Migrating Legacy InfoPath & SharePoint to Power Platform

InfoPath support creates a looming deadline for many IT departments. Yet, organizations still run critical business processes on deprecating technology like InfoPath 2013, SharePoint 2010/2013 workflows, or even Lotus Notes. Migration is not just about lifting and shifting; it's about modernization.

1. Assess and Prioritize

The first step in any migration project is discovery. It's rare that 100% of legacy forms need to be migrated.

• Usage Analysis: Use logs to identify which forms are actually being used. Archive the rest.
• Complexity Scoring: Categorize forms into Simple (basic data entry), Medium (some logic/approvals), and Complex (custom code, deep integrations).

2. Choosing the Right Data Source

Legacy forms often used SharePoint Lists as a database. While SharePoint is great for documents, it is not a relational database.

For enterprise-grade applications, we strongly recommend migrating data to Microsoft Dataverse. It offers:

• Relational Capability: Proper handling of one-to-many and many-to-many relationships.
• Security: Granular row-level and column-level security.
• Scalability: Handling millions of records without performance degradation.

3. Rebuilding vs. Refactoring

Power Apps is not a 1:1 replacement for InfoPath; it is far more powerful. Don't just copy the layout of the old form.

• Power Apps Canvas Apps: Best for pixel-perfect, mobile-friendly interfaces for frontline workers.
• Model-Driven Apps: Ideal for complex back-office data entry and process management, leveraging the native Dataverse forms.

4. Replacing Designs with Power Automate

SharePoint Designer workflows are rigid. Power Automate provides a modern, visual designer for approval flows. We can implement:

• Sequential and Parallel approvals.
• Escalation paths for overdue tasks.
• Integration with Microsoft Teams for instant notifications.

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