Global variables in a Canvas app are accessible from any screen in the app, which makes them useful for storing data that needs to be shared across screens or used throughout the app. Global variables can be created and initialized in the Variables pane in the Power Apps Studio.
To create a global variable, you can follow these steps:
- Open the Variables pane in the Power Apps Studio.
- Click on the “New variable” button to create a new variable.
- In the “Type” dropdown menu, select “Global” to create a global variable.
- Enter a name for the variable and choose its data type.
- Optionally, you can set a default value for the variable.
Once a global variable has been created, it can be used in any screen in the app. To reference a global variable, you can use the “Set” function to assign a value to the variable or retrieve its value.
For example, if you have a global variable named “LoggedInUser” that stores the username of the current user, you can set its value in the app’s OnStart property with the following code:
Set(LoggedInUser, User().FullName)
In this example, the User() function is used to retrieve the name of the current user and assign it to the global variable. Once the variable has been set, it can be used in any screen in the app by referencing its name, like this:
Label1.Text = LoggedInUser
In this example, the text property of a label control is set to the value of the global variable “LoggedInUser”.
Global variables are useful for creating dynamic and interactive apps that respond to user input and update data in real-time. They can be used to store data like user preferences, app settings, or data retrieved from a data source.