Understanding the SharePoint Yes/No Column Value Filtering Issue and Its Fix

For many years, developers and SharePoint users encountered an issue related to the filtering of records by the yes/no columns. Today, we’ll dive deep into understanding this bug, its implications, the previously adopted workarounds, and the good news about its recent resolution.

A Brief History of the SharePoint Yes/No Column Filtering Bug

Anyone familiar with SharePoint and Power Apps before May 2021 might recall a pesky bug that hindered the filtering functionality for Yes/No columns. This limitation persisted for almost half a decade, starting from around 2016. However, there’s good news: the issue has been rectified!

Defining the SharePoint Yes/No Bug

Imagine a SharePoint list of products with a yes/no column labeled ‘Active’ to indicate if a product is active or not. A correctly structured formula wouldn’t fetch any records. While another might return all non-active records, leading to inconsistencies and confusion.

The Previous Workarounds

To circumvent the issue, several workarounds were employed:

• Filtering using numbers (1 or 0) instead of Boolean true/false values.
• Omitting the equality operator for conditions which resulted in expressions that were often non-delegable.
• Using a text column to input ‘yes’ or ‘no’ values instead of a dedicated yes/no column. This, however, wasn’t suitable for existing lists or form design using toggle/checkbox controls.

Implications of the Bug

This bug rendered filtering of SharePoint lists by yes/no columns quite challenging. Combining multiple filter conditions became a tedious task, especially when trying to include yes/no columns in a delegable manner. Moreover, filtering using variables or other control values became problematic.

The Solution: What App Builders Can Expect Now

With the bug fixed, filtering by yes/no columns is now streamlined. For instance, the product list can be filtered to display records where the active value is true, giving expected results. This enhancement also allows for more straightforward filtering using variables and control values.

With this fix, users and developers can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that they can now filter records using the syntax they always expected to.

Conclusion

For too long, the SharePoint community faced challenges with the yes/no column filtering bug. Its recent resolution has not only simplified tasks but has also enhanced user experience and productivity. It’s a testament to the continuous improvements and dedication to making SharePoint and Power Apps more robust and user-friendly.

If you find yourself in need of further assistance regarding this topic or any other technical queries, do not hesitate to contact us. We’re here to help and ensure you get the most out of your software applications.