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Dynamics 365 licensing and access management basics
July 9, 2025
10 mins read

Dynamics 365 licensing and access management basics

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"We assigned the licence. Why can’t they log in?"

For many IT Operations teams, managing Dynamics 365 feels like tiptoeing through a minefield of licences, environments, and entitlements.

One admin summed it up like this:

“We’re paying for licences, but people still can’t access what they need. I just want to keep the system running.”

Dynamics 365 licensing is confusing but makes sense once you understand the principles. Between base licences, attach licences, user vs. capacity models, and silent limits on environments, even experienced IT pros get blindsided.

This is the first part of our Dynamics 365 licensing series. In this post, we’ll break down the key licensing concepts that matter for IT operations in 2025, without repeating the entire Microsoft guide.

Why your users have licences but still can’t access D365

Let’s start with the most frustrating scenario: your users are licensed, but they still hit access errors.

Here’s why that happens:

  • A licence doesn’t guarantee access to the environment. Users need permissions to the right environment and the underlying database.
  • Some roles need more than one licence. A single app licence (like for Finance) might not be enough if the user also needs to work in another module (like Sales).
  • Attach licences only work if you have a valid base licence. You can’t stack attach licences on a user without a qualifying base licence in place.

And don’t forget: environments and storage come with limits too. If the environment is out of capacity or misconfigured, licensing won’t save you.

D365 licensing basics

Here’s what actually matters to IT Operations teams:

The three licence types you’ll encounter most

  • User licence: The most common. Tied to a named user.
  • Device licence: For shared workstations or kiosks, especially in warehouses or retail.
  • Tenant licence: Grants capacity (like storage or API calls) at the environment or tenant level.

Base vs. Attach licences

  • Base licence: The first licence a user gets. It must be the most expensive one they need.
  • Attach licence: Discounted licences for additional apps. Only valid if you have a base licence from the right product family.

Many teams overpay by assigning multiple base licences instead of using attach licences strategically.

“We’re cleaning up old users — what do we do with the licences?”

This is a common scenario. Old users are still active in Entra ID or assigned licences in the Microsoft 365 Admin Centre, but nobody’s checked if they even use the system.

Here’s what we recommend:

  • Audit licence assignments quarterly. Look for inactive users still assigned premium licences.
  • Clean up orphaned access. If a user has been removed from Dynamics but still exists in Entra ID with a licence, that’s wasted spend.
  • Map access by role, not by person. Don’t assign licences just because “that’s what they had before.” Reassess by function.

Start with Team Member licences for light users — just make sure their access needs fall within its limits (read-only, self-service, or basic workflows only).

Are we paying for duplicate licences across environments?

Short answer: probably. Here’s how to spot waste:

  • Check for users with licences in multiple environments, especially sandbox copies or legacy orgs that no one cleaned up.
  • Review capacity add-ons — many are environment-bound and often over-provisioned.
  • Look at attached Power Platform licences. Are you paying for capacity through both Dynamics and Power Apps? You might be.

Storage maths in a nutshell

  • Each full user licence gives you 10 GB of database storage
  • Every user adds 250 MB extra

Need more? You’ll have to buy additional capacity.

Three tech stacks = three licensing mindsets

Dynamics 365 isn’t one piece of software or application. It’s a suite with different behaviours and pricing models:

  1. Customer Engagement Apps: Sales, Customer Service, Field Service — often used together, but watch out for duplicate entitlements.
  1. Business Central: Sold as a bundle. Easy to manage, but not as flexible with attach licences.
  1. Finance and Operations: High-value, high-cost — and the source of many of the trickiest licence combinations (Finance alone is £180/user/month).

Each stack handles users, storage, and automation differently. If you’re mixing these, map your licensing strategy accordingly.

Licensing isn’t just compliance

Many access issues, slow processes, or broken workflows are actually licensing issues in disguise:

  • Overloaded storage = system slowdowns
  • Misassigned licences = user lockouts
  • Missing entitlements = failed automations

Licensing is now directly tied to performance. Microsoft is enforcing this more aggressively, especially for Team Member misuse and capacity overages.

Your 2025 checklist for cost-efficient Dynamics 365 licensing

  • Audit users and licences: Identify who has what, where, and whether they actually use it.
  • Map roles to licence types: Use role-based access and the CRUD model to assign only what’s needed. (More on CRUD in our next post!)
  • Use Attach licences wisely: Don’t pay for multiple base licences — add attach licenses where eligible.
  • Clean up unused environments: Retire or merge low-use or duplicate instances.
  • Align storage to actual need: Remove excess capacity and avoid default overprovisioning.
  • Consolidate across teams: Prevent duplicated licensing in siloed regions or departments.
  • Reclaim unused licences: Remove entitlements from inactive or former users.
  • Review quarterly: Make licence audits a recurring practice, not a one-off cleanup.
  • Monitor Microsoft policy changes: Stay compliant by keeping up with evolving licensing rules.

Don’t let licensing be an afterthought

You don’t need to master every nuance of Microsoft’s licensing. But you do need to understand the mechanics that impact performance and budget.

Licensing should be among the first priorities in your Dynamics 365 environment, right alongside security, data, and automation.

Need a health check on your setup?
Request a free audit and make sure you’re not leaving money (or performance) on the table.

Up next in our D365 Licensing series:  

  • Right-size your D365 licenses by aligning them with actual user roles
  • D365 or Power Platform: Which one is right for your use case?
  • How to keep control over license sprawl

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Copilot Studio is no longer under Power Platform
July 2, 2025
10 mins read

Copilot Studio is no longer under Power Platform

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There’s been a quiet but important shift in Microsoft’s licensing documentation. If you’ve been tracking the Power Platform licensing guide over the past few months, you might have noticed something in the June 2025 edition: Copilot Studio is gone.

Instead, it now lives in its own dedicated guide.

New guide, same usage-based model

In short: Copilot Studio has “graduated” out of the Power Platform PDF. As Jukka Niiranen noted, Microsoft has released a dedicated Copilot Studio Licensing Guide that consolidates information previously scattered across Microsoft Learn articles, pricing pages, and various Power Platform PDFs.

There was no formal announcement of this change, just a quiet footnote in the June 2025 Power Platform change log:

"For Microsoft Copilot Studio licensing information, please refer to the Microsoft Copilot Studio Licensing Guide."  

What’s in the new guide?

  • How to buy Copilot Studio
  • Billing rates for agent activity and AI tools
  • A usage estimator
  • Licensing scenarios (e.g. trials, enterprise deployment)
  • Details on Dataverse, Managed Environments, multiplexing
  • Appendices on billing, preview terms, terminology and change log

And what’s changed in the Power Platform guide?  

As Jukka pointed out, most references to Copilot Studio have now been removed. Only a few mentions remain in the change log, likely a sign that the transition is still in progress.

Importantly, there are no changes to the underlying licensing model at this time. Copilot Studio continues to follow usage-based billing:

  • Agent messages
  • AI tool calls
  • API usage

All contribute to billed consumption.

Why it matters: Are we phasing out Power Platform… or phasing in pay-per-use?

This might seem like a minor update to documentation, but it points to a bigger shift. Microsoft is carving out its high-value tools like Copilot Studio into standalone billing structures, separate from the Power Platform umbrella many organisations still depend on.

In a LinkedIn post, Roberto Lofaro recalled earlier transformations in software licensing:

  • From 1980s maintenance fees (that sometimes continued even after updates stopped),
  • To project-based and license-based SaaS in the 1990s,
  • To today’s consumption-first models.

We’re moving closer to a model where AI features become embedded in every desktop and mobile tool and incur usage charges whenever they connect to cloud services. Think of Copilot in Office or even WhatsApp integrations that quietly activate background AI.

In Roberto’s words, "It is almost a Chromebook model: you can activate the offline use, but will lose features”.  

In short, key features will only work when connected, and often at a cost.

What to watch out for (especially if you're in IT Ops)

As Copilot Studio moves into its own licensing framework, here are a few things to keep on your radar:

  • Update cycles: Don’t rely on the Power Platform guide alone. Keep track of the standalone Copilot Studio guide, it is likely to receive more frequent updates.
  • Broken references: If your internal documentation or procurement materials still reference Copilot Studio under Power Platform, it’s time for an update.
  • Pay-per-use creep: Be cautious about where AI usage might trigger billing. Even features that seem low-touch may generate billable events.  
  • Preview ≠ free: Not all preview features are cost-free. Some already contribute to billed usage, especially in environments with connected data.

Keep track of your usage. You can use the Copilot Studio agent usage estimator (still in preview).

Your next Microsoft renewal might look very different

Microsoft is reorganising its licensing playbook to support an AI-first future. Copilot Studio getting its own guide is more than a formatting choice — it signals a broader shift toward usage-based pricing models.

If you’re involved in IT operations, licensing, or governance, keep an eye on these developments. Especially before your next renewal.

The bottom line is: Microsoft’s pricing structure has been changing a lot recently. Want to optimise licenses before your upcoming renewal? Contact us to discuss your use case.

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Smarter Spending in Power Platform
June 20, 2025
10 mins read

Smarter Spending in Power Platform

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Scaling your Power Platform usage is a good problem to have. It means your teams are building, automating, and delivering value.  

But unchecked growth comes with hidden costs. As Microsoft evolves its licensing models, small missteps can snowball into big expenses.

In this blog post, we discuss how to scale in a sustainable way, design cost-aware apps, and stay in control as pricing and features shift. Whether you’re running a Center of Excellence or simply supporting teams building apps, the goal is the same: grow smart, without overspending.

This is the fifth part of our Power Platform licensing series. In our previous articles, we covered

Stay informed: Monitoring licensing and usage

One of the most important habits you can build is regular visibility into what you’re using and what it costs. Microsoft licensing isn’t static — new SKUs are introduced, entitlements change, and API pricing evolves behind the scenes. If you’re not watching, you’ll miss the early signs of budget creep.

Start by subscribing to Microsoft’s release notes and licensing update blogs. These updates often include connector reclassifications or entitlement adjustments that can quietly impact your costs. Set internal reminders to review licensing guidance at least once per quarter.

On the internal side, the Power Platform Admin Center provides recent usage data to help you:

  • Track how many users are actively using licensed features
  • Identify which apps or flows are consuming the most requests
  • Flag spikes in usage that could trigger overages

While Azure Monitor doesn’t directly track Power Platform request usage, it can complement your monitoring strategy by alerting on related Azure services, such as API Management or custom connectors, based on available metrics and logs.

This isn’t just about control, but also about building confidence that your investments are being used effectively.

Build apps with the future in mind

Great app design doesn’t just improve performance, it also reduces risk when licensing rules change.

When building or reviewing solutions, favour modular architecture. Why?  

Modular apps are easier to adapt if Microsoft reclassifies a connector or changes how a feature is billed. For example, separating a high-volume automation into its own flow makes it easier to isolate and scale independently.

Be strategic about Premium connector usage. If your team already relies on connectors like Dataverse, SQL Server, or custom APIs, continue using them where they add value. But if you're considering Premium for the first time, evaluate whether the business impact justifies the added cost. Either way, design flows to avoid unnecessary steps or repetitive API calls that can drive up request consumption.

As part of your development standards, document each app’s licensing and connector dependencies. When it comes time to upgrade, scale, or refactor, this documentation will save time and prevent guesswork. If you're using the Center of Excellence Starter Kit, it automatically tracks which connectors each app and flow uses — and whether they’re Standard or Premium.

Run regular health checks for smarter spending

Apps and flows don’t stay static and neither should your approach to managing them.

Establish a regular cadence for cost and usage audits. Monthly or quarterly reviews can reveal:

  • Licensed apps that haven’t been used in months (“zombie apps”)
  • Flows that run frequently but no longer serve a real purpose
  • License assignments that don’t match actual user activity

You’ll also want to conduct scaling impact reviews. What happens if app usage doubles next month? Or a department adopts Power Platform for the first time? Use Microsoft’s licensing calculators and cost simulators to predict these shifts before they happen. A little forecasting now can save you a budget surprise later.

Avoid lock-in while leveraging the ecosystem

When scaling on Power Platform, it’s tempting to take full advantage of every integration and customisation feature available. That’s the power of the platform, but it can also create hidden long-term costs.

There’s a difference between vendor alignment and vendor lock-in.

Alignment means taking advantage of Microsoft-native tools like Dataverse, Teams, and Azure for greater cohesion. Lock-in happens when your solution becomes so custom that migrating or adjusting becomes painful or expensive.

Whenever possible, keep business logic inside Power Platform, but design your data to be portable. Avoid overly rigid dependencies on proprietary formats or niche connectors unless they’re business critical.

Audit the tools you’re already paying for

Another source of cost creep is tool redundancy. Teams often spin up new software without realising that the same functionality exists within the Power Platform or adjacent Microsoft 365 tools.

Make it part of your governance model to review the full ecosystem regularly. Ask:

  • Are multiple analytics tools in use across the same team (e.g., Power BI and Tableau)?
  • Are there legacy tools still active despite being replaced by Power Apps or Automate?
  • Are business units buying new solutions instead of using licensed ones already available?

Encourage teams to maximise existing investments before expanding into new tools.

Assign ownership to stay ahead

One of the most effective things you can do to control costs is assign a cost and usage owner. Without clear ownership, monitoring tends to fall through the cracks, especially when budgets are shared across departments.

This person (or small team) doesn’t need to manage licenses day-to-day. But they should be responsible for:

  • Tracking usage trends
  • Monitoring request volumes and license consumption
  • Preparing quarterly usage reports
  • Advising on renewals, upgrades, or plan changes

Proactive cost management is only possible when someone is paying attention to the right data at the right time.

Final thoughts: Maximise value without overspending

Scaling Power Platform doesn’t have to mean growing your budget at the same pace. With the right practices in place, you can expand your impact while keeping costs predictable and controlled.

Keep these principles in mind:

  • Monitor usage regularly and stay up to date with licensing changes
  • Design apps with flexibility and long-term efficiency in mind
  • Assign ownership so cost and usage insights turn into action

Smart scaling isn’t just about handling growth, it’s about making every cent you spend work harder.

We hope you’ve found our series on Microsoft Power Platform licensing helpful.

Looking to scale your Power Platform usage without overspending? Contact us to discuss your use case.

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Request management in Power Platform
June 19, 2025
10 mins read

Request management in Power Platform

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If your apps or flows have ever stopped working without warning, there’s a good chance request limits were the culprit.

In Power Platform, every time a user saves a record, triggers a flow, or calls a connector, it counts as a request. Individually, these seem small. But as usage grows, so does the number of requests, and eventually, you’ll hit your limit.

As a result, bandwidth control kicks in, you get notified of failed runs or denied access that seem to come out of nowhere. And once again, it’s up to the operations team to figure out what happened and how to fix it.

In this post we’ll look at how request limits work in 2025, how Microsoft enforces them, and most importantly, how your team can stay compliant.

This is the fourth part of our Power Platform licensing series. In our previous articles, we covered

Why request limits in Power Platform shouldn’t be taken lightly

In early versions of Power Platform, request limits were often overlooked. Enforcement was loose, and most apps never came close to hitting the thresholds.

That’s changed. Microsoft now treats request usage as a core part of license entitlement.  

Every license type includes a defined number of daily requests per user or flow, and enforcement is no longer optional. Whether you’re using Power Apps, Power Automate, or Dataverse, request volumes are tracked, monitored, and capped.

How Microsoft measures requests in 2025

Every interaction with the platform counts as a request. That includes:

  • Saving or retrieving data from Dataverse, or any other data source
  • Calling connectors (Standard or Premium)
  • Each action step (which goes outside of your Power Automate) while running flows
  • Triggering plug-ins or custom APIs
  • Even system-level operations like lookups and validation

Microsoft provides a detailed breakdown of request capacity by license type. For example, users with a Power Apps Per User plan get a higher daily request limit than those using a Microsoft 365 license with Power Apps access. Background flows, unattended automation, and service accounts with Per Flow licenses have their own request pools.

What’s new in 2025 is how Microsoft surfaces this information

The Power Platform Admin Center now allows you to see request usage per user, environment, and app, but it takes a few steps to find the data. To check your request allocation, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to the Power Platform Admin Center.
  1. Navigate to the "Capacity" section in the left-hand navigation pane.
  1. On the summary tab, look for the option to download reports (often found in an "Add-ons" or similar section).
  1. Select "Download reports" and choose the type of report you want, such as "Microsoft Power Platform Requests."
  1. Choose the scope for your report (e.g., Licensed User, Non-Licensed User, or Per Flow Licensed Flows).
  1. Submit and download the report to view detailed usage data for each user or flow, including how many requests have been consumed.

You can also use Azure Monitor to set up alerts, but it does not natively track or alert on Power Platform request usage or allocation from the Power Platform Admin Center. Instead, it’s primarily built for observing Azure-native resources, such as virtual machines, databases, and Azure API Management, and can trigger alerts based on metrics or logs collected from those services.

What happens when you hit the limit

Request limits aren’t just theoretical. When usage exceeds your allocated capacity, Microsoft enforces throttling. Depending on the service and workload, this can mean:

  • Flows that fail to trigger or complete
  • Delays in data syncing or processing
  • Errors when users try to save or update records

These disruptions can affect frontline business processes, like approvals, customer onboarding, or field updates, leaving teams confused about why things broke.

Most throttling surprises happen because teams aren’t actively tracking request consumption until it’s too late. To make matters worse, there's rarely a visible warning for end users. They just see errors. By the time IT gets involved, the platform may have already been throttled for hours.

How to manage requests proactively

The best way to manage request limits is to stop thinking of them as an afterthought. Request planning needs to be part of your architecture discussions from day one. Start by understanding your baseline. Use the Admin Center’s analytics to monitor which apps and flows are consuming the most requests.  

Look for patterns: Is usage spiking during certain times of day? Are a few apps responsible for the majority of consumption?

Once you have visibility, you can make smarter decisions, such as:

  • Refactoring flows to reduce unnecessary steps or loops
  • Offloading complex logic to Azure functions or other services where appropriate
  • Consolidating data calls to reduce repetition

You don’t need to over-optimise from the start. But you do need to understand where your limits are and have a plan for what happens when you approach them.

How to plan for scale

As adoption grows, request volumes will too. But without a scaling strategy, your success can start to work against you, pushing you past request limits.

Microsoft offers a few options for scaling request capacity:

  • Per App and Per User licenses each include defined request limits
  • Pay-As-You-Go plans allow flexible scaling, with request overages billed through Azure
  • Add-on request packs allow organisations purchase extra capacity without changing license types  

The right option depends on your usage profile. High-volume solutions used by a small group may benefit from Pay-As-You-Go. Department-wide apps might justify more robust licensing.  

(Note: Currently all organisations are in transition period with higher request limits. The transition period ends after Power Platform Admin Center reports are generally available. Organisations then have six months to analyse their usage and purchase licenses that are appropriate before strict enforcement on license limits begins. More info here.)

Don’t let service accounts become bottlenecks

A common pain point for many teams is the use of service accounts or shared automation users. These accounts often own high-volume flows or integrations, but they come with a fixed request limit, just like any other user.

When you hit those limits, automation fails, even if every individual user is well within their allowance.

The solution is to assign Per-Flow licenses to critical service flows. This plan reserves dedicated capacity for each licensed flow, regardless of who owns or triggers it, and does not consume from the tenant’s non-licensed user request limits.

It’s also a best practice for long-term maintainability, as it decouples business logic from individual users and ensures key automations remain stable over time.

Make request management part of governance

If you’re running a Center of Excellence or managing a large Power Platform deployment, request limits need to be part of your governance model.

That means:

  • Including request tracking in solution review checklists
  • Training makers to understand how their design choices affect request usage
  • Defining escalation paths for throttling issues
  • Monitoring usage trends and forecasting future needs

Build smart, scale smoothly

Request limits aren’t just technical constraints. They’re signals that your platform usage is growing and needs more intentional design. By understanding how requests work, monitoring them proactively, and scaling smartly, you can keep apps running smoothly and avoid the surprise of throttling.

Not sure what the right licensing setup is for you? Contact us to discuss your use case.

Up next in this series:

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Standard vs. Premium Connectors in Power Platform
June 16, 2025
10 mins read

Standard vs. Premium Connectors in Power Platform

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Why is understanding connectors critical?

Connectors are the silent enablers of every Power Platform solution. Whether you're automating approvals, syncing customer records, or generating reports, connectors are doing the heavy lifting in the background.

But here’s the catch: Not all connectors are created equal, and not all are included in your M365 license.

Understanding how your connector is licensed isn’t just a technical detail. It affects:

  • Your cost model
  • Your app’s scalability and maintainability
  • And your ability to respond to Microsoft’s evolving licensing rules

If you don’t understand the connector landscape, you’re building on shaky ground. This blog post helps IT operations teams, platform admins, and Center of Excellence leaders make smart, future-proof decisions about connector use.  

This is the fourth part of our Power Platform licensing series. In our previous articles, we covered

Standard vs. Premium connectors: What’s the difference and why does it matter?

Microsoft splits connectors into two main categories: Standard and Premium. Custom Connectors fall under Premium too. If neither Microsoft, a third party, nor the community has built a connector for your specific system, you can create your own to tailor integrations to your exact needs.  

Understanding the difference between Standard and Premium is critical to staying compliant and budgeting correctly. The type of connector you use directly impacts your licensing model. You might start with a simple app that uses SharePoint and suddenly need a premium licence just because you added a single connection to Dataverse or SQL Server.

Here’s what you need to know:

Standard connectors

These are included with most Microsoft 365 licenses and cover tools your team likely already uses:

  • SharePoint
  • Outlook
  • Excel Online
  • OneDrive
  • Planner

Great for: internal, low-complexity apps that don’t require external system integration.

Premium connectors

These require additional licensing, either via Per App, Per User, or Pay-As-You-Go plans.

Examples include:

  • Dataverse
  • SQL Server
  • Salesforce
  • SAP
  • HTTP, Azure DevOps, ServiceNow

Great for: unlocking richer integrations but come with licensing implications.  

Keep in mind that even a single Premium connector will upgrade the entire app’s license requirement.

Why this matters

Connector classifications aren’t static. We’ve seen connectors reclassified from Standard to Premium, but these changes are typically announced in advance, giving teams time to prepare.

Keep in mind that Premium connectors can significantly alter your app’s costs. Adding just one can shift a solution from being covered under a Microsoft 365 license to requiring a Premium license for every user.

Real-life example: The SQL connector shift

The SQL Server connector was originally classified as Standard, making it a go-to choice for internal apps connecting to on-prem databases or Azure SQL. Teams across industries built solutions under the assumption that they were operating within the boundaries of their Microsoft 365 licenses.

Then came the change. Microsoft reclassified the SQL connector as Premium. This meant that the connector that powered dozens of reliable business apps was no longer included in base licensing.  

Apps that had been running smoothly now required Power Apps Premium licenses or a Pay-As-You-Go model to stay compliant. IT teams scrambled to re-architect solutions, request unplanned budget approvals, or freeze deployments altogether.

The SQL connector shift is a reminder that connector classifications aren’t set in stone, and that licensing assumptions can quickly become liabilities.

Lessons learned

Don’t assume a connector’s classification is permanent. Instead, design apps with licensing flexibility in mind, avoiding hardcoded architectural decisions that rely solely on current connector classifications.

Microsoft is getting better at communicating connector changes, but surprises still happen

To their credit, Microsoft has made real progress in making things clearer:

  • It’s now easier to find out which connectors are Standard vs. Premium in the official docs.
  • Release Wave updates highlight what’s changing before it happens.
  • Admin Center and Message Center posts give early warnings so you can plan ahead.

But there’s still a lag between policy updates and their impact in real-world apps. And some changes appear with little to no warning, especially for lesser-known connectors or third-party services.

What to keep in mind:

  • Always double-check connector classification before starting a project, not just before deployment.
  • Previously free connectors can be reclassified.
  • New connectors may launch as Premium from day one.

How to manage connector risk proactively

If you're running a Power Platform environment at scale, connector governance is just as important as app governance.

Here’s how to get ahead of it:

  1. Maintain an internal approved connector list

Track which connectors are Standard vs Premium, add usage notes, and include business owners for accountability.

  1. Start with Standard connectors, upgrade to Premium when it’s necessary or adds value

Default to Standard connectors to control costs and streamline deployment. But don’t rule out Premium connectors as they can unlock valuable functionality. The key is alignment: choose Premium only when those extra features directly support your use case.

  1. Monitor for classification changes

Set alerts from Microsoft’s Message Center and make sure someone regularly reviews Release Wave updates. Connector statuses can change.

  1. Regularly audit apps

Identify apps using Premium connectors and regularly check whether the current licences still fit. Flag anything at risk if classifications shift again.

  1. Educate makers

Many citizen developers don’t realise that using just one Premium connector upgrades the licence requirement for everyone. Share clear internal guidelines from the start.

Bonus tip: Don’t forget connectors in flows

It’s easy to focus on connectors in Power Apps, but don’t overlook Power Automate.

Flows using Premium connectors (e.g., Dataverse, SQL, custom APIs) follow the same licensing rules. If a flow triggers via a Premium connector, the user (or the flow owner) must have the proper license. This is one of the most common compliance gaps we see in audits.

Smart connector choices = Long-term app stability

Choosing connectors isn’t just about capability, but about sustainability too. You need to know exactly what you’re using, design apps that can adapt if licensing changes, and validate connector classifications early and often. This approach helps you build apps that are scalable, cost-effective, and resilient to change.  

If you’re not sure which license setup is best for your team, contact us to discuss your use case.

Up next in this series:

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