Tag Archives: Microsoft Dynamics CRM

Microsoft Dynamics 365 and SSRS Reports: Dates and Time

In this article, we deep dive into the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement Date and Time field type, as well as explore the implications of this field type on SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) reports depending on the behavior and format selected. We demonstrate how to make SSRS reports to display Date and Time fields in the user’s time zone. Also, we look at how the different behaviors and formats of the Date and Time field type are stored in the SQL database. The included use case provides a real world scenario of where the information in this article came in handy.

Use Case

Inspiration

Recently on a client engagement, a bug was raised on a couple of SSRS reports I had built a few months ago. A date field on the reports was displaying the next day i.e. if a record was approved yesterday, the report was showing that it was approved today in some cases. Looking at the records from the Dynamics 365 user interface, i.e. views, Advanced Find and forms, the field was displaying the correct date despite the SSRS reports were showing that same date as the next day. This behavior was only observed on some of the records created by the clients.

I thought of sharing the problem solving approach and tools I used to resolve this bug with the hope the it may help another Microsoft Dynamics 365 software developer in the future.

What was going on

The field in question it is a Date and Time field but the reports are configured to show the date part of the field only, as per the requirements. After investigations, it turned out that the SSRS reports were consuming a Date and Time field type (Behavior: User Local. Format: Date and Time), without translating it into the user’s time zone. Therefore, if a user approved a record between 8pm and Mid-night EST, the date of approval would show up on the SSRS report as the following day. This is because if a Date and Time field type’s behavior is set to User Local, the actual data is store in UTC time but translated to the user’s time zone when displayed to the user in the Dynamics 365 user interface. Unlike the Dynamics 365 user interface, SSRS reports do not automatically provide the translation to the user’s time zone but is can be implemented as shown in the SSRS Reports section below. Therefore, the source of the discrepancy between the date seen by users in Dynamics 365 user and what was being shown in the report lies in the fact that the Dynamics 365 user interface was translating the UTC date into the user’s local time while the report was showing the date as it was recorded in the SQL database. As the client is based in the EST, the bug could only be replicated, under the same conditions, between 8pm and Mid-night EST, when EST and UTC exist on two calendar dates.

Some of the client’s employees was creating the data between 8pm and Mid-night EST. As the field’s behavior is set to User Local, in the four hours time window (8pm to Mid-night EST), UTC and EST are on two different dates, and records approved in period will stored on the following day in UTC, which the database time for User Local behavior fields.

The Tools to Debug the Problem

View the Behavior and Format of Date and Time FIelds

Open the Date and Time field in the Dynamics 365 solution and see how it is saved:
Date and Time field's Behavior and Format

Date and Time Fields: Behavior and Format

The table below shows the different behaviors and formats of Date and Time fields in Dynamics 365, and well as their implications.

BehaviorFormatChanging field’s behavior
User Local Note: This is the behavior of all date and time fields in the previous releases.

– The field values are displayed in the current user’s local time.
– In Web services (SDK), these values are returned using a common UTC time zone format.
Date Only – or – Date and TimeIn the user interface (UI), you can change certain out-of-the-box entity field’s behavior from the User Local to Date Only. For a list of entities and fields, see Changing the field behavior to Date Only on upgrade. You can change the custom entity field’s behavior from the User Local to Date Only or to Time-Zone Independent.

Changing the field behavior affects the field values that are added or modified after the field behavior was changed. The existing field values remain in the database in the UTC time zone format. To change the behavior of the existing field values from UTC to Date Only, you may need a help of a developer to do it programmatically. More information: Convert behavior of existing date and time values in the database. Warning: Before changing the behavior of a date and time field, you should review all the dependencies of the field, such as business rules, workflows, calculated fields, or rollup fields, to ensure that there are no issues as a result of changing the behavior. After changing the behavior of a date and time field, you should open each business rule, workflow, calculated field, and rollup field dependent on the field that you changed, review the information, and save it, to ensure that the latest date and time field’s behavior and value are used. You can restrict modifying the field’s behavior, by setting the CanChangeDateTimeBehavior managed property to False. More information: Set managed property to change date and time behavior
Date Only

– The concept of a time zone isn’t applicable to this behavior. The field values are displayed without the time zone conversion.
– The time portion of the value is always 12:00AM.
– The date portion of the value is stored and retrieved as specified in the UI and Web services (SDK).
Date OnlyThe Date Only behavior can’t be changed to other behavior types, once it’s set.
Time-Zone Independent

– The concept of a time zone isn’t applicable to this behavior. The field values are displayed without the time zone conversion.
– The date and time values are stored and retrieved as specified in the UI and Web services (SDK).
Date Only – or – Date and TimeThe Time-Zone Independent behavior can’t be changed to other behavior types, once it’s set.
Source: Microsoft

.

Date and Time fields in Dynamics 365 User Interface vs. SQL Database

Dynamics 365 User Interface: Date and Time fields

Here are the different possible combinations of storing simple dates and time data in Dynamics 365 (on a classic interface form for the Contact entity):
Date and Time fields on a Form

SQL Database: Date and Time fields

In this section, we will look at how the date and time fields in the previous section are stored in the database. The date and time fields are on the Contact entity (i.e. ContactBase table in my Dynamics 365 SQL database). Querying for the specified columns in the table where the full name is ‘Peter Parker’:

SELECT TOP (10)
       [FullName]    
      ,[hos_uselocal_dateonly]
      ,[hos_uselocal_dateandtime]
      ,[hos_dateonly_dateonly]
      ,[hos_timezoneindependent_dateonly]
      ,[hos_timezoneindependent_dateandtime]
  FROM [House_MSCRM].[dbo].[ContactBase]
  WHERE FullName = 'Peter Parker'

See the results below:
Viewing Date and Time fields in the datebase

From the database results above, it is worth noting:

  • Behavior of User Local and Format of Date Only: these fields are always stored as 4am in my database in EST, which is 12am UTC.
  • Behavior of User Local and Format of Date and Time: in my time zone, i.e. EST, these fields are always stored 4 hours ahead, i.e. UTC time, in the database. In contrast, in the user interface, this field always shows the data in my time zone.
  • Behavior of Time Zone Independent and Format of Date and Time: stores the data in the database as inputted in the user interface and does not respect time zones.

SSRS Reports: Display Dates and Time in the user’s time zone

There are two ways to create SSRS Reports for Dynamics 365. You can create a report in Dynamics 365 using the Report Wizard, export it and add to your Report Server Project in Microsoft Visual Studio IDE, with the built-in fields and parameters, from Dynamics 365. Alternatively, you can take the opposite path of creating a blank Report Server Project in Microsoft Visual Studio IDE, connecting to Dynamics 365, and adding the built-in fields and parameters as needed. If you take the former approach, you will get the built-in fields and parameters in Visual Studio, similar to the image below:
Visual Studio - built in fields and parameters

To translate UTC date and time data, for User Local behavior, in the SQL database into the user’s time zone, you have to use the SSRS Report formula below, where “CRM_UserTimeZoneName” is a parameter and <SSRSDateAndTimeField> is name of your Date and Time field in SSRS:

=Microsoft.Crm.Reporting.RdlHelper.DateTimeUtility.ConvertUtcToLocalTime(
<SSRSDateAndTimeField>, Parameters!CRM_UserTimeZoneName.Value)

“CRM_UserTimeZoneName” is a parameter passed in from Dynamics 365, containing the user’s time zone. The function “Microsoft.Crm.Reporting.RdlHelper.DateTimeUtility.ConvertUtcToLocalTime” iconverts UTC time to the user’s time zone. Therefore, when the user runs the report, they will see the date and time data in their time zone, despite it is stored as UTC by default in the SQL database.

Here are some application examples, where “Fields!hos_uselocal_dateandtimeValue.Value” is the SSRS date and time field in Visual Studio:

  • Display User Local Date and Time SSRS data field in the user’s time zone (showing both date and time data):
=Microsoft.Crm.Reporting.RdlHelper.DateTimeUtility.ConvertUtcToLocalTime(
Fields!hos_uselocal_dateandtimeValue.Value, Parameters!CRM_UserTimeZoneName.Value)
  • Display User Local Date and Time SSRS data field in the user’s time zone (showing the date component only without the time component of the date, in the format dd/MM/yyyy):
=Format(CDate(Microsoft.Crm.Reporting.RdlHelper.DateTimeUtility.ConvertUtcToLocalTime(Fields!hos_uselocal_dateandtimeValue.Value,
Parameters!CRM_UserTimeZoneName.Value)), "dd/MM/yyyy")

Dynamics 365 Online: Accessing the contents of your SQL database

In Dynamics 365 Online, you do not have access to the SQL database that hosts your Dynamics 365 organization. However, Microsoft allows you to access the data in your SQL database by duplicating and syncing to Microsoft Azure. From Azure, you can connect to duplicated SQL database and be able to run the SQL script in this article. For more details duplicating and syncing your Dynamics 365 online SQL database to Microsoft Azure, see: Microsoft Dynamic 365 Data Export Service: Duplicating and Syncing SQL database in Azure

Microsoft Dynamics 365: Server Side Bulk Records Operations

In Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement server side automation, e.g. plugins and custom workflow activities, we can write code to create, retrieve, update and delete individual records. When we need to carry out these operations on multiple records, we can use a loop and query the database for each record. However, a much more efficient way to carry out bulk operations is to use the ExecuteMultipleRequest message (to Create, Update and Delete records in bulk), the focus on this article. Also, the application example demonstrates how to make use of these bulk operations methods as well as makes use of the RetrieveMultiple Query Expression (i.e. how to retrieve multiple records in single query) .

The bulk operations suite of methods below can be incorporated into a Dynamics 365 project and be called upon to carry out bulk operations. These methods provide an efficient way of carrying out operations on multiple records, thereby enhancing web pages response rates and user experience.

Bulk Create Records

public static void BulkCreateRecords(IOrganizationService service, EntityCollection entityCollection)
{            
	var multipleRequest = new ExecuteMultipleRequest()
	{                 
		Settings = new ExecuteMultipleSettings()
		{
			ContinueOnError = false,
			ReturnResponses = true
		},                
		Requests = new OrganizationRequestCollection()
	};

	foreach (Entity entity in entityCollection.Entities)
	{
		CreateRequest createRequest = new CreateRequest { Target = entity };
		multipleRequest.Requests.Add(createRequest);
	}

	ExecuteMultipleResponse multipleResponse = (ExecuteMultipleResponse)service.Execute(multipleRequest);
}

Bulk Update Records

public static void BulkUpdateRecords(IOrganizationService service, EntityCollection entityCollection)
{           
	var multipleRequest = new ExecuteMultipleRequest()
	{               
		Settings = new ExecuteMultipleSettings()
		{
			ContinueOnError = false,
			ReturnResponses = true
		},               
		Requests = new OrganizationRequestCollection()
	};
   
	foreach (Entity entity in entityCollection.Entities)
	{
		UpdateRequest updateRequest = new UpdateRequest { Target = entity };
		multipleRequest.Requests.Add(updateRequest);
	}

	ExecuteMultipleResponse multipleResponse = (ExecuteMultipleResponse)service.Execute(multipleRequest);
}

Bulk Delete Records

public static void BulkDeleteRecords(IOrganizationService service, EntityCollection entityCollection)
{            
	var multipleRequest = new ExecuteMultipleRequest()
	{ 
		Settings = new ExecuteMultipleSettings()
		{
			ContinueOnError = false,
			ReturnResponses = true
		},                
		Requests = new OrganizationRequestCollection()
	};
   
	foreach (Entity entity in entityCollection.Entities)
	{
		EntityReference entityRef = new EntityReference(entity.LogicalName, entity.Id);

		DeleteRequest deleteRequest = new DeleteRequest { Target = entityRef };
		multipleRequest.Requests.Add(deleteRequest);
	}

	ExecuteMultipleResponse multipleResponse = (ExecuteMultipleResponse)service.Execute(multipleRequest);
}

Example: Calling bulk operations methods and a demonstration of RetrieveMultiple

In the example below, we show how the methods provided above can be put to use to carry out bulk operations, by calling the bulk delete records method, as well as we make use of the RetrieveMultiple Query expression to retrieve multiple records in single database query (see the code below the comment “RetrieveMultiple Query Expression”).

About the plugin

The plugin example below is registered on the Update message Synchronously on the Account entity and PreOperation event pipeline stage of execution. The plugin is triggered by a custom Two Option field called Delete Tasks (logical name: “hos_deletetasks”) field. Therefore, when the user changes the value of the “hos_deletetasks” field from No/false to Yes/true, the plugin retrieves all the tasks that relate to that account and deletes them.

Other things to note

I have added the BulkCreateteRecords, BulkUpdateRecords and BulkDeleteRecords methods to my D365Helpers class, which contains my other reusable methods, so that they can used across multiple server-side automation classes.

using System;
using System.ServiceModel;
using Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk;
using Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.Messages;
using Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.Query;

namespace ItsFascinating.Plugins.D365
{
    public class DeleteFollowUpTasks : IPlugin
    {
        public void Execute(IServiceProvider serviceProvider)
        {                  
            if (serviceProvider == null)
            {
                throw new ArgumentNullException("localContext");
            }
            #region Plugin Setup Variables
            IPluginExecutionContext context = (IPluginExecutionContext)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(IPluginExecutionContext));
            IOrganizationServiceFactory serviceFactory = (IOrganizationServiceFactory)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(IOrganizationServiceFactory));
            IOrganizationService service = serviceFactory.CreateOrganizationService(context.UserId);
            ITracingService tracingService = (ITracingService)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(ITracingService));
            #endregion
            #region Validation Prior Execution
            string pluginMessageUpdate = "update";           

            if (context.Stage != 20)
            {
                tracingService.Trace("Invalid Stage: Stage = {0}", context.Stage);
                return;
            }
            
            if (!context.MessageName.ToLower().Equals(pluginMessageUpdate))
            {
                tracingService.Trace("Invalid Message: MessageName = {0}", context.MessageName);
                return;
            }
            #endregion
           
            if (context.InputParameters.Contains("Target") && context.InputParameters["Target"] is Entity)
            {
                Entity primaryEntity = context.InputParameters["Target"] as Entity;
                string accountLogicalName = "account";

                if (primaryEntity.LogicalName != accountLogicalName)
                {
                    tracingService.Trace("Invalid Entity: EntityName = {0}", primaryEntity.LogicalName);
                    return;
                }                    

                try
                {
                    if (primaryEntity.LogicalName.Equals(accountLogicalName))
                        DeleteTasks(service, primaryEntity, tracingService);                   
                }                
                catch (FaultException ex)
                {
                    throw new InvalidPluginExecutionException(string.Format("An error occurred in the DeleteFollowUpTasks plug-in. {0}", ex.Message));
                }
                catch (Exception ex)
                {
                    tracingService.Trace(string.Format("DeleteFollowUpTasks plugin: {0}", ex.ToString()));
                    throw new Exception(string.Format("An error occurred in the DeleteFollowUpTasks plug-in. {0}", ex.Message));
                }
            }
        }

        private static void DeleteTasks(IOrganizationService service, Entity primaryEntity, ITracingService tracingService)
        {
            object deleteTasksFieldObj = new object(); ;
            string deleteTasksLogicalName = "hos_deletetasks";
            bool deleteTasks;
            string taskLogicalName = "task";
            string subject = "subject";
            string description = "description";
            string accountRegardingFieldLogicalName = "regardingobjectid";
            bool containsDeleteTasks = primaryEntity.Attributes.TryGetValue(deleteTasksLogicalName, out deleteTasksFieldObj);

            if (containsDeleteTasks)
            {
                deleteTasks = (bool)deleteTasksFieldObj;

                if (deleteTasks)
                {
                    //RetrieveMultiple Query Expression
                    var tasksQuery = new QueryExpression(taskLogicalName);
                    tasksQuery.ColumnSet = new ColumnSet(subject, description);
                    tasksQuery.Criteria.AddCondition(accountRegardingFieldLogicalName, ConditionOperator.Equal, primaryEntity.Id);
                    var tasksResults = service.RetrieveMultiple(tasksQuery);

                    if (tasksResults.Entities.Count > 0)
                        D365Helpers.BulkDeleteRecords(service, tasksResults);
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

Microsoft Dynamics 365: Hide and Show Buttons

In this article, we cover to how to hide buttons as well as how to show buttons that are hidden, in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement. To achieve this object, we will use an example with practical requirements. To implement what is in this article, the user must have a System Administrator security role in Dynamics 365.
Dynamics 365 Home Command Bar Buttons

Working with Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics 365

If you do not already have the Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics 365, go and download it: Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics 365. The Ribbon Workbench comes as a Microsoft Dynamics 365 managed solution. Therefore, after downloading it, you have to import it in your Dynamics 365 instance by going to: Settings >> Solutions >> Import. After successfully following the import dialogue to the end and successfully importing the solution, refresh the page and you will able to see the Ribbon Workbench button in the Solutions area of Dynamics 365:
Ribbon Workbench Button in Dynamics 365

Application Example: Hide Buttons

Below we will provide an example of practical client requirements and show step by step how the Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics can help us address these requirements.

Requirements

A national, provincial /state or city level education board that has a Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement implementation that keeps track of all the schools and students in its jurisdiction. Each student in the system must be linked to a school and under no circumstance can a user of the system be able to create a student record that is not associated to a school record. This prevents the problem of creating of orphan student records in the system i.e. student records without an associated school record.

Implication of the Requirements

To implement these requirements, we will have to restrict the places where users can access the Student (logical name: contact ) entity’s New button and be able to create new student records. Student records should only be created in relation to a School (logical name: account) record i.e. from the School records’ Students sub-grids as shown in the image below.

  • The Student’s sub-grid on Schools’ form
    Create Student record via Form Sub-grid
  • The Student’s sub-grid on Schools’ related entities menu
    Related entities

    Create Student record via Form related entities

Therefore, after implementing the instructions provided under the sub-section “Implementation of the requirements” and section “Other Settings”, users will only be able to create student records from the from the Student entity’s sub-grids on the School records. Hence as a corollary, users will no longer be able to create Student records from:

  • Quick Create menu
    Create Student record via Quick Create
  • Advanced Find
    Create Student record via Advanced Find
  • Student entity’s Home Command Bar
    Create Student record via Home Command Bar
  • Student entity’s Form Command Bar
    Create Student record via Form Command Bar

Implementation of the requirements

  1. To Go to Settings >> Solutions, and create a new solution. Add the entities whose ribbons you wish to edit. In our example, we will be adding the Student (logical name: contact ) entity only to the new solution. Exclude all entity assets but include the entity’s metadata. Save and Publish All Customizations.Create Solution With Student Entity
  2. Under Settings >> Solutions, click on the Ribbon Workbench button to launch the Dynamics 365 Ribbon Workbench. Select the solution created in part 1 and click OK.
    Launch Ribbon Workbench
  3. After opening the solution in Ribbon Workbench, it will look like the image below. Ensure you are editing the intended entity (A in the image below). In our case, we intend to edit the ribbons for the Student (logical name: contact ) entity. On the Student (logical name: contact ) entity, we intend to hide all the New buttons except on the Student’s sub-grids (B in the image below).
    Ribbon Workbench - verify entity and identify except buttons
  4. To hide a button, right click on it and select “Hide”. After hiding all the Student (logical name: contact) entity New buttons, except on the Student’s sub-grid (highlighted in green in the image above), the solution in Ribbon Workbench will look like the image below:
    Hide New Button Except Sub-grid
  5. Click Publish. After the publishing process is done, the only place you will be able to see the New button, in your Dynamics instance, for the Student (logical name: contact) entity is on the sub-grids, as per the requirements above.

Application Example: Show Hidden Buttons

Months or years later, the requirements may change and the client may want to us to reverse the work done in the previous section and show the the hidden New buttons. To accomplish that:

  1. To Go to Settings >> Solutions, and create a new solution. Add the entities whose ribbons you wish to edit. In our example, we will be adding the Student (logical name: contact ) only to the new solution. Exclude all entity assets but include the entity’s metadata. Save and Publish All Customizations.Create Solution With Student Entity
  2. Under Settings >> Solutions, click on the Ribbon Workbench button to launch the Dynamics 365 Ribbon Workbench. Select the solution created in part 1 and click OK.
    Launch Ribbon Workbench
  3. After opening the solution in Workbench, it will look like the image below. Ensure you are editing the intended entity (A in the image below). In our case, we intend to edit the ribbons for the Student (logical name: contact ) entity. On the Student (logical name: contact ) entity, we intend to make visible the hidden buttons. In contrast to the “Application Example: Hide Button” section, the next time we load an entity in Ribbon Workbench, the hidden buttons are no longer shown command bars section (B in the image below) but are shown under the Hidden Actions section (C in the image below). To make visible these hidden buttons, right click on each button (C in the image below) and select “Un-hide”.
    Make hidden buttons visible
  4. Click Publish. After the publishing process is done, the “New” buttons that were previously hidden will become visible in your Dynamics 365 instance.

Other Settings

  • To fully ensure that there no orphan Student records are created, make sure the Student entity’s School field is set to Required and the field is added to all Student entity’s forms.
  • Quick Create: To stop users from creating the Student records from the Quick Create menu, remove the Quick Create option from the entity:
    1. Go to Settings >> Solutions
    2. Open the solution containing the entity
    3. In the solution, click on the entity. Remove the “Allow quick create” option.
      Remove the Quick Create option
    4. Save and publish the solution

Microsoft Dynamics 365: How to Remove Unwanted Special Characters from Text Fields

Microsoft Dynamics 365 has a flexible and extendable architecture, and can be integrated with other platforms. In integrations, it is common for data entered in Dynamics 365 to be shared with other platforms. Although Dynamics 365 text fields are flexible to save special characters, other platforms, that integrate with Dynamics 365, may not be as flexible. For example, when you integrate Dynamics 365 with SharePoint or One Drive, you may want to use the record’s name in Dynamics 365 to create the record’s document set or folder in SharePoint or One Drive . In such a case, Dynamics 365 fields being used by SharePoint or One Drive have to adhere to those platforms’ more restrictive special characters restrictions. The the invalid characters for OneDrive, OneDrive for Business on Office 365, and SharePoint Online are ” * : < > ? / \ | and for OneDrive for Business on SharePoint Server 2013 they are ~ . ” # % & * : < > ? / \ { | }.

The plugin in this post addresses this integration challenge by preventing users from saving restricted special characters in the text field(s) enabled text validation. When creating or updating a record in Dynamics 365, the plugin will check the text field(s), enabled for text validation, and strip out the characters that are not part of the permitted list characters.

To demonstrate this plugin’s functionality, we enabled text validation on the Account Name field for the Account entity. The validation rule applied by the plugin is: the Account Name field is only permitted to take in alphanumeric characters, space and 2 special characters i.e. underscore and hyphen. If a user enters any characters in the field, other than the permitted list of characters, they will be stripped out when they save the record. In the image below, a user entered both valid and invalid characters. Before Save:
Before Saving, user has entered invalid special characters

When saving the record, the plugin stripped out the invalid characters from the text field, leaving only the permitted characters (i.e. alphanumeric characters, space and 2 special characters i.e. underscore and hyphen). After Save:
After Saving, invalid special characters are removed

The Plugin

using System;
using System.Text.RegularExpressions;
using Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk;


namespace ItsFascinating.Plugins.D365
{
    /// 
    /// This plugin removes non-approved special characters from the Account Name field of the Account entity
    /// 
    public class AccountNameCharactersRemover : IPlugin
    {
        public void Execute(IServiceProvider serviceProvider)
        {
            string pluginMessageCreate = "create";
            string pluginMessageUpdate = "update";
            Entity primaryEntity = new Entity();

            if (serviceProvider == null)
            {
                throw new ArgumentNullException("localContext");
            }

            #region Plugin Setup Variables
            IPluginExecutionContext context = (IPluginExecutionContext)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(IPluginExecutionContext));
            IOrganizationServiceFactory serviceFactory = (IOrganizationServiceFactory)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(IOrganizationServiceFactory));
            IOrganizationService service = serviceFactory.CreateOrganizationService(context.UserId);
            ITracingService tracingService = (ITracingService)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(ITracingService));
            #endregion
            #region Validation Prior Execution
            //Exist if plugin if it's not called at stage 20 of the excution pipeline
            if (context.Stage != 20)
            {
                tracingService.Trace("Invalid Stage: Stage = {0}", context.Stage);
                return;
            }
           
            //Only execute plugin if plugin message is Create or Update 
            if (!(context.MessageName.ToLower().Equals(pluginMessageCreate) || context.MessageName.ToLower().Equals(pluginMessageUpdate)))
            {
                tracingService.Trace("Invalid Message: MessageName = {0}", context.MessageName);
                return;
            }
            #endregion

            #region Plugin Logic
            if (context.InputParameters.Contains("Target") && context.InputParameters["Target"] is Entity)
            {
                try
                {
                    primaryEntity = context.InputParameters["Target"] as Entity;
                    
                    // Display Name: "Account Name" | Database Name: "name"
                    string accountNameFieldLogicalName = "name";
                    Object accountNameObj;
                    string accountName, updatedAccountName;
                    //Regex pattern for alphanumeric characters, space and 2 special characters i.e. underscore and hyphen                 
                    string permittedCharacters = "[^0-9a-zA-Z_ -]+";
                   
                    //Check if the specified attribute is contained in the internal dictionary before you you try to Get its value
                    if (primaryEntity.Attributes.TryGetValue(accountNameFieldLogicalName, out accountNameObj))
                    {
                        //Get value of that has been entered in the text field
                        accountName = Convert.ToString(accountNameObj);
                        //Remove remove unpermitted characters
                        updatedAccountName = Regex.Replace(accountName, permittedCharacters, "");
                        //Update the value of the text field, after removing the restricted characters
                        primaryEntity.Attributes[accountNameFieldLogicalName] = updatedAccountName;
                    }
                }
                catch (Exception ex)
                {
                    throw new InvalidPluginExecutionException(string.Format("Error occured in the PreUpdateAccount plugin: {0}", ex.Message));
                }
            }
            #endregion
        }
    }
}

Dynamics 365: How To Get and Set Fields on Forms Using JavaScript

In this post, we will cover how to get and set values for fields on Microsoft Dynamics 365/CRM forms. Dynamics 365 has the following types of fields (or datatypes): Single Line of Text, Option Set, MultiSelect Option Set, Two Options, Image, Whole Number, Floating Point Number, Floating Point Number, Decimal Number, Currency, Multiple Lines of Text, Date and Time, Lookup and Customer.

At the time of writing, there are two ways of accessing fields on Dynamics 365 forms i.e. using the formContext JavaScript API and Xrm.Page JavaScript API. However, Microsoft has the following JavaScript API recommendations:

  • Before Dynamics 365/CRM version 9.0, use the Xrm.Page API:
    Xrm.Page.getAttribute(fieldName);
  • Version 9.0 of Dynamics 365/CRM and after, use the formContext API:
    executionContext.getFormContext().getAttribute(fieldName);

With the release of version 9.0 of Dynamics CRM/365, Microsoft announced that it would deprecate the Xrm.Page JavaScript API. For details on how you can transition from the Xrm.Page API to the formContext API, see my earlier post: Quick Guide: Transitioning away from Microsoft Dynamics 365 Xrm.Page JavaScript API. From Xrm.Page to formContext, how you get and set values has not fundamentally changed. However, how you access fields and other form properties has changed.

Single Line of Text

Here is an example of a Single Line of Text field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Single Line of Text field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Single Line of Text field (Display Name: “Account Number” | Database Name: “accountnumber”):

//Get and Set a Single Line of Text field value
function SingleLineOfTextFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var accountNumberFieldLogicalName = "accountnumber";
    //Access the field on the form
    var accountNumberField = formContext.getAttribute(accountNumberFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var accountNumberFieldValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (accountNumberField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        accountNumberFieldValue = accountNumberField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the field
        accountNumberField.setValue("BYA-2019-AIR-0099");
    }
}

Multiple Lines of Text

Here is an example of a Multiple Lines of Text field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Multiple Lines of Text field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Multiple Lines of Text field (Display Name: “Description” | Database Name: “description”):

//Get and Set Multiple Lines of Text field value
function MultipleLineOfTextFieldValue(executionContext) {
    debugger;
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var descriptionFieldLogicalName = "description";
    // Access the description field on the form
    var descriptionField = formContext.getAttribute(descriptionFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var descriptionFieldValue;
    var exampleText = "\
            To be, or not to be, that is the question:\
            Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer\
            The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,\
            Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles,\
            And by opposing end them: to die, to sleep;\
            No more; and by a sleep, to say we end \
            The heart - ache, and the thousand natural shocks \
            That Flesh is heir to ? 'Tis a consummation \
            Devoutly to be wished.To die, to sleep, \
            perchance to Dream; aye, there's the rub, \
            For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come, \
            When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,\
            Must give us pause. "  ;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (descriptionField != null) {
        // Get the value of the description field
        descriptionFieldValue = descriptionField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the description field
        descriptionField.setValue(exampleText);
    }
}

Whole Number

Here is an example of a Whole Number field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Whole Number Field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Whole Number field (Display Name: “Number of Employees” | Database Name: “numberofemployees”):

//Get and Set a Whole Number field value
function WholeNumberFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var numberOfEmployeesFieldLogicalName = "numberofemployees";
    // Access the field on the form
    var numberOfEmployeesField = formContext.getAttribute(numberOfEmployeesFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var numberOfEmployeesFieldValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (numberOfEmployeesField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        numberOfEmployeesFieldValue = numberOfEmployeesField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the field
        numberOfEmployeesField.setValue(20000);
    }
}

Decimal Number

Here is an example of a Decimal Number field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Decimal Number field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Decimal Number field (Display Name: “Exchange Rate” | Database Name: “exchangerate”):

//Get and Set a Decimal Number field value
function DecimalNumberFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var exchangeRateFieldLogicalName = "exchangerate";
    // Access the field on the form
    var exchangeRateField = formContext.getAttribute(exchangeRateFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var exchangeRateFieldValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (exchangeRateField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        exchangeRateFieldValue = exchangeRateField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the field
        exchangeRateField.setValue(1.35551);
    }
}

Floating Point Number

Here are some examples of Floating Number fields on a Dynamics 365 form:
Floating Number field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Floating Number field (Display Name: “Address 1: Longitude” | Database Name: “address1_longitude”):

//Get and Set a Floating Point Number field value
function FloatingPointNumberFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var longitudeFieldLogicalName = "address1_longitude";
    // Access the field on the form
    var longitudeField = formContext.getAttribute(longitudeFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var longitudeFieldValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (longitudeField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        longitudeFieldValue = longitudeField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the field
        longitudeField.setValue(-79.387054);
    }
}

Currency

Here is an example of a Currency field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Currency field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Currency field (Display Name: “Annual Revenue” | Database Name: “revenue”):

//Get and Set a Currency field value
function CurrencyFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var revenueFieldLogicalName = "revenue";
    // Access the field on the form
    var revenueField = formContext.getAttribute(revenueFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var revenueFieldValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (revenueField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        revenueFieldValue = revenueField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the field
        revenueField.setValue(52000000);
    }
}

Two Options

Here are some examples of Two Options fields on a Dynamics 365 form:
Two Options field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Two Options field (Display Name: “Email” | Database Name: “donotemail”):

//Get and Set a Two Options field value
function TwoOptionsFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var dontAllowEmailsFieldLogicalName = "donotemail";
    // Access the field on the form
    var dontAllowEmailsField = formContext.getAttribute(dontAllowEmailsFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var dontAllowEmailsValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (dontAllowEmailsField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        dontAllowEmailsValue = dontAllowEmailsField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the field to TRUE
        //dontAllowEmailsField.setValue(true);

        // Set the value of the field to FALSE
        dontAllowEmailsField.setValue(false);
    }
}

Option Set

Here is an example of an Option Set field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Option Set field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of an Option Set field (Display Name: “Contact Method” | Database Name: “preferredcontactmethodcode”):

//Get and Set a Option Set field value
function OptionsetFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var contactMethodFieldLogicalName = "preferredcontactmethodcode";
    // Access the field on the form
    var contactMethodField = formContext.getAttribute(contactMethodFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var contactMethodValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (contactMethodField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        contactMethodValue = contactMethodField.getValue();
        
        // Set the value of the field to FALSE
        contactMethodField.setValue(5);   
    }
}

MultiSelect Option Set

Here is an example of a MultiSelect Option Set field on a Dynamics 365 form:
MultiSelect Option Set field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the values of a MultiSelect Option Set field (Display Name: “Geographical Areas of Operation” | Database Name: “hse_geographicalareasofoperation”) :

//Get and Set a MultiSelect Option Set field value
function MultiSelectOptionsetFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var locationFieldLogicalName = "hse_geographicalareasofoperation";
    // Access the field on the form
    var locationField = formContext.getAttribute(locationFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var locationValue;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (locationField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        locationValue = locationField.getValue();

        // Set the value of the field to the desired values
        locationField.setValue([864700000, 864700003, 864700005, 864700007]);
    }
}

Date and Time

Here are some examples of Date and Time fields on a Dynamics 365 form:
Date and Time fields

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Date and Time field (Display Name: “Follow Up Date” | Database Name: “hse_followupdate”):

//Get and Set a Date and Time field value
function DateAndTimeFieldValue(executionContext) { 
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var createdOnFieldLogicalName = "createdon";
    var followUpFieldLogicalName = "hse_followupdate";
    // Access the fields on the form
    var createdOnField = formContext.getAttribute(createdOnFieldLogicalName);
    var followUpField = formContext.getAttribute(followUpFieldLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var createdOnFieldValue;
    var followUpFieldValue = new Date();
    var numberOfDays = 30;
    var daysMillisecondsConverter = 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000;

    //Check that fields exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its values
    if (createdOnField != null && followUpField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        createdOnFieldValue = createdOnField.getValue();

        //Before you use the createdOnFieldValue value, verify that it exists
        if (createdOnFieldValue != null) { 
            //Set the follow up date to 30 days after the record was created
            followUpFieldValue.setTime(createdOnFieldValue.getTime() + (numberOfDays * daysMillisecondsConverter));           
            // Set the value of the field
            followUpField.setValue(followUpFieldValue);
        }        
    }
}

Lookup

Here is an example of a Lookup field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Lookup field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Lookup field (Display Name: “Account Manager” | Database Name: “hse_accountmanager”) :

//Get and Set a Lookup field value
function LookupFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var accountmanagerLogicalName = "hse_accountmanager";
    // Access the field on the form
    var accountmanagerField = formContext.getAttribute(accountmanagerLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var accountmanagerFieldValue;
    var guid;
    var name;
    var entityName;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (accountmanagerField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        accountmanagerFieldValue = accountmanagerField.getValue();
        //Check if the field contains a value
        if (accountmanagerFieldValue != null) {
            //To get the attributes of the field
            guid = accountmanagerFieldValue[0].id.slice(1, -1);
            name = accountmanagerFieldValue[0].name;
            entityName = accountmanagerFieldValue[0].entityType;
        }

        // Set the value of the field
        accountmanagerField.setValue([{
            id: "4BDB64C8-AA81-E911-B80C-00155D380105",
            name: "Joshua Sinkamba",
            entityType: "systemuser"
        }]);

        //Alternative Approach: Set the value of the field
        //var lookupValue = new Array();
        //lookupValue[0] = new Object();
        //lookupValue[0].id = "4BDB64C8-AA81-E911-B80C-00155D380105";
        //lookupValue[0].name = "Joshua Sinkamba";
        //lookupValue[0].entityType = "systemuser";
        //accountmanagerField.setValue(lookupValue);
    }
}

Customer

Here is an example of a Customer field on a Dynamics 365 form:
Customer field

Here is the JavaScript for getting and setting the value of a Customer field (Display Name: “Main Customer” | Database Name: “hse_maincustomer”):

//Get and Set a Customer field value
function CustomerFieldValue(executionContext) {
    //Get the context of the form
    var formContext = executionContext.getFormContext();
    //The logical name of the field of interest
    var mainCustomerLogicalName = "hse_maincustomer";
    // Access the field on the form
    var mainCustomerField = formContext.getAttribute(mainCustomerLogicalName);
    //Declare the other variables as needed
    var mainCustomerFieldValue;
    var guid;
    var name;
    var entityName;

    //Check that field exist on the form before you try to Get/Set its value
    if (mainCustomerField != null) {
        // Get the value of the field
        mainCustomerFieldValue = mainCustomerField.getValue();
        //Check if the field contains a value
        if (mainCustomerFieldValue != null) {
            //To get the attributes of the field
            guid = mainCustomerFieldValue[0].id.slice(1, -1);
            name = mainCustomerFieldValue[0].name;
            entityName = mainCustomerFieldValue[0].entityType;
        }

        // Set the value of the field
        mainCustomerField.setValue([{
            id: "EE047399-CDE0-E911-B817-00155D380105",
            name: "Avanade",
            entityType: "account"
        }]);

        //Alternative Approach: Set the value of the field
        //var customerValue = new Array();
        //customerValue[0] = new Object();
        //customerValue[0].id = "EE047399-CDE0-E911-B817-00155D380105";
        //customerValue[0].name = "Avanade";
        //customerValue[0].entityType = "account";
        //mainCustomerField.setValue(customerValue);
    }
}