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- Herausgeber: Packt Publishing
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Sprache: Englisch
Without a comprehensive understanding of deployment scenarios and steps, it is really difficult to install and maintain Dynamics CRM 2011 within complex IT infrastructures. Done badly, it can cause serious future maintenance and optimization issues. Administration of CRM systems is equally complex and important; unless efficiently done, it can create fuss in the system and potentially bring down end user satisfaction. Configuration and customization of the system has to be done very carefully too so that it can meet the functional needs appropriately.“Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Cookbook" is a hands-on guide, providing clear, step-by-step instructions to deploy, maintain, optimize, and administer Dynamics CRM 2011 along with advanced configuration and customization processes, to give us a strong advantage in creating successful CRM applications.This book introduces Dynamics CRM 2011 by describing the important aspects of the system. It will take you through a number of clear and practical recipes from successful deployment, hassle-free maintenance, and effective administration to advanced level configuration and customization techniques.You will learn from a range of deployment and maintenance topics such as how to configure CRM to use claim-based authentication using AD FS, how to enable tracing in CRM servers, how to recover from server failures, and how to optimize server performance. This book will also discuss how to schedule Data Duplication detection jobs, enable auditing, export and import managed/unmanaged solutions, create 1:N, N:1, or N:N relationships between entities, configuring role based forms, adding a new button in the ribbon, SharePoint integration with CRM, and configuring a dialog or workflow.You will learn everything you need to know, from deployment, administration, and maintenance to configuration, integration, and customization for your Dynamics CRM 2011 application.
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Table of Contents
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Cookbook
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Cookbook
Copyright © 2013 Packt Publishing
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.
Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the author, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book.
Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.
First published: May 2013
Production Reference: 1170513
Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.
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ISBN 978-1-84968-452-1
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Cover Image by Vivek Sinha (<[email protected]>)
Credits
Author
Dipankar Bhattacharya
Reviewers
Ian Grieve
James Wood
Acquisition Editor
Rukhsana Khambatta
Lead Technical Editors
Rukmini Iyer
Ankita Shashi
Sharvari Tawde
Technical Editors
Jalasha D'costa
Saumya Kunder
Varun Pius Rodrigues
Copy Editors
Brandt D'Mello
Insiya Morbiwala
Aditya Nair
Laxmi Subramanian
Project Coordinator
Anurag Banerjee
Proofreader
Ting Baker
Indexer
Tejal Soni
Graphics
Ronak Dhruv
Production Coordinator
Shantanu Zagade
Cover Work
Shantanu Zagade
About the Author
Dipankar Bhattacharya is a Dynamics CRM consultant and Microsoft technology evangelist. He is a Certified Professional in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, the Microsoft Dynamics Sure Step methodology, and core .NET technologies, such as .NET 3.5, ADO.NET, WPF, and WCF. He has been working with Microsoft technologies for around nine years and his primary focus has been solution architecture, system integration, computer telephony integration, and data migration. Currently, he is associated with Microsoft Services Global Delivery as a Business Solution Consultant and he is working with various enterprise customers, assisting them with architecting a solution till its deployment. He has been architecting, developing, and deploying business solutions across the globe using Dynamics CRM, xRM and Customer Care Accelerator for Dynamics CRM, and so on.
Tip
Disclaimer
The opinions expressed in this book are solely my personal understandings and do not represent the thoughts, intentions, plans, or strategies of my employers.
Acknowledgments
Writing this book has been quite a journey, and during the evolution of this book, I have accumulated many debts, only a few of which I have space to acknowledge here.
I would like to offer a big thanks to Packt Publishing for publishing this book. Special thanks to the Project Coordinator, Anurag Banerjee, for his continuous support since the very beginning. I must thank Sharvari Tawde and Rukhsana Khambatta who helped me with proofreading and styling, and offered valuable comments to make this book better. Thanks to the entire team of Packt Publishing for their help and dedication.
I wanted to offer my sincere thanks to Ian Grieve and James Wood for their insightful feedback and excellent technical review. They have helped me fill the gaps and improve the overall quality of the book.
I have been fortunate enough to work amid a very passionate set of people; they have all helped me enrich my knowledge base. I want to offer thanks to them for their help with writing this book.
I have spent most of my time writing when my little daughter, Dishita, expected me to spend time with her. Finally she will have her papa back with her. Dishita, you surely deserve packets of chocolates. My wife, Sangeeta, has been a consistent support, and without her help and encouragement, this book would not have become a reality. I want to thank my family immensely for their best wishes, which have always provided me strength and encouragement.
Last but not least, I beg forgiveness of all those who have been with me through the course of writing this book and whose names I have failed to mention.
I hope readers will have at least half as much fun reading this book as I've had writing it. Readers can reach me at <[email protected]>.
About the Reviewers
Ian Grieve is a Microsoft Dynamics GP and CRM certified consultant specializing in the delivery of Microsoft Dynamics GP and CRM projects. He is a senior consultant at Perfect Image Ltd, a Microsoft Partner and VAR in the North East of England.
Ian has worked with Microsoft Dynamics GP since 2003, and over the past nine years since then, has dealt with all aspects of the product life cycle, right from presales, to implementation, to technical and functional training, to post go-live support, and subsequent upgrades and process reviews. Alongside his work with Microsoft Dynamics GP, he has fulfilled a similar role dealing with Microsoft Dynamics CRM, with especial emphasis on project delivery and training of end users in the management of sales, marketing, and service.
In his spare time, Ian runs the azurecurve | Ramblings of a Dynamics GP Consultant blog dedicated to Microsoft Dynamics GP and related products, and tries, often unsuccessfully, to squeeze in extra time for the blog related to Dynamics CRM, called coralcurve | A Consultant's Dabblings In Dynamics CRM.
James Wood is a consultant at Gap Consulting with skills in the end-to-end implementation of enterprise-level Microsoft Dynamics CRM solutions. He graduated from the University of Huddersfield with a first in Computer Games Programming before making the switch to business applications.
He has worked with Microsoft Dynamics CRM for three years and is an able developer of bespoke applications. He has worked on a number of small to large implementations in sectors including local and regional government, education, defense, banking, manufacturing, and welfare.
He has also worked as a technical reviewer for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Application Design and on an upcoming book on Microsoft Dynamics CRM 5.0 Reporting by Packt Publishing.
You can read his blog at www.woodsworkblog.wordpress.com.
I would like to thank my family and friends, especially Georgia, for everything.
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Preface
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Cookbook is a hands-on guide with clear, step-by-step instructions to deploy, maintain, optimize, and administer the Dynamics CRM 2011 system along with advanced configuration and customization processes.
This book introduces Dynamics CRM 2011 by describing the important aspects of the system. It will take you through a number of clear and practical recipes, right from successful deployment, hassle-free maintenance, and effective administration to advanced level configuration and customization techniques.
This book details the various customization techniques; for example, solution management, data management, entity-form-view-relationship customization, Site Map and ribbon customization, integration with Microsoft Outlook and SharePoint, workflow and dialog configuration.
This book also discusses the technical details around every recipe, which will provide the reader with a deeper understanding of how the recipe actually works.
What this book covers
Chapter 1, Installing Dynamics CRM 2011, is a step-by-step guide to installing Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 server components. This chapter covers the installation of Dynamics CRM in both single server mode and multiserver mode. Additionally, it also covers the installation of Reporting Extensions, Outlook extension, Language Pack, and E-mail Router. Finally, the creation of Dynamics CRM Organization is also discussed.
Chapter 2, Maintaining and Optimizing Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Server, provides step-by-step guidance for backing up the Dynamics CRM database and application server. This chapter also describes how to recover from a failure of the Dynamics CRM database and application server. Additionally, it covers server-level tracing, deployment-level tracing, monitoring, and optimizing Dynamics CRM 2011 database and application server performance.
Chapter 3, Administering Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011, explains how to securely deploy Internet-facing Dynamics CRM 2011 using AD FS. This chapter explains how to create a new deployment administrator, system administrator, business units, security roles, and field-level security profiles. The steps to create a custom administrator security role are also discussed here. Additionally, this chapter explains how to add users to the system, how to create and manage teams, and how to configure system-level settings, fiscal settings, autonumbering formats, and error notification settings.
Chapter 4, Data Management, covers data import techniques using Import Data wizard and data maps and data export techniques using Microsoft Office Excel. Additionally, it also covers bulk data deletion, duplicate detection, and the auditing feature in the Dynamics CRM 2011 system.
Chapter 5, Solution Management, describes the Dynamics CRM 2011 solution framework using recipes for creating a solution publisher and unmanaged solution. This chapter also covers the configuration and customization of the unmanaged solution, the export and import of solution files, solution uninstallation, and deletion techniques. Additionally, it describes the export and import technique of translations using an unmanaged solution.
Chapter 6, Entity Customizations, shows how to create custom entities and custom fields inside the Dynamics CRM 2011 system. Additionally, it also shows how to create and configure new relationships between entities in the Dynamics CRM 2011 system.
Chapter 7, Form and View Customizations, discusses how to create and/or customize the main form of an entity, the new process-driven forms of Dynamics CRM Online, and controlling the behavior of a form using JScript. This chapter also discusses how to configure forms to be security role based, and how to create and/or configure various system views and personal views in the Dynamics CRM 2011 system.
Chapter 8, Site Map and Ribbon Customizations, covers the recipes for editing Site Map and ribbon components of the Dynamics CRM 2011 system.
Chapter 9, Office and SharePoint Integration, explains how to configure Dynamics CRM 2011 to be integrated with Microsoft Office and Microsoft SharePoint Server.
Chapter 10, Processes, describes how to configure a business logic step by step, using workflows and dialogs in the Dynamics CRM 2011 system.
What you need for this book
You will need the following software to install Dynamics CRM 2011 on-premises, and the same deployment can further be used for the remaining recipes in this book. The required software is:
You can also use a 30-day trial version of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Online to carry out most of the system administration and customization recipes that are common in the Online and On-premises versions. To create a Dynamics CRM 2011 Online trial version, please visit http://crm.dynamics.com.
Who this book is for
This book is great for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 professionals who have a beginner-level understanding of the system and who are looking to get a good grounding in how to deploy, maintain, configure, and customize a Dynamics CRM 2011 application efficiently.
It's assumed that the reader has a basic understanding of IT infrastructure topologies along with a functional knowledge of Dynamics CRM 2011 Sales, Marketing, and Services modules.
Conventions
In this book, you will find a number of styles of text that distinguish between different kinds of information. Here are some examples of these styles, and an explanation of their meaning.
Code words in text are shown as follows: "The form layout definition is actually stored as an XML file called Form Xml in the SystemForm entity"
A block of code is set as follows:
Any command-line input or output is written as follows:
New terms and important words are shown in bold. Words that you see on the screen, in menus or dialog boxes for example, appear in the text like this: "Select the Start Auditing checkbox to enable auditing at the system level."
Note
Warnings or important notes appear in a box like this.
Tip
Tips and tricks appear like this.
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Chapter 1. Installing Dynamics CRM 2011
Dynamics CRM 2011 is a piece of customer relationship management (CRM) software by Microsoft. It provides a powerful business application platform for marketing, sales, and services modules. The Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 software solution works as a web client, while it can also be embedded within an Outlook client.
This chapter will explore recipes for installing the various components of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. With the installation of Dynamics CRM, the process of exploring the world of Dynamics CRM 2011 will begin.
In this chapter, we will learn how to install various components of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 step by step.
The chapter includes the following recipes:
Introduction
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Server is a .NET-based web application that works exclusively with Microsoft SQL Server databases. It uses Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) as the communication protocol. Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 supports three types of deployment, namely, on-premises deployment, Internet-facing Deployment (IFD), and CRM Online. Each deployment supports a choice of client applications, which are as follows:
The on-premises and IFD deployment types are deployed using the data center or hardware capabilities of the customer or a hosting partner. On the other hand, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online is a powerful solution that provides customers with the benefits of Dynamics CRM in a Microsoft-hosted environment.
In this chapter, we will dive deep into the recipes for on-premises deployment of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011, and in Chapter 3, Administering Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011, we will discuss how to configure a CRM deployment for IFD.
Single server versus multiserver
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 can be installed on a single server as well as on multiple servers. While a single-server deployment is mainly recommended for development purposes or small-user-based production deployments, a multiserver deployment is more suitable for most production environments because multiserver environments provide a better balancing of processing load across several servers. Load-balanced multiserver deployment can increase the performance, availability, scalability, and throughput of the system. In addition, it also can increase the resilience of the system to server failures.
To begin with, we shall start with a recipe on the installation of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 on a single-server box with all its required components. Upon successful installation on a single box, we will find the recipe on the installation of a multiserver machine more useful.
One limitation of single-server deployments is that the server machine on which Dynamics CRM 2011 is installed cannot function as an Active Directory directory service domain controller unless the operating system of the server is Windows Small Business Server.
Hardware and software specifications for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Server
Like any other software, Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 also comes with minimum recommended hardware and software specifications. Based on the Microsoft guidelines, the recommended hardware specifications for a Full Server deployment is as follows:
Hardware sizing greatly depends on nonfunctional requirements such as total user base, maximum number of concurrent users, required page load time, initial data volume, data growth, and data archival policy. Microsoft Dynamics Lab has released Performance Toolkit for Dynamics CRM 2011, which can be used to collect performance-related data that then can be used for sizing the related decisions in on-premises deployment. Performance Toolkit can be downloaded at http://pinpoint.microsoft.com/en-gb/applications/performance-toolkit-for-microsoft-dynamics-crm-2011-12884915630.
The Microsoft-recommended hardware specifications for the SQL Server-based Dynamics CRM database are as follows:
Note
This specification is based on an estimated top load of up to 320 users on the system. Computers with more than 16 GB of memory will require more disk space for paging, hibernation, and dump files.
Microsoft-defined hardware requirements for Dynamics CRM Server 2011 can be found at:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh699840.aspx
The recommended operating systems for Dynamics CRM 2011 Server are Windows Server 2008 (Standard/Enterprise/Datacenter editions), Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Small Business Server (Premium/Standard), and Windows Small Business Server (Standard/Essential Update Rollup 13 of Dynamics CRM 2013 also supports Windows Server 2012.).
Internet Information Services (IIS) 7.0 or 7.5, along with Indexing Service, IIS Admin service, and World Wide Web Publishing Service (W3SVC), need to be installed and running. Windows Data Access Components (Windows DAC) 6.0, and Microsoft ASP.NET 4 are also required for the installation of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Server.
The Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Server machine must be a domain member of a domain that is running in one of these Active Directory directory service domain modes: Windows 2000 (Mixed/Native), Windows Server 2003 (Interim/Native), and Windows Server 2008 (Interim/Native).
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 only supports the x64 version of Microsoft SQL Server 2008 with SP1 (Standard/Enterprise/Datacenter editions) / Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 (x64 version). Update Rollup 6 (and higher) also supports SQL Server 2012 (Enterprise/Business Intelligence/Standard versions).
Note
Active/Active SQL Server clustering is supported in Dynamics CRM Server 2011 from Update Rollup 1 onwards but not as a load-balancing configuration.
Other than that, 32-bit versions of SQL Server and SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) are not supported.
Microsoft defined hardware requirements for SQL Server for Dynamics CRM Server 2011 can be found at:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh699808.aspx
Installing Dynamics CRM Server
The installation of the on-premises version of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 involves a little more than the standard Microsoft wizard process. Here we will discuss how to install the on-premises version on a single-server machine.
Getting ready
Microsoft Dynamics CRM is designed so that its components (Application Service, Deployment Service, Sandbox Processing Service, andAsynchronous Processing Service) can run under separate identities. It is recommended that you use separate Active Directory accounts for running these components andSQL Server Reporting Services. Additionally, these accounts should be set up as service accounts in Active Directory and should only be granted the permissions necessary to enable a particular component to function. By this, we can help secure the system and reduce the likelihood of exploitation.
Note
Managed service accounts, introduced in Windows Server 2008 R2, are not supported for running Microsoft Dynamics CRM services.
We will now take a look into these identity accounts and the privileges to be granted to them for proper functioning. It is very important to set up these accounts before starting the installation of Dynamics CRM 2011. After the installation of Dynamics CRM, these accounts should not be added to Dynamics CRM as users. This might create authentication issues and unexpected behavior in the application. These service accounts should be granted the following permissions:
Note
By default, websites using IIS7.0 or later versions are configured to use kernel-mode authentication. When a Microsoft Dynamics CRM website is run using the Kernel-Mode authentication, SPNs for the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Application Pool identities are not required.
Replace <ComputerName> with the name of the computer running this service and <serviceaccount> with the name of the service account.
How to do it...
In the previous sections we have discussed the minimum recommended software and hardware specifications and service account requirements. Now we will discuss how to install Dynamics CRM Server components on a single-server machine.
During the installation, if a machine restart is requested by the setup, it is recommended that one selects the Restart option before proceeding with the installation.
It is usually recommended that one creates separate organization units (OUs) for each CRM deployment, especially for production or production-like deployment environments. Dynamics CRM 2011 Server installer creates security groups within the specified OU, and hence, it is advisable to create separate OUs for deployment isolation purposes.
Follow these steps to install Dynamics CRM 2011 Server in a single-server machine:
Alternatively, navigate to the installation directory for Dynamics CRM 2011 Server and run the Dynamics CRM 2011 setup file at \Server\amd64\SetupServer.exe.
It is recommended that you run the setup using the Run as Administrator option by right-clicking on the .exe file.On the Welcome to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Setup page, select Get updates for Microsoft Dynamics CRM (recommended) in the latest update rollups that have to be applied during the installation; otherwise, select Do not get updates. Press Next to continue.It is recommended that you assess the impact of the update rollups before applying them because they can break any existing code or the rollup itself can have defects.
On the Product Key Information page, enter the product key.On the Accept License page, accept the license agreement.If the setup detects that a few of the required components are missing, the Install Required Components page will appear. The missing required components can be installed by clicking on Install. When the components are installed, the status column will change from Not Installed to Installed and we can click on Next to continue as shown in the following screenshot:The Select Installation Location page provides us with the option of choosing the installation directory. Accept the default location or enter a different file installation location, and then click on Next.The Specify Server Roles page appears. By default, Full Server is selected. For a single-server deployment, we will go with the FullServer option.On theSpecify Deployment Options page, select the Create a new deployment option. In the Enter or select the name of the computer that is running SQL Server to use with the deployment box, type or select the instance of SQL Server that will be used to store Dynamics CRM 2011 databases.In case there already exists an MSCRM_CONFIG database from a previous CRM deployment that is intended to be used here, select the Connect to, and if necessary, upgrade an existing deployment option. But, if an MSCRM_CONFIG database does not exist in the SQL Server instance, an error will occur.
On the Select the Organizational Unit page, click on Browse to display the Active Directory structure. Select the location where the Microsoft Dynamics CRM organizational unit is to be installed, click on OK, and then click on Next.Four Microsoft Dynamics CRM-specific security groups will be created in this organizational unit. To know more about these groups, read the How it works… section of this recipe.
In the Specify Service Accounts page, select the service accounts for the Microsoft Dynamics CRM services and then click on Next as shown in the following screenshot:On theSelect Web Sitepage, select the website that will host the Dynamics CRM web application. Here we can use the default website (port 80) or any other existing websites.Note
Unless there is a valid reason for not installing the application in the default website, leave it as it is because among other advantages, it will be much easier for users to access the website as they won't have to remember another port number. If we select a network port other than the default port, we have to ensure that the firewall does not block the port.
If you decide to create a new website, select the Create new Web site option; the setup creates a new website for Microsoft Dynamics CRM Server 2011. We can specify the port number by typing the TCP port number that Microsoft Dynamics CRM clients will use to connect to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Server 2011. The default port number is 5555.
Click on Next> to proceed:On the Specify E-mail Router Settings page, specify the name or IP address of the machine where E-mail Router will be installed. If E-mail Router is not to be installed, this information can be left blank. Click on Next to proceed.Note
We will discuss how to install E-mail Router later in this chapter.
Note
Once the CRM Organization is created, the base currency code cannot be updated, though the base currency name and base currency symbol can be changed.
Base currency has been explained in the There's more... section of this recipe.
The default SQL collation changes based on the base language selection of the deployment. The collation settings cannot be changed after installation.
Note
SQL Server Collation refers to a set of rules that is used to determine how character data is sorted and compared. Collation encodes the rules governing the proper use of characters for either a language, such as Greek or Polish, or an alphabet, such as Latin1_General (the Latin alphabet used by Western European languages).
More information about SQL Server Collation can be found at:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-IN/library/ms143726.aspx
After setting these details, click on Next.
On the Specify Reporting Services Server page, please type the Reporting Server URL. Please verify the URL in a separate browser window. Please note that the Reporting Server URL should be specified here and not the Reporting Manager URL. Click on Next to proceed.On the Help Us Improve the Customer Experience page, select whether you want to participate in the Customer Experience Improvement Program, and then click on Next.On the Select Microsoft Update Preference page, indicate whether to use Microsoft Update to keep CRM Server 2011 updated.Note
Automatic rollup update is not recommended, and before applying any update rollup we have to be very sure (by trying the rollup in a test environment) that it does not break existing functionality and that the update rollup itself is not broken.
If there are any errors or warnings, they will be listed here. We have to rectify all errors before proceeding further. Warnings, however, can be ignored, but it is strongly suggested that you rectify the warnings as they may cause issues later on in the system.
Click on Next to proceed.Next, we have the Service Disruption Warning page. This page indicates all services that can be stopped or restarted during installation. Click on Next to proceed.Review the Ready to Install Microsoft Dynamics CRM page, and click on Back to correct any setting to proceed warning free. When we are ready to continue, click on Install.If installation completes successfully, the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Server setup completed page appears.To install Dynamics CRM, we must click on Finish and wait until the server is restarted.How it works…
In this recipe we have installed Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 on a single-server machine. During the process, the installer creates four security groups in Active Directory; these groups are fundamental for Dynamics CRM's functioning. Usually it is left to the installer to create these groups, but these groups can be precreated manually and can be used during the Dynamics CRM installation. If these groups do not already exist in Active Directory, the installation user must have Active Directory rights to create them. The following are the groups that will get created during installation:
Group
Description
PrivReportingGroup
This is the privileged Microsoft Dynamics CRM user group for reporting functions. It is configured during the setup of Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions.
PrivUserGroup
This is the privileged Microsoft Dynamics CRM user group for special administrative functions, including the CRMAppPool identity (domain user or NetworkService).
SQLAccessGroup
This group pertains to all server processes / service accounts that require access to SQL Server, including the CRMAppPool identity (domain user or NetworkService). Members of this group have the db_owner permission on Microsoft Dynamics CRM databases.
ReportingGroup
All Microsoft Dynamics CRM users are included in this group. This group is updated automatically as users are added and removed from Microsoft Dynamics CRM. By default, all Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Services reports grant the Browse permission to this group.
One more important point to be noted here is that the four service accounts used during installation and the SQL access accounts are part of some or all of the aforementioned Active Directory groups. The following matrix will explain the group membership of these accounts:
Service account
PrivUserGroup
SQLAccessGroup
PrivReportingGroup
ReportingGroup
Performance log users
Application service account
√
√
–
–
√
Deployment Web service account
√
√
–
–
–
Asynchronous Processing service account
√
√
–
–
√
Sandbox Processing service account
–
–
–
–
√
SQL Server service account
–
–
–
–
–
SSRS service account
√
–
√
–
–
Note
The performance log user group is a local group on each server and not a domain group.
For Dynamics CRM to function properly, these service accounts will have to have the following rights:
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 uses a list of ports, and these ports have to be allowed in the firewall for CRM to function. The following matrix lists all these ports:
Protocol
Port
Description
Explanation
TCP
80
HTTP
The default web application port. The port number may be different if it is changed during Microsoft Dynamics CRM Server setup. For new websites, the default port number is 5555.
TCP
135
MSRPC
RPC endpoint resolution
TCP
139
NETBIOS-SSN
NETBIOS session service
TCP
443
HTTPS
The default HTTP secure port
TCP
445
Microsoft-DS
An Active Directory directory service is required for access and authentication.
UDP
123
NTP
Network Time Protocol
UDP
137
NETBIOS-NS
NETBIOS name service
UDP
138
NetBIOS-dgm
NetBIOS datagram service
UDP
445
Microsoft-DS
Active Directory directory service is required for access and authentication.
UDP
1025
Blackjack
DCOM, used as an RPC listener
Each of these service accounts runs a specific component within the Dynamics CRM 2011 Server infrastructure. The following outlines how these service accounts are used within Dynamics CRM 2011:
Note
The Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 deployment service is not backward compatible. Any component, developed using Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 Deployment Web Service has to be upgraded to use the Dynamics CRM 2011 deployment service to work within Dynamics CRM 2011 deployment.
It is worth installing the Sandbox Processing Service role onto a dedicated server on a separate virtual LAN (VLAN) from other computers that are running Microsoft Dynamics CRM roles. This network isolation strategy can help protect other Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 resources from being compromised if there is a malicious plugin running in the sandbox.
Once the installation has completed, its success can be verified by accessing the CRM server URL. The URL would be in the format http://<servername>:<port _number>/<organization_name>/main.aspx.
Here, we will replace <servername> with the name of the Dynamics CRM 2011 server, <port_number> with the port used by Dynamics CRM 2011 Server, and <organization_name> with the CRM Organization that was created during installation.
If installation is successful, the Dynamics CRM landing page will appear in the browser window as shown in the following screenshot:
There's more…
Before we end this recipe, let's take look at some information on the use of currency codes in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011:
Dynamics CRM 2011 is a multicurrency system that allows a user to perform any financial transaction using their own currency, known as transaction currency. During installation, a primary or default currency has to be selected. This currency is the de facto currency for financial transactions within a CRM Organization and known as the base currency. After defining a base currency for the organization, we have to define exchange rates to associate the base currency with transaction currencies.
Each currency record has three parts describing the currency:
Any transaction in other currencies will automatically be converted to the base currency, using the exchange rate defined in the record for that currency, in the Microsoft Dynamics CRM database.
The base currency of a CRM Organization has to be selected carefully as:
The supported currency code details can be found at:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh699729.aspx
We have seen that, in the process of a single-server installation, all the server roles of Dynamics CRM 2011 are installed onto one single machine. But in a multiserver deployment, the server roles are usually separately deployed on multiple machines. We will find out more about multiserver Dynamics CRM deployments in the latter parts of this chapter.
Installing Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions
While Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions is not absolutely required to run Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011, without Reporting Server installed, certain important functionalities of Dynamics CRM will not function. For example, the reporting functionality will not function and creating a new organization and organization import will be blocked until the extensions are installed and configured.
The Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions setup includes two data processing extensions: Fetch data processing extension andSQL data processing extension. These extensions are installed by default during Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions setup.
While the Fetch data processing extension is required to create, run, and schedule Fetch-based reports, the SQL data processing extension is required to run and schedule the default (out of box) or SQL-based custom reports in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011.
Getting ready
Before we start installing Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Server setup must be complete.
Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions can only be installed for one instance of SQL Server Reporting Services on a computer. In addition, different deployments of Dynamics CRM 2011 cannot share a single SQL Server Reporting Services server; however, a multitenant CRM deployment can use the same instance of Reporting Services.
The Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions setup must be run on a computer that has Microsoft SQL Server 2012/2008 Reporting Services installed. The user account to be used in order to install Reporting Extensions:
The Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) should be running under a separate Active Directory service account. This account should be added to two of the Dynamics CRM-specific Active Directory groups, namely, PrivUserGroup and PrivReportingUserGroup. However, this account should not be part of SQLAccessGroup. This account should not be set up as Local Service as well.
Reporting Extensions should be installed on that Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services instance which is being used by the CRM Organization. Otherwise, reports will not function. In addition to that, the base language of CRM Organization and that of CRM Reporting Extensions has to be the same.
How to do it…
Please follow these steps to install Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions:
It is recommended that you assess the impact of the update rollups before applying it because update rollups can break any existing code or the rollup itself can have defects.
On the License Agreement page, select I accept this license agreement and click on I Accept to proceed.On the Install Required Components page, the installer automatically identifies the components that need to be installed and allows you to install them . This page will not appear if all the required components are already installed. If something is missing, it can be installed by clicking on the Install button. When the components are installed, the Status column will change from Missing to Installed and we can click on Next to continue.On theSpecify Configuration Database Server page, please enter the instance of the SQL Server.Now if we are using the default instance of the SQL Server, enter the name of the computer that is running SQL Server and contains the Microsoft Dynamics CRM configuration database named MSCRM_CONFIG, and if we are using the named instance of SQL Server then enter <machine-name>\<instance-name>:
On the Specify SSRS Instance Name page, select a Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services instance that will be used for Microsoft Dynamics CRM reporting, and then click on Next as shown in the following screenshot:On the Select Microsoft Update Preference page, select the Use Microsoft Update when I check for updates option if updates have to be applied automatically. Proceed by clicking on Next.On the Select Installation Location page, browse to specify where it will be installed.Then the System Checks page appears with a summary of the requirements for a successful CRM Reporting Extensions installation. All errors must be resolved to continue. If no errors and/or only warnings appear, the installation can continue. Click on Next to proceed.Then you will see the Ready to Install Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions page, which provides us with an overview of the system parameters in order to proceed with it. If you agree, simply click on Install to begin the installation.When the setup is completed successfully, the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Reporting Extensions Setup Completed page appears. Click on Finish. The reports will be published for the default organization.How it works…
This recipe installs the Fetch and SQL data processing extensions on the Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services server. It is recommended that the SSRS instance be run on a server separate from the one which has hosted the Dynamics CRM databases.
SQL Server Reporting Services should be running on a service account that is not part of SQLAccessGroup
