Customizing Microsoft Dynamics 365

Introduction to the Microsoft Power Platform

The Power Platform is a powerful combination of tools that allow you to build business applications to store, process and share your data. This chapter will show you how the Power Platform is built and gives you an overview of what is possible.

• Overview of the Microsoft Power Platform
• Overview of Power Apps
• Introduction to Microsoft Dataverse
• The Common Data Model
• Dynamics 365 Sales, Customer Services, ... as Model-Driven Apps on Microsoft Dataverse

Overview of Model-Driven Apps/Dynamics 365

Before Model-Driven Apps can be created, an environment with a Microsoft Dataverse database must be provisioned. This chapter introduces the concept of an environment and what role it plays in creating, managing and deploying Model-Driven Apps. Students are also provided with a quick overview of the look and feel that every Model-Driven App has and the common functionality of Model-Driven Apps.

• Creating and Working with Environments
• Navigating and Using a Model-Driven App

Working with Solutions

Solutions are used by developers to package related customizations together so that they can be managed and deployed as a single unit. We will see what components can be added to a solution and how they are the essential building blocks of your environment.

• Working with Solutions in Environments
• Default Solutions in an Environment
• Adding Components to your Solutions
• Creating Solutions and Solution Publishers
• Importing and Exporting Solutions
• Managed versus Unmanaged Solutions
• Solutions and Managed Properties
• Versioning Solutions
• LAB: Working with Solutions

Creating Model-Driven Apps

Model-Driven Apps are the building block of any business solution. For instance, we could create our own "event management" app. The app will group together everything our user needs from Microsoft Dataverse and the components we have built.

• Concepts of a Model-Driven App
• Creating Model-Driven Apps
• Adding Pages to Model-Driven Apps
• Defining the Model-Driven App Navigation
• Configuring the Model-Driven App Settings
• Managing Apps in Solutions
• LAB: Creating Model-Driven Apps

Creating and Customizing Tables

Tables are used to model and store business data in Model-Driven Apps. Conceptually, they are similar to tables in a relational database. Microsoft Dataverse provides several built-in tables, such as Contact and Account, but customizers will almost always need to create new tables. In this chapter, you will learn all aspects of creating new tables.

• Creating and Configuring Tables in Microsoft Dataverse
• Diving into the Table Settings
• Standard, Activity, Virtual and Elastic Tables
• The Default Table Columns, Forms and Views
• Creating Custom Activity Tables
• LAB: Creating and Configuring Tables

Managing Relationships

Just like accounts and contacts have relationships in Microsoft Dataverse, we can provide relationships for our own tables. You will learn what types of relationships are possible and how to configure them.

• Creating and Using Relationships - 1:N, N:N
• Defining Self-Referential Relationships
• Working with Column Mappings to facilitates data entry
• Connections and Connection Roles
• LAB: Managing Relationships

Creating and Customizing Columns

Columns define the individual data items that can be used to store data in a table. You will learn everything about data types, formats, column properties and more.

• Adding Custom Columns to Tables
• Supported Column Data Types
• Working with File and Image Data Types
• Working with Lookups
• Creating Multi-Table or Polymorphic Lookups
• The Choice and Choices Data Types
• Using the Status and Status Reason Columns
• Defining Alternate Keys for a Table
• Aggregating Data with Rollup Columns
• Calculate Data based on other Column with Calculated Columns
• Creating Formula Columns using Power FX
• LAB: Creating Columns

Customizing Forms

Forms are used to create, read and update individual table rows. In this module you will learn about the different Form Types and how to create or customize forms using the Form Designer.

• Main Form, Quick View Form, Quick Create Form and the Card Form
• Create and Configure Forms
• Defining the Structure of Forms
• Placing Image Column on Forms
• Configure and Use Quick Create, Quick View and Card Forms
• Working with Custom Components
• Embedding Canvas Apps in a Form
• LAB: Creating and Configuring Forms

Business Rules

Business rules essentially automate control logic on tables, without the need for development. Think of making columns required depending on the value of another column for instance.

• Create and Apply Business Rules
• Defining the Scope of Business Rules
• Business Rules Limitations
• LAB: Working with Business Rules

Creating and Using Views

Offer the data needed for different scenario's with views. With a view, we can either look at all table rows, or we could apply some filtering, sorting, etc.

• Examine the Different Types of System, Public and Personal Views
• Create New Public Views and Modify Existing Views
• Configure Quick Find, Advanced Find Associated and Lookup Views
• Configure Views with Custom Controls like the Editable Grid, Calendar Control,...
• LAB: Creating and Configuring Views

Reporting in Model-Driven Apps

Reporting is essential when working with data. In this module you will learn how you can create charts and dashboards to visualize your raw data in in visual appealing bar or column charts.

• Build Interactive Charts to show in Views or on Dashboards
• Classic Dashboards showing Charts, Data or web pages
• Interactive Dashboards with dynamic sorting and filtering
• Working with the Tabular Data Stream (TDS) endpoint
• LAB: Reporting in model-driven apps

Creating Business Process Flows

Business process flows in Dataverse are guided workflows that streamline and standardize processes within an organization by providing a visual representation of the steps needed to complete a task. They ensure consistency and compliance by guiding users through predefined stages and actions.

• Creating a Business Process Flow
• Defining Stages
• Linking Multiple Tables in a Business Process Flow
• Using a Business Process Flow
• LAB: Creating a Business Process Flow

Securing Model-Driven Apps

This module teaches how you can implement a robust security model in Model-Driven Apps using Business Units, Security Roles, Users and Teams.

• Building a Security Model
• Business Units and their Role in Security Modeling
• Define Privileges and Access Levels in Security Roles
• Creating and Maintaining Users
• Team Management
• Securing Apps, Data, Forms, Dashboards and Business Process Flows
• LAB: Implementing Security in Microsoft Dataverse

Power Platform Automation

Power Automate gives you the ability to automate organizational processes. As a part of the Microsoft Power Platform, it integrates seamlessly with Model-Driven Apps and Microsoft Dataverse.

• Power Automate Overview
• Trigger a Flow Based on Create, Update or Delete operations
• Consuming Microsoft Dataverse Data in a Power Automate Flow
• Available Actions with the Microsoft Dataverse Connector