Clean Up Dataverse File Columns with Power Automate

A few weeks after delivering a Power Automate process that generates and stores PDFs in a Dataverse file column, my client asked for something simple:

“Can we make this process run on demand?”

That’s when I hit an unexpected limitation:

You cannot clear a Dataverse File column using “Update a row”.

I assumed it would be straightforward. But when I tried to use the Update a Row action, the file column didn’t even appear 😐

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Things I tried

First, I attempted to use Update a Row and set the file column to null.

That doesn’t work — because the File column does not appear in the action.

⚠️ Note: For Image columns, clearing with null does work using Update a Row. This limitation applies specifically to File columns.

Next, I tried using the Upload a file or an image action and passed null as content:

Interestingly, this creates a blank file instead of deleting it:

It works as a workaround — but it does not actually remove the file. It simply replaces it with an empty one.

Not good enough.

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Why This Happens

When you upload a file into a Dataverse File column:

• Dataverse creates a separate File record behind the scenes
• The File column does not directly store the binary content
• Instead, it stores a reference (FileId) to that File record

That’s why the column doesn’t appear in Update a row for clearing with null.

To properly remove the file, you must delete the underlying File record.

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The Solution

My instinct told me:

“If this exists in Dataverse, there must be an action for it.”

In Power Automate, that usually means checking:

• Perform a bound action
• Perform an unbound action

Since File columns are generic and not tied to a specific table type, this had to be an unbound action.

After scrolling through the list…

I found exactly what I needed:

DeleteFile

When selecting it, the action requires one parameter:

• FileId

And that’s the key insight.

When a file is stored in a File column, the record exposes its FileId — which you can retrieve dynamically.

If you pass that FileId into the DeleteFile action — the file is completely removed.

Voilà 😎

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Step-by-Step: Deleting a Dataverse File Column

1️⃣ Add Perform an unbound action
2️⃣ Select action: DeleteFile
3️⃣ In the FileId parameter, pass the FileId from your record
4️⃣ Save and test

Once executed, the file content is fully removed from the column.

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Important Notes

• This applies to File columns, not Image columns.
• You must have proper permissions to delete files.
• Many advanced Dataverse capabilities are exposed via unbound actions — even if they’re not available in standard connector actions.

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Conclusion

If you ever feel stuck because something isn’t available in a standard Dataverse connector action, check the bound and unbound actions.

Very often, the platform already provides a proper way to handle it — you just need to look a little deeper.

While preparing this article, I tried generating an AI image to illustrate the problem. Ironically, the AI generated something very close to the solution 😅

And I think this is important:

Even if someone has written about this before, your explanation, your scenario, and your experience will help someone in a different way.

If this article saves someone 30 minutes of frustration — it’s worth publishing.

👉 If you need help with this kind of stuff, feel free to send me an Email, . I’ll gladly try to help 😉