The Edit form control, when connected to the Excel data source and set to FormMode.New, will automatically generate the necessary input fields for all columns (pet attributes). The Button control is then configured to trigger the SubmitForm function, which saves the new data from the form to the connected Excel spreadsheet. This two-control combination fulfills the requirement with the minimum number of components.

A. One control: an edit form control: An edit form control alone only provides the fields for data entry; it does not have a built-in, user-interactive mechanism to trigger the save action.
C. Three controls: a text input control, a date picker control, and a combo box control: This combination provides controls for data input but lacks a control to initiate the action of saving the record to the data source.
D. Four controls: a text input control, a date picker control, a combo box control, and a button control: While this method works (using the Patch function), it is not the minimum. An Edit form control consolidates all required input fields into a single control, making it more minimal than using multiple individual input controls.

1. Microsoft Learn. (2023). Edit form and Display form controls in Power Apps.

Section: "Key properties" and "How to configure a form".

Content: The documentation explicitly describes using a Form control to work with a data source and a separate control

such as a Button

to execute the SubmitForm function. It states

"To save the data in a form

you call the SubmitForm function from the OnSelect property of a Button or an Image control." This confirms the necessity of both a form and a trigger control.

2. Microsoft Learn. (2023). Understand data forms in Microsoft Power Apps.

Section: "How forms work".

Content: This document provides a step-by-step guide for creating a basic app with a form. The process involves adding a form to a screen and then adding a button or an icon (like a checkmark) to submit the form's data. This demonstrates the standard two-component pattern (form + button/icon) as the fundamental method for data submission.

3. Microsoft Learn. (2023). SubmitForm function in Power Apps.

Section: "Syntax" and "Description".

Content: The documentation for the SubmitForm function shows its usage within the OnSelect property of a button control. The example syntax is Button.OnSelect = SubmitForm( EditForm1 )

which directly supports the answer that a button is required to trigger the submission of the form control.