Streamline Power Platform Plugin Troubleshooting with a Custom Postman Visualizer

In the realm of Power Platform development, debugging and optimizing plugins can sometimes feel like navigating a maze. Tools like the XrmToolBox’s Plugin Trace Viewer have long been the go-to for developers seeking to sift through the sea of PluginTraceLogs. However, I thought I give you another alternative that I find it more useful. In this approach I am going to use Postman, a tool traditionally used for API testing, to visualize PluginTraceLogs. This blog post will guide you through leveraging a custom Postman visualizer script to enhance your troubleshooting process, providing clear reasons why this might just be the upgrade your workflow needs.

When you send a request in Postman, the body of the response can be visualized in four different ways. These options are displayed at the bottom section of the screen. The “Pretty” tab is probably the most popular option. But, our focus is on the last tab “Visualize”. In this tab you can write your own visualizer using just Javascript and you can consider it like an embedded browser that hosts your single-page app. Your visualizer should take the response and visualize it any way you want. That’s exactly what we are about to do. We are going to take the response of a query to PluginTraceLog table and display it in a nice table with full text search functionality.

Let’s cut to the chase, you just need to copy the script that I have shared in the this gist (https://gist.github.com/rezanid/0965e17cb71db43d8b3fa132163295c3) and past it in “Test” tab of your request. Then just “Send” your request and see what happens.

Why Choose a Postman Visualizer for PluginTraceLogs?

While XrmToolBox’s Plugin Trace Viewer is undoubtedly powerful, developers often seek more granular control over their debugging tools. Enter Postman:

• Customizable Viewing Experience: The ability to tailor the visualization to display exactly what you need, how you need it, can drastically reduce troubleshooting time.
• Enhanced Filtering Options: With customizable scripts, you gain more sophisticated filtering capabilities beyond the default options.
• Save and Reuse Queries: Postman allows you to save numerous queries for different scenarios, streamlining the debugging process for recurring issues. You can even keep one request and turn on / off different query parameters to quickly find the issue you’re looking for.
• Familiar UI and Workflow Integration: For teams already utilizing Postman for API development and testing, incorporating PluginTraceLogs visualization into the workflow is seamless.

Setting Up Your Visualization Script

• Start by creating a new request in Postman aimed at your PluginTraceLogs endpoint.
• Navigate to the “Tests” tab of your request, where you’ll paste the custom visualization script.
• Send the request and make sure you have results, then check if your visualizer script works fine. You can use the script I have shared previously as your starting point.
• If you need to fine-tune your script, you don’t need to send the request again and again. Instead, you can click on the refresh button in the Visualize tab. {{Screenshot to show the refresh button}}.

Conclusion

Embracing a custom Postman visualizer script for Power Platform PluginTraceLogs not only enriches the debugging experience but also injects unparalleled flexibility and efficiency into your development workflow. Whether you’re troubleshooting a tricky plugin or optimizing performance, this approach offers a fresh perspective that complements traditional tools like the XrmToolBox.

Give it a try, tailor it to your needs, and watch as it transforms your troubleshooting process. Remember, the goal is not just to solve problems but to do so in a way that is both time-efficient and insightful. Happy debugging!