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IMPORTANT INFORMATION

This blog is deprecated since July 2020.The articles below are no longer maintained and might contain outdated information. 
You can find the most acutal and relevenat information in our Knowledge Base at support.mscrm-addons.com

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Hello and welcome to our blog! What can we do for you? Are you looking for further technical information or step-by-step instructions to our products? Or would you like to read the latest news on mscrm-addons? Please feel free to browse our blog for detailed information and to share our posts!


How to check the existenz or the value of a SettingsKey in MS Dynamics 365

Sometimes you may be asked to check the existenz or the value of a new settingskey for one of our products (e.g. for troubleshooting of issue or when having special configuratinos, etc.). 

How to find a SettingsKey in MS CRM Dynamics 365

    1. Open CRM in your Browser.

    2. Navigate to Settings within the Dynamics365 navigation.
    Dynamics365 navigation

    Figure 1: Dynamics365 Navigation

    3. Within the settings, navigate to MSCRM-ADDONS.com Products in the Extensions-area of the sitemap.
    MSCRM-ADDONS.com Products

    Figure 2: MSCRM-ADDONS.com Products in the CRM settings

    4. Open the product record for which you should check its existenz or its value. This information should be provided as information along with the reference to this article.
    MSCRM-ADDONS.com Products

    Figure 3: List of MSCRM-ADDONS.com Products

    5. The product record contains a list of all settings for this prodcut (see Figure 5). Here you can check 

    MSCRM-ADDONS.com Products

    Figure 5: List of settingskeys-menu

Please note: If a value for a key is changed and the effected product is a client application like DocumentsCorePack or TelephoneIntegration, you need to restart the Client application. Otherwise, the setting will not be applied.

That’s it! We appreciate your feedback! Please share your thoughts by sending an email to support@mscrm-addons.com.


How to work with the new DocumentsCorePack custom connector for PowerAutomate (Microsoft Flow)

This step-by-step tutorial outlines how to create a document and attach it to an email using the DocumentsCorePack custom connector for PowerAutomate (Microsoft Flow). 


Overview of the Flow

This flow is triggered on the update of a record (Account in our case), it then creates an Email using the “Create new Record” step from the common data services connector. Afterwards we are using our DocumentsCorePack custom connector to create an email body from a DCP Template and attach it to the email. Then we create an email attachment and attach it to the same email. The last step finally sends the email.

 

1. Trigger

When you create a new flow, you have to decide which action will trigger the flow. In our case we have simply added a trigger on the update of the Account.

 

2. Create Email

In the second step we create an Email Message, you can leave the sender, recipient and regarding empty for now, as our DocumentsCorePack custom connector offers a very easy way to fill them later. You can still already fill the Subject and Description to your liking. 
 

 

 

3. Create Email Body

To create the Email Body, we are using the DocumentsCorePack custom connector and choose the step “Create Document Job (sync)”. In this step it is mandatory to specify a template which shall be used to create the email body, and an Entity ID with which the Template shall be merged. (NOTE: The template needs to be created for the Entity Type specified in the Email ID) To create the Email Body we must choose the Filetype “HTML”.
  

 

4. Attach Email Body 

After creating the Email Body, we need to attach it to the Email. For this we select the Document that was created in the previous Create Email Body step, this can be found under “Document (Base 64 Encoded)”. We also take the Filename from the previous step and the Email Message from the Create Email step.  

 

Here you can see what the “Document (Base 64 Encoded)” looks like:
 

 


5. Create Attachment

In this step we want to create an additional attachment that shall be attached to the final email. 

Again, we have to choose a Template, an Entity ID and an output FileType. As we want an attachment this time we are choosing “PDF”:


 


6. Attach Email Attachment

Again, we have to attach the created document to the email. This time we select the “Document (Base 64 Encoded)” and the Filename from the Create Attachment Step.  Additionally, we also need to fill Email ID with the “Email Message” from the “Create Email “Step.


 


7. Send Email

Now that the Email Body and Email Attachment are attached to our Email, we want to finally send the email. For the “Email To Send” we choose the “Email Message” from the Create Email step. 

Based on the trigger you have chosen you can either use the “Owner” or “Modified By” user to get the current user, if you have a trigger that allows it you can also get the current user using the “User ID” from the dynamic values. This user can be specified as the sender of the email. For Sender (Schema name) we choose the Entity Type “User”. 

Now we also have an option to specify the “Regarding” of the Email, for this we used the Regarding (Id) “Account” and the Regarding (Schema Name) Entity Type “Account”. 
For the To-Recipient we have chosen the To-ID “Primary Contact” and the To-Schema name Entity Type “Contact”.

 

 

In Short: It is important that the “Schema name” points to the Entity Type of the ID that is specified.


 

That’s it! We appreciate your feedback! Please share your thoughts by sending an email to support@mscrm-addons.com

 


How To: Set up the DocumentsCorePack custom connector for PowerApps & Microsoft Flow)

In this article we will show you how to create a DocumentsCorePack custom connector for PowerAutomate enabling users to utilize  the document generation and processing capabilities within their Flows and Canvas Apps. More information about how to activate the DCP connector can be found in the corresponding blog article

IMPORTANT: As of 1st March 2020 the connector is in BETA and will change over the course of the months until the connector is officially released (target: April 2020). It is NOT recommended to use the connector in production-flows as functionality could breaks as we perform updates to the API. 

Prerequisites:

  • Your DocumentsCorePack service must be hosted on mscrm-addons.com (Open Service Configuration)
  • Your DocumentsCorePack service must use Server2Server authentication

Step-by-Step video


Step-by-Step guide:

  1. Visit https://documentapi.mscrm-addons.com/swagger/v1/swagger.json and save the swagger.json file locally.
  2. Go to https://flow.microsoft.com  or https://make.powerapps.com, choose the environment you want to add the connector too and and click on [Data->CustomConnector->OpenAPI-File import]
  3.  Select the file saved in step #1 and follow the instructions. You can optionally change the icon/color and name of the connector as desired. Once done, click on [Create Connector]
  4. Visit the service configuration on https://www.mscrm-addons.com/Products/DocumentsCorePack/ServiceConfiguration, select the service and click on [get API key]
  5. When asked, enter the API key to define the connection for your DocumentsCorePack Connector.

You are now all set. 

Note: You can easily test the connection. Therefore you click on the edit button on the custom connector and go to step 4 [Test]. After selecting or creating a new connection you can use the [Test operation] for the [Ping] method. If successfull you will see a "Message": "[Date] [Time]succesfully connected to [orgname] as [username]" DocumentsService is alive" message in the response area. 

That’s it. You are now ready to use the connector. 

Helpful Links:


How to work with AdobeSign DataMapping

DataMapping is a specific feature of AdobeSign.  

With this feature it allows you to set an association between the field in Agreement and the attribute of the entity in CRM. 
After signing a document the values of the field of the CRM entity will be replaced with the predefined values of the user.

For example if you want to replace values of the fields Jobtitle and address1_city  of contact entity.

First of all it is necessary to create a Data Mapping Template entity in CRM.

In your CRM environment navigate to Adobe Sign tab and then to Data Mapping:


In the opened form specify the name of DataMapping and select a target entity (in our case Contact):


The record will be added:

 

After adding:

 

Save created Data Mapping Template.

Now we can create the Documents CorePack template for some contact using our Data Mapping Template.

Open MS Word, create the Documents CorePack template (for additional information see How to create Documents CorePack templates) for contact entity. In the necessary place insert Agreement Field in format:

 {{NameOfField}}

Here:

Job title: {{JobTitleDataMapping}}

City: {{Address1CityDataMappingField}}

 
Sample template:

  • DataMapping (The Agreement Mapping Template entity has to be already created in CRM),
  • Sign order – choose if signee should sign document in any order or in order of adding to agreement,
  • Signing language – default language of Agreement:

Save Documents CorePack template in CRM.

Open a Contact entity which has to used for signing:​

Now click the button Create Document  [1] and then Let me decide every step (available for users). 

In opened list choose created DCP template [2] and click Next [3] button:

Then check the Attach document [1], choose As Adobe Sign email [2] and select recepient [3]:

After signing it is necessary to open the AdobeSign Agreement in order to change the status.

Before signing:

After signing:

Then open the contact you work with and make sure that the values of Job title and City fields have been replaced with the values from signed Agreement:

 
Now the values for Job Title is Geologist and for Address City is South Park. The values have been succesfully replaced.

That’s it! We appreciate your feedback! Please share your thoughts by sending an email to support@mscrm-addons.com.


How to launch PowerSearch in Dynamics 365 UCI

This article shows different ways how you can launch PowerSearch. It also describes how you can add Sitemap entries linking to the PowerSearch page manually.

This article is valid for Dynamics 365 v 9.x UCI only.

  

Global Button

PowerSearch can be launched via the global button.

If the “PowerSearchPluginGlobalButton” solution is installed, you can find the search icon in the header menu. This is available in all apps.

 

 

 

“PowerSearchPluginGlobalButton” solution version 2018.2 or higher is required. The newest version can be downloaded via our website here.  


Sitemap Link

With the installed “PowerSearchPluginConfig” solution Sitemap entries are added automatically to the “Sales” and “Service” sections of the default application (Dynamics 365 - custom).

 

To add PowerSearch to different areas or a different apps, use the Dynamics 365 built in Sitemap Designer. More information can be found here

Once opened, add a new “Subarea” to the preferred place.

 

 

Select the following options in its “Properties” area:

Type: Web Resource

URL: ptm_PowerSearch/MainPage.html

Title: PowerSearch

Icon: ptm_PowerSearch/img/searchIcon16x16_black.svg

 

Should one of the web resources not be available or should the result not be correct, make sure that you have installed the “PowerSearchPluginCore” solution version 2018.24 or higher. The newest version can be downloaded from our website.

That’s it! We appreciate your feedback! Please share your thoughts by sending an email to support@mscrm-addons.com.

 


Recap: eXtreme365 & UG Summit in Orlando

In mid-October, we had the opportunity to be part of the eXtreme365 and the UG Summit in Orlando, Florida.Both events exceeded all of our expectations. Thank you for giving us your precious time and attention! It was a great pleasure meeting you at our booth. 

The week started with extreme365 with a lot of great content from Microsoft and partners. It offered us the opportunity to shape future strategies and was a high-energy event where we could gain a deep-dive understanding of Microsoft´s roadmap, expert community insight on overcoming real-world challenges and exceptional relationship building. The value of eXtreme365 is entdless, which was due to the excellent speakers and truly informative sessions. The event was amazing and full of great people.

Followed by User Group Summit with crowds of people, great exhibitors and a lot of new contacts and customer meetings. Amazing keynote speakers, small group sessions, gripping speeches and lots of networking opportunities converted this event into a Microsoft Dynamics 365 festival. All in one we had great sessions and learned great Dynamics people! 

eXtreme365 & UG Summit - photo gallery

Both events were amazing and full of great people. From the very first moment, we knew that being a sponsor had been a great decision. All in all, the events were a complete success for partners and customers. Being part was a great and really very special experience! We want to thank the organizers of that outstanding event for their commitment! 

 There are no strangers here; only friends you haven’t met yet.
- William Butler Yeats


mscrm-addons.com Application User for Dynamics 365 (App Access)

This article describes how you can create an mscrm-addons.com Application User for your Dynamics 365 organization. Further on it shows how you can use this user to connect via DocumentsCorePack Server and Client (App Access).

This article is valid for Dynamics 365 Online only.

 

Required Dynamics 365 Solution

First, make sure that you have the required “MSCRMADDONScomGeneral” solution installed. To do so, open Dynamics 365 -> Advanced Settings -> Settings -> Solutions

Check if a solution named “MSCRMADDONScomGeneral” exists and if its version is 2020.22 or higher.

 

If the solution does exist and if its version is up-to-date, you can skip the next section. If not, as you can see in the figure above - the version is to old, you can download the solution file here.

 

Next, hit the [Import]-button, select the downloaded zip file (MSCRMADDONScomGeneral.zip) and follow the dialog.

 

How to register and create the Application User

If you already have installed DocumentsCorePack follow this way: 

Open Dynamics 365 -> Advanced Settings -> Settings -> “MSCRM-ADDONS” area -> DocumentsCorePack. In the loaded configuration page navigate to the “License Server” tab and hit the [Enable App Access]-button as you can see in the figure below. 

 

The Application User configuration will open.

 

If you have installed the General solution only or do not have access to settings area, follow this way:

Open the “CreateAppUser.html” web resource. Therefore, replace the “[Dynamics365ServerURL]” placeholder of the following link with your Dynamics 365 server URL and open it:

[Dynamics365ServerURL]/webresources/ptm_general/applicationuser/CreateAppUser.html]

 

e.g. https://crm875916.crm.dynamics.com/webresources/ptm_general/applicationuser/CreateAppUser.html

 

Both ways will open the Application User configuration page:

 

Once opened, it tries to add your user domain name to the input field automatically. If the field is empty or the value is wrong, type in the domain name (email address) of an existing Dynamics 365 user. Hit “Start” to perform the steps described in the dialog.

 

Next a new window pointing to “https://login.microsoftonline.com/...” will open. It shows a Microsoft Online connection dialog. If the window does not open, check your popup blocker. Login with an Azure Active Directory administrator.

 

To register the mscrm-addons.com application, hit accept in the next dialog:

 

Once done, you will be redirected to our the mscrm-addons.com website.

 

If the page shows “The enable process has been successful” go back to the dialog. Hit the [Enable]-button to continue.

 

If the process was successful, you will see the following message:

 

Please note: You will need this “Security Token” in the connection dialog shown in the next sections. For each Dynamics 365 user a different “Security Token” is generated.

How to get the Security Token

To retrieve the “Security Token” again or a different Dynamics 365 user needs his token to connect, just reopen the same page as shown above (section “How to register and create the Application User”).

The page always shows the “Security Token” for the currently logged in Dynamics 365 user.

If the current user is a Dynamics 365 admin, the page shows the “Security Token” of the “MSCRMADDONScom.ApplicationUser” application user in addition.

 

Here the direct link again: [Dynamics365ServerURL]/webresources/ptm_general/applicationuser/CreateAppUser.html

 

e.g. https://crm875916.crm.dynamics.com/webresources/ptm_general/applicationuser/CreateAppUser.html

 

 

Result if logged in with a Dynamics 365 admin user (“admin@CRM875916.onmicrosoft.com”):

 

Result if logged in with a default Dynamics 365 user (“alans@CRM875916.OnMicrosoft.com”):

 

Please note: The minimum permission for a none admin user is the “global read permision on the systemuser entity”. If the current user does not have this privilege, the page will show an error:

 

 

Request new License for AppAccess

If you are in trial mode and do not have a DCP license yet, you can skip this section.

 

For the AppAccess connection a new license key for both the DCP server and the DCP client is required.

Before you change the connection to AppAccess contact our support (support@mscrm-addons.com)  with the subject: “Update license for AppAcceess support”. Further on provide the ID and the unique name of your Dynamics 365 organization. Both can be found in -> Dynamics 365 -> Advanced Settings -> Settings -> Customizations -> Developer Resources -> “Instance Reference Information” section -> look for “ID” and “Unique Name”

 

More information can be found here

 

 

Use App Access via DCP Online Service Config

 (minimum required DocumentsCorePack Service version is 2020.12)

 

Create a new DocumentsCorePack online service or update an existing one as usual. More information can be found in the corresponding user guide.

 

In the “Connection Profile” select “App Access” instead. To do so, hit on “Connection Profile” as you can see below. 

 

In the opened dialog select “App Access”. Then the following info box will occur. It contains a link to this article. Hit the [Ok]-button to continue.

 

Next, define the “CRM URL” and the “Username”. And paste the “Security Token” mentioned before (Please note: It has to be the correct token fitting to the defined Username).

Then hit the [Retrieve Organizations]-button and if an organization was found, continue with "Very Connection & Save Profile” as you can see in the figure below. 

 

If this process was successful, continue as usual.


Use App Access via DCP Client (Template Designer)

(minimum required DocumentsCorePack Client version is 10.1)

 

Install the DCP Client or change the connection of an existing installation as usual. More information can be found in the corresponding guide

 

When you reach the “Connection Dialog” make sure to select “AppAccess”. Then define “Dynamics 365 Server-Url” and“Username”. Next, hit on the [Retrieve all Organizations]-button.

 

A small new dialog will pop up. Enter the “Security Token” fitting to the “Username".

 

If the process was successful you will see one retrieved organization. Hit [OK] to connect. 

 

Continue as usual.

 

That’s it! We appreciate your feedback! Please share your thoughts by sending an email to support@mscrm-addons.com.

 


Template Explorer (Dynamics 365)

The DocumentsCorePack Template Explorer is a feature that allows you to easier navigate through your templates while designing and maintaining them. The Template Explorer displays all DocumentsCorePack pack fields in a schematic tree view. This Feature is available in Version 9.37 and higher. 

 

    Figure 1: Template Explorer open on a sample template

The Template Explorer only works on DocumentsCorePack Templates. For merged documents or non DCP templates you will not be able to open the Template Explorer.
You can enable or disable the Template Explorer with the new ribbon button "Template Explorer"   (Figure 2). 

After enabling the Template Explorer a new task pane will appear on the left of your document. The Template Explorer will list all fields that are used in your document in a tree view.

Nested elements or tables will be displayed as sub-nodes of the tree view. An additional context menu allows you to directly interact with the field (Figure 4) and by hovering over the element a tooltip shows information about the field (Figure 4).

    Figure 4: Context menu on the element (left) and tooltipinformation (right)

The context menu allows to directly open field properties, delete a field or context-specific actions like opening subtemplate.

At the bottom of the tree view you have 3 options additional options.  

     Analyze the Template
    This action tries to analyze the template for know issues like unused relationships or invalid table layouts.
    This operation is now performed before each 'save process'. It can be disabled in the Template Explorer Settings. Details ob this feature can be found here

    DocumentsCorePack Settings
    This button opens the standard DocumentsCorePack template settings. 

     Template Explorer Settings 
    The template explorer settings allow you to change single settings of ​this feature. More details can be found here.

That’s it! We appreciate your feedback! Please share your thoughts by sending an email to support@mscrm-addons.com.



Template Explorer Settings (Dynamics 365)

This article describes the settings for the Template Explorer. This feature is part of the DocumentsCorePack Client version 9.37 or higher.

    Figure 1: Template Explorer Settings

      DocumentsCorePack field selection
      Define wich DCP fields you would like to see in the tree view. 

       Word field selection
      Define if you want to see all Word field functions or only conditions. 
      Please Note DCP Conditions are not the same as Word Conditions

      ❸ Analyze Template Before Save
      A template will be analyzed by default before saving. If you do not want this happen you can disable this option.
      Details about the DocumentsCorePack Analyze Template Feature can be found here.

       Jump to Field on Click
      As soon as you click on the field in the tree view you will directly jump to this element in the Document.
      If you don't want to jump to the field directly you can disable this setting. You will be able to jump to the field on demand by using the context menu in the Template Explorer.

    That’s it! We appreciate your feedback! Please share your thoughts by sending an email to support@mscrm-addons.com.