Persue the Power with a Developer Tenancy
- Edward
- Aug 10, 2023
- 6 min read
Recently I had a query from an educator who had heard about Power Platform and seen some Power Automate demonstrations, but didn't have access at their School. They could understand the huge potential for their admin processes but couldn't try it for themselves and wanted to have some practical experience before speaking with the Senior Management Team to progress the acquisition of the appropriate licences.
A great way to try the Power Platform, whether you're new to it or are experienced but want to have a totally separate instance which you have full control over, is to set up a Microsoft 365 Developer tenant (via the M365 Developer Programme) and add the Power Apps Developer Plan. This is entirely free and provides access on a 90-day rolling period (renewed if the tenancy is actively used for development activity as defined/monitored by Microsoft) to a Microsoft 365 ('M365') E5 licensed tenant. Let's explore the practicalities in this article.
Note on terminology: I will refer to the Microsoft 365 E5 Developer Plan-provided tenant as the 'E5 tenant' or 'E5 tenancy' in this article.
What you'll need
A mobile phone (cellular) number
Microsoft Authenticator App installed on a smartphone
About 30 minutes to complete the process and find your way around the new resources.
Setting up a Microsoft Account
If you already have a Microsoft Account, you can skip this step. You will need an email address which is linked to a Microsoft Account to join the M365 Developer Programme and set up the E5 tenancy. (Note: you can also use an email address which is backed by Azure Active Directory, now known as Entra ID, but for the purposes of this article I'm assuming you are not using an organisation-provided address such as a work email address).
Head over to http://account.microsoft.com to set up a Microsoft Account. You can optionally create a free @outlook.com email address (which automatically includes a Microsoft Account), or, add. a Microsoft Account to an existing email address provided by a third party.
Scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and click 'Create an account'. On the next screen, choose 'Get a new email address' if you want to create an @outlook.com address, or otherwise go ahead and link a Microsoft Account to your existing email address.
Joining the Microsoft 365 Developer Programme
From the Microsoft 365 Developer Programme page, click 'Join Now' and log in with the Microsoft Account you wish to use.
Tip: consider using an 'In Cognito' or 'In Private' browser window. This ensures that any cached credentials are not picked up by your browser, avoiding any potential confusion with the account you wish to use to join the programme.
Once logged in, check your name and email address are correct and then complete the mandatory fields (including Country/Region, etc).
You will be asked to provide the primary reason you are signing up to the Developer Programme, and areas of development you're interested in.
Next, you'll be asked if you want to create an instant or configurable sandbox.
I recommend that you pick the Instant Sandbox option. It includes 16 pre populated users and data, alongside provisioned Apps, to provide a 'real world' tenancy out of the box, saving loads of time and effort in preparing your Developer environment.
Check out this Microsoft Video to learn more about Instant Sandbox.
Next, you will need to create an admin username and password. It is very important that you save these details carefully since you will need them regularly, including the process of setting up the Power Platform Developer Plan later!
Optionally you can create a separate password for the 16 'fictitious' users that are pre-installed with the Instant Sandbox
Next, you will need to add your phone number. You will receive a One Time Passcode which is then entered in to the 'Enter the code' section. All straightforward and mandatory, and only a one-time process - and remember all the great resources you're getting for free as a result of this programme!
Once that's done, click Set up.
Excellent! That's it, the E5 tenancy is ready.
Let's complete one final task - enabling Multi Factor Authentication (MFA). This is where the Microsoft Authenticator App will be needed.
It's likely that when you next sign in to the E5 tenancy you will be asked to enable Multi Factor Authentication (MFA) by following the onscreen steps to link your credentials within Microsoft Authenticator. This is very straightforward, takes just a few moments and again is free of charge - it's highly recommended and instantly adds greater security to your E5 tenant. If you have other credentials in your Microsoft Authenticator App, like a work or school account, these will remain and will not be affected by adding another set of Microsoft credentials to your App.
If you're not prompted to do this, check out the email you should have received when you signed up to the Developer Plan, subject line "Your Microsoft 365 developer instant sandbox is ready". Inside you will find instructions on how to enable MFA.
Adding the Power Apps Developer Plan
We have to add the Power Apps Developer Plan to our M365 E5 tenancy because there are only basic Power Platform provisions included in E5 by default. Take a look at information about what's included for Power Automate, for example.
It's totally free to add the Power Apps Developer Plan to our E5 tenancy, however, be sure to do after you've created the E5 tenancy.
Head to the Power Apps Developer Plan page and choose 'Get Started Free'
On the next screen, use the email address that pertains to the admin account for the Developer E5 tenancy. This is not the Microsoft Account you used to set up the E5 tenancy but the email address for the lead admin from within the tenancy.
If you make a mistake and use a personal email address, even an @outlook.com email address associated with a Microsoft account, you'll see an error.
If you're not sure how to get the correct email address, sign in to the E5 tenancy and head over to Outlook. The mailbox for the admin user should be loaded. Find an email 'sent to the admin user' - any message in the Inbox, which are system-generated, then hover the mouse over the address in the 'To' column. Open the contact card, then copy the email address.
Back on the Power Apps Developer Plan sign up screen, add the E5 tenancy admin address. You should see a message which says "Looks like you're already a Microsoft Customer". Check the address and then click Sign In.
If you're asked to provide the credentials for the E5 tenancy, remember at this stage to use the username and password/Microsoft Authenticator Prompt for the tenancy.
It's worth noting that the Business Phone number is a mandatory field even though there is no '*' symbol so be ready to provide your mobile phone/cell number.
Choose your options on the checkboxes about the marketing/information sharing and then click 'Get Started'.
The confirmation message appears. Now, I know you want to get started so go ahead and click 'Get Started' again!
The Power Apps Developer plan will provision to your E5 tenancy and shortly you should see the Power Apps homepage, success!
Head to your www.office.com homepage of the E5 tenancy and you can then move around between the standard M365 offerings and the Power Platform tools.
And Finally...
Enjoy but remember, this resource is provided to us by Microsoft for free for development purposes - anything you create in the E5 tenancy should never be considered 'permanent' or for 'production use' etc.
As soon as you're ready to transfer your development in to a longer term, productionised setting, then it's time to sign up for the appropriate [permanent] tenancy. Check out the 'Find a Plan' section at the Microsoft 365 page for more info.
For those new to the world of Microsoft licensing, keep in mind that E5 is the 'top level' tenancy licence although as demonstrated in this article, additional licences are required for special functionality like Power Platform functionality for Premium Connectors, Dataverse and more. The aim here is to explore the art of the possible. When it comes to choosing what functionality to configure and deploy in a real world environment, you should take in to account the requirements of licensing and the associated costs - shaping your solutions as required.
Learn more
M365 Developer Programme, including the opportunity to join.
Welcome to the Microsoft Developer Programme at Microsoft Learn.
Note: the tenancy will be renewed on a 90 day rolling basis at the discretion of Microsoft; please see the relevant section of the FAQ for more details.
Compare Microsoft 365 options and learn about what's included in E5. The comparison table PDF is a great 'at a glance' resource.
Create a Developer Environment with the Power Apps Developer Plan (Microsoft Learn)
Comentarios