Dynamo with Dynamics CRM » Administrator

CRM 4.0 VPC Reloaded, with Office 2010 and new Accelerators. Download now!

Christian — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 21:09:52 +0000

You down with VPC? (Yeah you know me)

Microsoft just released an updated version of the April 2009 VPC release, mostly because it’s due to expire very soon. You’ll probably need PartnerSource or CustomerSource access to download it at the link below.

VPC Re-Release for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0

Why should you download this version? First of all, it’s not set to expire until August 2011 which will give you plently of time to play around until CRM 2011 is released. It’s also a leaner download at about 7 GB. Last but not least, it includes some new technologies such as Office 2010 and portal accelerators.

Per the download page, this new release (or re-release) has some new updated software:

Update Rollup 11
Microsoft Office 2010
New Portal Accelerators
New Partner and Customer portal installed using AD so no external network is required
New Profile Manager Tool which has two profiles for services and URL caching

It also looks like this VPC has the same credentials as in the past releases. Log in with the following:

ID=contoso\administrator
PW=pass@word1

Enjoy!

Update Rollup 11 for Dynamics CRM now available for download (KB 981328)

Christian — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 20:10:29 +0000

Drogba, Ivory Coast's number 11, gets a kick out of regular updates to his CRM. (UPDATE: he's injured and will miss the World Cup. Bummer)

Microsoft released the latest Update Rollup 11 for Dynamics CRM today, just in time before the World Cup 2010 tournament. It’s so obvious now; they did this to make some room in their schedule for watching the live matches. Indeed, they had already announced that there would be regular updates every 8 weeks… but I see through your game! ಠ_ಠ

This release shows better Ribbon integration with Outlook 2010. The CRM buttons don’t appear in the Add-Ins tab anymore.

Make sure you download and review the KB article from the links below.

The usual considerations apply regarding backing up and restoring customization XML files. Make sure to carefully read the release notes before upgrading.

Some notable updates:

Windows Internet Explorer crashes or stops responding when you use the Advanced Find view on a computer that is running Windows 7.
After you apply Update Rollup 7 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0, you experience slow performance when you open Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 Web client.
When you create a Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services (SSRS 2008) report by using the new SSRS 2008 features, you cannot display the report in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0.
You experience slow performance when you add many members, such as 10,000 members, into a marketing list. Additionally, you may receive a time-out error message.
Assume that you create a report in the Report Wizard. When you run the report, you receive the following error message: An error has occurred during report processing. Query execution failed for data set ‘DSMain’.

A special cheers to all my fellow Dynamics CRM colleagues who will be following the tournament as closely as I will.

Update Rollup 10 for Dynamics CRM (April 8th)

Christian — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 18:31:09 +0000

EDIT: Update Rollup 10 is now available! Download the bits at this link (KB 979347).

From some #MSCRM Twitter buzz, it looks like the latest compilation of hotfixes for Microsoft Dynamics CRM will be released tomorrow, April 8th. Not to worry; I’ll update this post with the links as soon as it’s available.

'C' is for CRM!

I confirmed with Microsoft Support that this latest Update Rollup will include a hotfix that resolves one particular Outlook sync issue. A user may get following error when going Offline or Online:

Only items in the default Microsoft Outlook store can be promoted to Microsoft CRM.

Until this hotfix, the workaround for this problem was to disable the Exchange Cached Mode setting to cache shared folder.

While you’re waiting for the download, check out this ZDNet article on the latest news regarding CRM ’5′.

Check which Update Rollup version is installed on your CRM environments

Christian — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:12:08 +0000

I recently had to check my CRM enviroments to make sure they’re updated to the latest Update Rollup version (currently #9, on Feb 2010). From experience, all I needed to do was:

Browse to the CRM website.
Click on the “Help” button on the top right side of the window.
Click on “About Microsoft Dynamics CRM”
Get the build number displayed.

Now that I have the build number, I can compare it to the latest list of Update Rollup build numbers. The nice thing about this screen is that it’ll post your CRM Outlook Client build version as well. See the screenshot below for an example. I have Update Rollup 9 on the CRM Server, but I have Update Rollup 7 on the Outlook Client.

CRM Help - Build Version

Thanks to David Vidmar at Bite my Bytes blog, I can repost a section of his very useful build version chart below.

Version	Build Number	Released on
RTM	4.0.7333.3	12/19/2007
Update Rollup 1	4.0.7333.1113	11/24/2008
Update Rollup 2	4.0.7333.1312, 4.0.7333.1316	1/15/2009, 2/8/2009
Update Rollup 3	4.0.7333.1408	3/12/2009
Update Rollup 4	4.0.7333.1551	5/7/2009
Update Rollup 5	4.0.7333.1644, 4.0.7333.1645	7/2/2009
Update Rollup 6	4.0.7333.1750	9/27/2009
Update Rollup 7	4.0.7333.2138	10/22/2009
Update Rollup 8	4.0.7333.2542	12/17/2009
Update Rollup 9	4.0.7333.2644	2/11/2010
Update Rollup 10	4.0.7333.2741	4/8/2010

For more technical details on the version numbers of the various Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 components, please see the Microsoft KB #946594 Article.

Update Rollup 9 coming soon to a CRM near you on Feb 11th

Christian — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 20:46:05 +0000

EDIT: Update Rollup 9 is now available at this download link.

I <3 CRM

There’s some buzz lately about Update Rollup 9 being available soon this Thursday, February the 11th. No details yet on what it may bring, though, so I’ll be patient! My bet is more bug fixes, nothing too monumental. Time to plan for it nonetheless.

As you may already know, Update Rollup 7 was the last major update for Microsoft Dynamics CRM. It brought significant changes to Dynamics CRM 4.0 and the CRM Outlook Client. In addition, it can be considered the “gold standard” for a new CRM deployment going forward.

Make sure all your CRM deployments are at the very least up to speed with Update Rollup 7 for two very good reasons: better performance, and compatibility with future updates.

For a full list of current Update Rollups for Microsoft Dynamics CRM click here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949256

Time to update! Dynamics CRM Update Rollup 8 is now available (KB #975995)

Christian — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:22:09 +0000

Should you update? "Signs point to yes"

First off, I apologize for not keeping this blog regularly updated. Balancing projects and the holiday season tends to make one procrastinate.

After a quick scan of the list of fixes, it appears this release only adds stability improvements on top of what was Update Rollup 7′s big changes. Update Rollup 7 is not a pre-requisite. You can install UR8 on any server deployment of CRM 4.0 because it’s a cumulative update. Easy! However, you should make sure to to review the import and export customization file notes.

EDIT: The Outlook Client and Data Migration Manager both require Update Rollup 7 to be installed beforehand.

Download link for the Update Rollup 8 files

KB Article #975995: Update Rollup 8 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 [microsoft.com]

List of hotfixes, updates and instructions

KB Article #975995: Update Rollup 8 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 [microsoft.com]

Happy holidays!

Got Windows 7? Download your free Microsoft Dynamics CRM Themes and Wallpapers

Christian — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:52:32 +0000

I recently got a Windows 7 upgrade on my work laptop. To celebrate, I created a couple Windows 7 Themes and decided to share them here.

If you don’t have Windows 7 yet, no worries… I’ve also posted the same wallpapers used in the theme. Enjoy!

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Theme (v1)

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Theme (v2)

Lucky Seven! Update Rollup 7 for Dynamics CRM improves the Outlook Client experience

Christian — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:43:26 +0000

My favorite number

Some exciting news lately in the Dynamics CRM world, and all are related to lucky numero seven!

First off, the latest Update Rollup 7 was released to the world. The most noteworthy changes were made to the CRM Outlook Client, and by itself would make this update HIGHLY recommended. After starting up Outlook, the CRM functionality now loads quietly in the background, allowing you to immediately access your e-mails without any slow down. There are other additional improvements that make this update a must-have, all outlined in the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Team Blog. Get your Update Rollup 7 links below!

Download: KB Article #971782: Update Rollup 7 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 [microsoft.com]
Change Log: KB Article #971782: Update Rollup 7 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 [microsoft.com]
Update Rollup 7 [Microsoft Dynamics CRM Team Blog]

Last, but certainly not least: Microsoft announced that Dynamics CRM 4.0 is now supported on the new Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. There’s no excuse now not to upgrade to Windows 7; this latest OS has been shown to be quite an improvement over previous releases.

Be sure to relate your experiences with CRM and this latest update in the comments section below.

The wait is over! The Social Networking Accelerator was released and is available for download

Christian — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:48:14 +0000

Dynamics CRM and Twitter combined. You cannot escape.

The highly anticipated Social Networking Accelerator was released today! It was last announced this past July, promising Twitter integration out-of-the-box and future enhancements for other social networks.

Social Networking Accelerator for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 [CodePlex.com]

To view all the features this new Accelerator provides, review the video below or at this link.

Social Networking Accelerator for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0

New Dynamics CRM Accelerators! Portal Integration and Partner Relationship Management

Christian — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:32:37 +0000

Two new Accelerators were released yesterday, and they look a lot more practical than the last one I reviewed. Note that the PRM Accelerator requires the Portal Integration Accelerator to be installed first. Be sure to try them out on a VPC or test deployment of CRM 4.0 and think how they can benefit your organization.

Links and release notes from CodePlex are listed below. Hey Microsoft: I’m still waiting on the Social Networking Accelerator you promised. Any updates?

Portal Integration
- CodePlex link: http://crmaccelerators.codeplex.com/Release/ProjectReleases.aspx?ReleaseId=29992

The Portal Integration Accelerator easily connects Microsoft Dynamics CRM to an organization’s Web experience. This release builds on the eService portal engine and expands to allow customers to configure and expose any CRM entity to an external facing portal.

The installation package contains all source code, documentation and a step-by-step installation video.

Partner Relationship Management (PRM)
- CodePlex link: http://crmaccelerators.codeplex.com/Release/ProjectReleases.aspx?ReleaseId=29990

The Partner Relationship Management (PRM) Accelerator allows businesses to use Microsoft Dynamics CRM to distribute sales leads and centrally manage sales opportunities across channel partners. It provides pre-built extensions to the Microsoft Dynamics CRM sales force automation functionality, including new data entities, workflow and reports. Using the PRM Accelerator, companies can jointly manage sales processes with their channel partners through a centralized Web portal, as well as extend this integration to automate additional business processes.

The accelerator installation package contains all source code, customizations, reports, workflows, assemblies, documentation and installation videos.

Note: In order to utilize the Partner Portal you are required to install the Portal Integration Accelerator first!