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Boomi vs Microsoft Power Automate
May 30, 2023 | Author: Michael Stromann
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Dell Boomi allows you to connect any combination of Cloud, SaaS, or On-Premise applications with no appliances, no software, and no coding. With Boomi you will achieve unprecedented implementation speeds that are just not possible with software packages, hardware appliances, or custom coding. Using only your web browser, you can sign up, log in and then build and deploy your integrations at whatever pace you require.
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Microsoft Power Automate (earlier Microsoft Flow) - is a versatile automation platform that integrates seamlessly with hundreds of apps and services.
Boomi and Microsoft Power Automate (formerly known as Microsoft Flow) are two different cloud-based integration and automation platforms that allow organizations to automate business processes and integrate applications and data across different systems. Here are the main differences between Boomi and Microsoft Power Automate:
Integration Capabilities: Boomi is primarily focused on providing integration capabilities and offers a comprehensive set of integration features, including application integration, data integration, B2B/EDI integration, and API management. It supports a wide range of integration scenarios and supports a variety of connectors to connect with various applications and systems. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is more focused on automation of business processes within the Microsoft ecosystem, such as Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and other Microsoft cloud services. It also provides integration capabilities, but its primary focus is on automating processes within the Microsoft stack.
Customization and Extensibility: Boomi provides extensive customization and extensibility options, allowing users to create custom integrations, workflows, and processes using Boomi's visual development environment and scripting capabilities. It also provides support for custom connectors and APIs, allowing organizations to extend its capabilities. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is primarily designed for non-technical users and provides a visual development environment with a wide range of pre-built templates and connectors. While it offers some customization options, they may be more limited compared to Boomi in terms of extensibility and customization.
Workflow Automation: Microsoft Power Automate is specifically designed for workflow automation within the Microsoft ecosystem, allowing users to create automated workflows and processes across various Microsoft applications, such as Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics 365, SharePoint, and others. Boomi, on the other hand, is a more general-purpose integration platform that can be used to integrate and automate workflows across different applications and systems, regardless of the vendor or technology stack.
Connectivity and Integration Ecosystem: Boomi offers a wide range of connectors and integration options, allowing organizations to connect with various applications, databases, and systems, both on-premises and in the cloud. It supports a large number of pre-built connectors and provides tools for building custom connectors and APIs. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is more focused on providing connectors and integration options within the Microsoft ecosystem, with a strong emphasis on Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and other Microsoft cloud services. It also offers connectors to a variety of third-party applications and systems, but the coverage may be more limited compared to Boomi.
Deployment Options: Boomi offers both cloud-based and on-premises deployment options, providing flexibility in terms of where the integration platform is hosted and managed. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is a cloud-based service that is hosted and managed by Microsoft on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform.
Licensing and Pricing: Boomi offers a variety of licensing and pricing options, including subscription-based pricing, usage-based pricing, and enterprise licensing. Microsoft Power Automate offers different licensing plans, including a free plan with limited capabilities, as well as premium plans with additional features and capabilities. The licensing and pricing models may vary depending on the specific needs and requirements of an organization.
In summary, Boomi and Microsoft Power Automate are both cloud-based integration and automation platforms, but they differ in their focus, customization and extensibility options, workflow automation capabilities, connectivity and integration ecosystem, deployment options, and licensing and pricing models. Organizations should evaluate their specific integration and automation requirements, existing technology stack, and budget considerations to determine which platform best meets their needs.
See also: Top 10 Cloud Integration software
Integration Capabilities: Boomi is primarily focused on providing integration capabilities and offers a comprehensive set of integration features, including application integration, data integration, B2B/EDI integration, and API management. It supports a wide range of integration scenarios and supports a variety of connectors to connect with various applications and systems. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is more focused on automation of business processes within the Microsoft ecosystem, such as Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and other Microsoft cloud services. It also provides integration capabilities, but its primary focus is on automating processes within the Microsoft stack.
Customization and Extensibility: Boomi provides extensive customization and extensibility options, allowing users to create custom integrations, workflows, and processes using Boomi's visual development environment and scripting capabilities. It also provides support for custom connectors and APIs, allowing organizations to extend its capabilities. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is primarily designed for non-technical users and provides a visual development environment with a wide range of pre-built templates and connectors. While it offers some customization options, they may be more limited compared to Boomi in terms of extensibility and customization.
Workflow Automation: Microsoft Power Automate is specifically designed for workflow automation within the Microsoft ecosystem, allowing users to create automated workflows and processes across various Microsoft applications, such as Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics 365, SharePoint, and others. Boomi, on the other hand, is a more general-purpose integration platform that can be used to integrate and automate workflows across different applications and systems, regardless of the vendor or technology stack.
Connectivity and Integration Ecosystem: Boomi offers a wide range of connectors and integration options, allowing organizations to connect with various applications, databases, and systems, both on-premises and in the cloud. It supports a large number of pre-built connectors and provides tools for building custom connectors and APIs. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is more focused on providing connectors and integration options within the Microsoft ecosystem, with a strong emphasis on Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and other Microsoft cloud services. It also offers connectors to a variety of third-party applications and systems, but the coverage may be more limited compared to Boomi.
Deployment Options: Boomi offers both cloud-based and on-premises deployment options, providing flexibility in terms of where the integration platform is hosted and managed. Microsoft Power Automate, on the other hand, is a cloud-based service that is hosted and managed by Microsoft on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform.
Licensing and Pricing: Boomi offers a variety of licensing and pricing options, including subscription-based pricing, usage-based pricing, and enterprise licensing. Microsoft Power Automate offers different licensing plans, including a free plan with limited capabilities, as well as premium plans with additional features and capabilities. The licensing and pricing models may vary depending on the specific needs and requirements of an organization.
In summary, Boomi and Microsoft Power Automate are both cloud-based integration and automation platforms, but they differ in their focus, customization and extensibility options, workflow automation capabilities, connectivity and integration ecosystem, deployment options, and licensing and pricing models. Organizations should evaluate their specific integration and automation requirements, existing technology stack, and budget considerations to determine which platform best meets their needs.
See also: Top 10 Cloud Integration software
Boomi vs Microsoft Power Automate in our news:
2023. Microsoft’s new Power Platform AI copilot will build your apps for you
Microsoft has added its AI copilot to Power Apps, Power Virtual Agents and Power Automate. The idea here is to use AI to make using these tools for building line-of-business apps, flows and bots even easier by letting users use natural language to describe what they want to build. At its core, this works a bit like using the new Bing or ChatGPT. You tell the Power Platform Copilot what you want and then refine these ideas through a back-and-forth with the bot in the chat sidebar. In Power Apps, the main low-code tool of the Power Platform, users can now use sentences like “Create a time and expense application to enable my employees to submit their time and expense reports” and it will generate this app for them.
2021. Microsoft’s Power Automate Desktop is now free for all Windows 10 users
Microsoft is now offering Power Automate Desktop, its robust tool for creating automated desktop workflows, to all Windows 10 users at no cost. Power Automate Desktop is referred to as an "attended Robotic Process Automation" solution, but it can be likened to a highly advanced macro recorder. With its repertoire of 370 prebuilt actions, it facilitates the creation of workflows across various applications. However, its true potential lies in empowering users to develop custom scripts that automate repetitive and time-consuming tasks. To explore Power Automate Desktop, interested users can download it directly from Microsoft. In the upcoming weeks, it will be included in Microsoft's Insider Builds for Windows 10 and eventually become an integral part of Windows 10, even extending to the standard Windows Home version.
2020. Microsoft brings new process mining features to Power Automate
Power Automate, the workflow optimization platform by Microsoft, introduces a new tool called Process Advisor. This innovative process mining tool offers a collaborative environment for developers and business users to collaboratively create new automations. The concept behind Process Advisor recognizes that business users possess intricate knowledge of specific processes. With the new tool, business users can now record their execution of processes, such as refund procedures, and share them with developers who may not be well-versed in these processes. This facilitates effective collaboration and allows developers to gain valuable insights into the intricacies of various business operations.
2020. Microsoft brings new robotic process automation features to its Power Platform
Earlier this year, Microsoft made the acquisition of Softomotive, a key player in the low-code robotic process automation field, primarily focusing on Windows. Building upon this, the company has now introduced Power Automate Desktop, a novel application leveraging Softomotive's technology, enabling users to automate desktop workflows without requiring programming skills. Power Automate already facilitated the connection of web-based applications, akin to platforms like Zapier and IFTTT. However, Microsoft further expanded its capabilities by introducing a browser extension last year, facilitating the integration of native system components with Power Automate. With the inclusion of Softomotive's technology and the launch of this new low-code Windows application, Microsoft is taking integration to the next level by seamlessly incorporating it within the native Windows user interface.
2020. Microsoft acquires robotic process automation platform Softomotive
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has officially announced the acquisition of Softomotive, a software robotic automation platform. As part of the deal, Softomotive will be integrated into the Microsoft Power Automate platform. Softomotive currently serves approximately 9,000 customers worldwide. The WinAutomation platform, developed by Softomotive, will be made available to Power Automate users under a freely accessible RPA attended license. This collaboration will introduce a range of new capabilities within Power Automate, including Softomotive's WinAutomation, which offers a low-code desktop automation solution. Previously, Power Automate lacked desktop automation tools, and Microsoft aims to address this gap with the integration of Softomotive's technology.
2019. Microsoft introduced own RPA software - UI Flows
Microsoft has rebranded its application integration and business process automation platform, formerly known as Microsoft Flow, as Power Automate. Along with this renaming, the company has introduced a new addition to the platform called UI Flows, which encompasses RPA (Robotic Process Automation) software. RPA enables the automation of repetitive tasks at the user interface level. The RPA system records user actions, such as mouse clicks and text copying, and creates a software robot to replicate those actions. This functionality allows for the creation of automated processes and integration with legacy software that lacks an API for direct integration. For instance, the provided video demonstrates how to develop a robot to transfer data from a legacy medical system to a cloud service. It is important to note that Microsoft Power Automate now combines both RPA and API integrations with popular cloud services, providing a comprehensive solution.
2016. Microsoft Flow is available on iOS
Microsoft Flow, the workflow management tool, has made its debut on iOS. This powerful tool enables users to combine two or more cloud services to create customized workflows, automating tasks such as file synchronization, alerting, and data organization. While other competing services like IFTTT and Zapier have been available for a longer time and offer a wider range of supported connections, Microsoft Flow differentiates itself by focusing on integrations with Microsoft's own business tools, including Office 365, Dynamics CRM, PowerApps, and Yammer, as well as popular organizational tools like MailChimp, GitHub, Salesforce, and Slack. Despite its emphasis on Microsoft's tools, Microsoft Flow can still be used to automate various common scenarios. For example, you can receive a text message whenever your boss sends you an email, save the results of a Twitter search to an Excel file, copy files from OneDrive to SharePoint, or transfer photos from Instagram to Dropbox, among many other possibilities. With the newly introduced iOS application, users now have the convenience of managing their previously created "flows" directly from their smartphones. This means you can easily toggle them on or off, access their properties, and review run history reports to ensure optimal performance and error-free execution.
2010. Dell acquires cloud integration platform Boomi
Dell has recently acquired the SaaS integration company Boomi. Boomi offers a robust application integration platform known as Atomsphere, which aims to assist clients in streamlining the process of integrating applications by enabling seamless data transfer between cloud-based and on-premise applications. Boomi boasts the management of "millions of transactions" each month and has successfully completed "tens of thousands of cloud integrations" for numerous customers worldwide. What sets Boomi apart is its solution, which eliminates the need for additional appliances, software, or even coding. Notably, Boomi has raised a modest $4 million in venture capital.
