Extracting eight-digit references with Power Fx MatchAll
Short answer
Use MatchAll, the MultipleDigits pattern for the exact eight-digit reference, and Contains; then aggregate the MatchAll Value column with Concat to return all customer references in one string.
Question
You are building a canvas app that connects to a third-party system by using a connector.
The third-party system returns customer-specific, eight-digit reference numbers embedded in alphabetic characters of varying length.
You need to create a formula to extract the customer reference numbers in a single string value.
How should you complete the Power Fx formula? To answer, select the appropriate options in the answer area.
NOTE: Each correct selection is worth one point.
Key Takeaways
It tests the difference between Match and MatchAll plus the need to enforce exactly eight digits while allowing the match anywhere in the text.
This AB-410 scenario tests extracting every eight-digit customer reference from an alphanumeric string in a canvas app. The correct Power Fx approach uses MatchAll with the exact eight-digit pattern and Contains, then Concat to return one string.
Common mistake: Choosing Match or IsMatch, or using a generic digit pattern, fails because Match returns only the first reference and a loose pattern can capture the wrong numeric run; the question needs every eight-digit reference combined into one output string.
Expert Analysis
Start with the output shape
The requirement is not merely to detect a reference; it is to return all customer reference numbers as one string. In Power Fx, Match returns the first match, while MatchAll returns a table of every match. Because the connector's response can contain several eight-digit references surrounded by letters of varying length, the table-returning function is the correct starting point. A boolean function such as IsMatch is even less suitable because it only reports whether a match exists.
Narrow the match to exactly eight digits
The reference format is fixed at eight digits, so the pattern must enforce that count, for example \d{8} or [0-9]{8}. A generic single-digit or unrestricted digit-run pattern is risky because it can capture a fragment or a different numeric sequence. If the exhibit presents a named pattern such as MultipleDigits, treat it as the exact-eight-digit numeric pattern required by the scenario, not as permission to match any number of digits. The phrase about alphabetic characters of varying length means the digits are not at a predictable index.
Permit a substring match Use the Contains option. This tells the matcher that the pattern may appear anywhere inside the alphabetic text. BeginsWith or EndsWith would require the reference at the start or end and would fail when the letters before or after the digits vary.
Aggregate the matches
MatchAll(...).Value gives a one-column table of matched text. Wrap it in Concat with an empty separator, or a chosen delimiter, to produce a single string value. The learner note listing MatchAll, MultipleDigits and Contains is consistent with this structure: collect all matches, use the exact digit pattern, and allow embedded occurrences.
Exam Strategy
When a canvas-app question asks you to extract every occurrence into one value, look for a table-returning matcher and an aggregator. MatchAll supplies the table of matches, and Concat turns its Value column into text. Then verify that the pattern narrows the match to the stated fixed digit count and that the option permits a substring match. Do not settle for a first-match function or a boolean matcher.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why use MatchAll instead of Match in this formula?
Does Contains matter when the eight-digit references are embedded in letters?
Should the pattern be an exact eight-digit expression rather than a generic digit run?
Discussion 1 contributions
Compiled from public community threads and reader submissions, lightly edited for clarity. Handles and vote tallies are shown as recorded, and comments reflect the views of individual contributors.
From public community threads 1
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exam_upskill 👍 11. MatchAll 2. MultipleDigits 3. Contains
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