Microsoft CRM Custom Entities
Saturday, December 4, 2010
If you use Microsoft CRM then you almost definitely have custom entities. The ease with which customers are able to customise/configure Microsoft CRM is what makes it such a powerful application. It is easy to configure Microsoft CRM to truly fit your specific business process by developing an changing the screens to suit.
The trick is that if you are developing custom entities, how easy is it to integrate this data with external applications such as Dynamics GP. eOne provides a very simple answer.
Firstly, SmartConnect integrates automatically with all custom attributes and entities in CRM – out of the box. When you build a map in SmartConnect it will check real time for a list of all entities and attributes – and you can map to and from these fields just like any other standard entity in CRM.
Secondly, the next question often raised is ‘where in GP can I store this extra data we are capturing in CRM?’. There are a couple of options here:
1. Do not move the data at all but just display it to GP users via Smartlist Builder, Navigation List Builder or SmartView.
2. Use the existing GP user defined fields and push the dato into those.
3. Create matching entities/fields within eXtender and use SmartConnect to write data into Extender. SmartConnect natively contains eConnect nodes to write data into Extender windows, forms or detail forms.
The great part about this story is that you never need speak to a developer. Building an entity in CRM is easy configuration, integrating data into it is through a simple map and writing that data back to GP is as simple as an additional map. All taks that a regular GP or CRM consultant can complete.
The trick is that if you are developing custom entities, how easy is it to integrate this data with external applications such as Dynamics GP. eOne provides a very simple answer.
Firstly, SmartConnect integrates automatically with all custom attributes and entities in CRM – out of the box. When you build a map in SmartConnect it will check real time for a list of all entities and attributes – and you can map to and from these fields just like any other standard entity in CRM.
Secondly, the next question often raised is ‘where in GP can I store this extra data we are capturing in CRM?’. There are a couple of options here:
1. Do not move the data at all but just display it to GP users via Smartlist Builder, Navigation List Builder or SmartView.
2. Use the existing GP user defined fields and push the dato into those.
3. Create matching entities/fields within eXtender and use SmartConnect to write data into Extender. SmartConnect natively contains eConnect nodes to write data into Extender windows, forms or detail forms.
The great part about this story is that you never need speak to a developer. Building an entity in CRM is easy configuration, integrating data into it is through a simple map and writing that data back to GP is as simple as an additional map. All taks that a regular GP or CRM consultant can complete.
