Customization - Do you use a supported method of customization?
Rules to better CRM for Developers|8154ecb4-54db-4181-90d1-780712fe0a11
v3.0
Posted at
1/07/2013 3:17 PM by
Mehmet Ozdemir
Rule Intro
The Microsoft CRM customization tools make it no longer necessary for you to hack
ie. write triggers, stored procedures and .aspx pages. In fact if you were to do
any of these your CRM is unsupported. Changes will not be preserved in any upgrades
or fixes and Microsoft will not attend to any of your support calls until you revert
your CRM back to a supported state.
Page Content
The common ways to customize are:
- Use the designer to add Entities and Forms (aka Tables and Forms)
- Write SQL Reporting Services Reports
- Write workflows with the CRM designer
- Write workflows with VS.NET and .NET 3.0 WF (new since CRM 4.0)
- Write callouts with VS.NET (the extension points made available)
The diagram below briefly outlines what are possible supported methods of customization.
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Figure: Microsoft CRM Customization Architecture
Refer to P19 of the CRM Customization Manual Course 8525A for a more in depth discussion.
PS: For CRM 3.0 you can't find everything on the web - you will need the CRM Customization Manual Course 8525A - you have to buy it from Microsoft :-(
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