Problem Description

In Microsoft Power Automate Desktop, premium users can conveniently use the Log message action to log a custom text message with a severity level of Info, Warning or Error in the flow run action details. However, if you are using the free version, this action is not available.

This article explains how to implement a simple logging mechanism by combining standard actions to write timestamped log entries to a text file.

Why is logging important?

Logging is a best practice when building automation flows. It helps you to:

• Debug errors—When something goes wrong, log files provide a trace of what actions were performed and where the issue occurred.

• Monitor flow execution—You can verify that flows are running as expected, and check how often they run.

• Maintain audit trail—Logs can provide an audit trail for compliance and tracking purposes.

• Troubleshoot production issues—In production environments, logs are often the only way to understand issues after they occur.

By having proper logs, you save time on troubleshooting and improve the reliability and robustness of your automations.