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Wiki  >  TechNet Articles  >  Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Development Resources

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Development Resources

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Development Resources

This list is a reference point to projects, documents, tools, add-ins, and instructions for improving CRM and CRM Development.

Looking for more resources?  Because Dynamics CRM 2011 implements the CRM 4.0 web service endpoints, for backwards compatibility, many of the Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 Development Resources may work just fine.

Table of Contents


 

References & Reading Materials

CRM Developer Center Whether you are just starting with CRM development or you are a seasoned guru, this is the place to start - Microsoft Dynamics CRM Developer Center on MSDN. 
CRM 2011 SDK - Download The tool of any CRM developer - Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 SDK. Download, install and make sure to read every night. Tons of samples.
CRM 2011 SDK - Online Read the SDK online - same content but available in any Internet cafe. And, most likely, updated more frequently than downloadable version.
CRM 2011 Developer Training Kit
 This training kit is for .NET developers to learn the development features of Dynamics CRM and help them build applications using Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and CRM Online.
Entity Relationship Diagrams
 Microsoft Office Visio diagrams that show the logical database structure for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011, in its out-of-the-box state.
Sample Code Directory for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online
 A list of all the sample code is included in the Software Development Kit for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online.
Jamie Miley's CRM 2011 SDK Example Index
 Jamie Miley's List of SDK example links laid out by web service message, along with other helpful articles.
Best Practices for Developing with Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Best practices for customizing Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online
CRM 2011 Timeouts and Limits Compilation of all the common timeouts and limits related to CRM 2011 and how to configure them.
Deploying Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and CRM Online Solutions from Development through Test and Production Environments  This white paper explores deploying real-world Microsoft Dynamics CRM solutions across test and production environments in reliable and repeatable ways by using automation, together with some automation examples. The paper also highlights the specific constraints that exist when deploying and testing solutions in the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online environment.
Thoughts and overview of useful JScript Libraries  Compilation of JScript Resources you can use in your projects, live, testing or showcase  environment. You will find several functions and methods to extend your xRM Environment.
Client-Side Programming Reference Reference documentation for client-side events and object models that can be used with JScript libraries

Extensibility, Enhancement, and Integration

CRM 2011 Share Record Code Activity Alberto Gemin's custom Workflow Activity that automates sharing of records - now available for CRM 2011
CRM 2011 Distribute Workflow Activity Alberto Gemin's custom Workflow Activity to instantiate Workflows across a 1:N or N:N relationship - now available for CRM 2011

Troubleshooting and Debugging

Plug-in Profiler The Plug-in Profiler is a tool that profiles the execution of plug-ins for an enhanced debugging experience in Microsoft Visual Studio 2010. This tool, which can be run from the Command Prompt window or from within the Plug-in Registration tool, makes developing plug-ins against Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online quicker and easier. In addition, users can profile the execution of failing plug-ins and send the results to the plug-in developer or ISV for analysis. The developer can replay the plug-in execution and debug the plug-in remotely even when disconnected from the Microsoft Dynamics CRM server. The Plug-in Profiler is available in the 5.0.5 release and newer releases of the Microsoft Dynamics CRM SDK
CRM Diagtool 2011  Update of CrmDiagTool 4 for CRM 2011. Use it to enable platform tracing, development errors or generate a report of your CRM 2011 deployment. Updated by Philipe Brissaud (MS Canada) and Tanguy Touzard (MVP)
 CRM 4.0 Support Tools

The following tools are included within the CRMtools.zip file:

CRM 4.0 - Automatic Fix-It tool for KB968793 -> CrmKB968793FixIt.zip
CRM 4.0 - E-Mail Connector Logger Tool -> Crm4EmailConnectorLogger.zip
CRM 4.0 - CRMDiagTool4.zip (vers. 4.0.7333.10)          

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 – Outlook Configuration Troubleshooting Wizard

 Welcome to the Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 for Microsoft Office Outlook client configuration troubleshooting wizard. Use this wizard to help find the most likely solution for an error in the Configuration Wizard.

Your computer may be unable to connect to Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Microsoft Office Outlook for several different reasons. This troubleshooting wizard will help you to identify and fix the problem that’s preventing the computer from connecting.

Start by selecting whether you access Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online or Microsoft Dynamics CRM On-Premises. If you don’t know which version you have, look in your browser at the web address for Microsoft Dynamics CRM. If the address contains “dynamics.com” after the name of your organization, you’re using the online version. Otherwise, it’s the on-premises version.

Development Helpers

Deprecated SDK Messages in CRM 2011 There are several SDK messages that are now deprecated in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. You are most likely to find these messages in use in customized CRM 4.0 systems that have been upgraded to CRM 2011.
Developer Toolkit for Microsoft Dynamics CRM The Developer Toolkit for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online is included in the SDK download package at SDK\Tools\DeveloperToolkit.
The Developer Toolkit is a Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 integration focused on accelerating the development of custom code for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online. The Developer Toolkit supports creation and deployment of plug-ins, custom workflow assemblies, XAML workflows and Web resources. A developer can write custom code within Visual Studio and deploy the code to an unmanaged solution on a Microsoft Dynamics CRM server.
CRM 4 to CRM 2011 JavaScript Converter Tool Rhett Clinton's tool for converting JavaScript from CRM v4.0 to CRM 2011 format.
OData Query Designer  Rhett Clinton's tool for building OData queries. It is a Silverlight 4 application that is packaged as a Managed CRM 2011 Solution.
JavaScript SOAP Request Formatter  Jamie Miley's tool to format captured envelopes in Jscript, ready for use in the CRM GUI.
Visual Studio Plugin Templates Pogo69's Visual Studio 2010 templates for plugin and custom workflow activity
NuGet plugin package Gayan Perera's Visual Studio NuGet package for Microsoft CRM 2011 plugins                    
CRM 2011 Metadata Browser  Rhett Clinton's tool for viewing entity metadata. It is a Silverlight 4 application that is packaged as a Managed CRM 2011 Solution.
Entity Metadata Browser     This HTML/JScript metadata browser shows all the entity and attribute metadata. You can:
- Filter the data displayed
- Copy Property names and values to your clipboard
- Open editable entities
This solution is included in the Microsoft CRM 2011 SDK.
Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics CRM 2011 Customising/editing the Dynamics CRM 2011 Ribbon has never been easier with the Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics CRM 2011. Unlike other editors available, the Ribbon Workbench allows you to perform a complete set of customisations that have only been possible up until now by hand editing xml. 
Ribbon Browser
Tanguy Touzard's utility to view information about all Ribbon UI information for assistance in development and scripting.
CRM LINQPad Plugin LINQPad plugin for Microsoft CRM lets you design and run LINQ queries against Microsoft CRM 2011 in a matter of minutes, just like you run your SQL queries from SQL Server Management Studio 
JavaScript Web Resource Manager
Tanguy Touzard's utility to manage all JavaScript Web Resources at once.  Does not manage the associations between forms and Web Resources.
Export JavaScript Utility  This utility exports the JavaScript web resources found in a specified CRM 2011 solution. It creates a Visual Studio solution to package everything together.  Written by Mitch Milam.
CRM 2011 Development Skeleton  A small Visual Studio 2010 solution that contains all you needed to get started connecting and communicating with CRM 2011. Written by Mitch Milam.
JScript IntelliSense for Form Script Libraries Use this solution to enjoy full IntelliSense and in-line documentation about the Xrm.Page object methods when writing form scripts. This is a combination of a CRM solution and a Visual Studio extension that captures a snapshot of the structure and data in a given form. You can test your scripts in Visual Studio as you write them. This solution is part of the Microsoft CRM 2011 SDK.
 Visual Ribbon Editor Visual Ribbon Editor is a tool for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 that lets you edit CRM ribbons. This ribbon editor shows a preview of the CRM ribbon as you are editing it and allows you to easily modify the ribbon without needing to completely understand the underlying XML schema.  It is written by Erik Pool.
 JavaScript Model Generator Generates JavaScript helper objects based on the fields, tabs, sections, and left navigation items that are currently on the specified entity form.  Easier to read and use than the XRM API.  Also caches XRM objects to optimize performance. 
 Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics CRM 2011  The Ribbon Workbench allows you to perform a complete set of customizations that have only been possible up until now by hand editing xml.  This is a solution which you import into your organization.
 CRM 2011 Client Side VsDoc A VsDoc file for use with the CRM 2011 Client side SDK. For a full description of the SDK itself see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg334351.aspx. This file describes the Xrm.Page object and GetGlobalContext method.  By using it, you get JavaScript Intellisense.
Dynamics CRM 2011 Script# Xrm.Page Library  This is a Script# (scriptsharp) import library that you can use to write Dynamics CRM 2011 web resources easily and efficiently.  This library provides access to all functions currently documented under MSDN Xrm.Page.  You can watch a video walkthrough of Script# & CRM at http://dkdt.me/ugtiuX.
CRM 2011 Validation Framework  This sample shows you the foundational pieces of creating a custom, reusable validation framework for CRM forms/entities that allows you to define the validation rule through the CRM UI and have the validation execute both client-side using JavaScript and server-side through an "all entities" plugin.
Documents Core Pack for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Documents Core Pack provides the possibility to create and manage documents associated with CRM - records in a comfortable and structured way. It enables creation of Word-Documents with data from MS CRM. It is available for: MS CRM 2011 On-Premise / Hosted (IFD) / Online. It is developed by Mscrm-addons.com. Mscrm-addons.com is a corporation sector of PTM EDV-Systems GmbH, a software company founded in 1998 and situated in Graz, Austria.
CRM Solution Manager Developer Toolkit Visual Studio Plugin that allows you to use all the features of Visual Studio to create, modify and publish Web Resources, Chart XML, JavaScript web resources with intellisense for Xrm.Page, SSRS reports.  Includes a GUI sitemap editor built into Visual Studio.  Includes the ability to publish to CRM with the click of a button.  Auto-backup feature allows you to revert any document to a previous version.  Auto-syncs your CRM web resources so that you always have the most recent version from CRM.
 Form Query String Parameter Tool This technical article includes a link to a Microsoft CRM Solution you can install which provides a user interface to define query string parameters that can be used to set default values for a new Microsoft CRM Form. This tool isn't the only way to set default values. The article describes when this tool can be useful and compares other approaches as well.
SiteMap Editor for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011  SiteMap Editor for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 helps developer and customizers to configure the Site Map in a graphical way. 
You'll no longer have to create solution, add component, export, update Xml and reimport the solution to update the SiteMap.

Deployment Helpers

Export CRM 4.0 Plugins Mitch Milam's tool to export plugins that have been installed into the CRM 4.0 database.
User Settings Utility 
  Amreek Singh's tool to centrally manage User Settings
Role Updater   Tanguy Touzard's tool to bulk update role with same privileges

Maintenance and Performance

Performance Toolkit for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 The Performance Toolkit is designed to formalize performance testing for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. This Toolkit is highly customizable and can be used by Microsoft Dynamics CRM partners and customers to collect performance data to support decisions related to their CRM 2011 on-premise deployments.

Optimizing and Maintaining the Performance of a Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Server Infrastructure  

 This white paper provides information that is designed to help readers achieve and maintain optimal performance of the server infrastructure supporting a Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011-based business solution deployed in an on-premises or hosted environment.
Optimizing and Maintaining Client Performance for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and CRM Online The white paper provides readers with the information necessary to ensure and maintain the optimal performance of the clients connecting to a business solution based on Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 or Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online

Documentation Generation

Metablast Entity schema documentation generator (On-Premises only)
CRM 2011 Metadata Browser  CRM MVP Rhett Clinton's tool for viewing entity metadata and exporting it to Excel. It is a Silverlight 4 application that is packaged as a Managed CRM 2011 Solution.
CRM 2011 Metadata Documentation Generator CRM MVP Tanguy Touzard's Metadata Documentation standalone utility.
Select and export entities and attributes along with picklist values and descriptions into Word or Excel documents. (On-Prem and OnLine)


ISV Helpers

View Layout Replicator The popular Tanguy Touzard's utility for CRM 4 for easily replicating column layouts across many views in CRM 4 has received a facelift for CRM 2011. Recommended.
Searchable Property Updater The popular Tanguy Touzard's utility for CRM 4 for easily updating "ValidForAdvancedFind" attributes property in CRM 4 has received a facelift for CRM 2011. Recommended.
Entity Metadata Browser This HTML/JScript metadata browser shows all the entity and attribute metadata. You can:
 - Filter the data displayed
 - Copy Property names and values to your clipboard
 - Open editable entities
This solution is included in the Microsoft CRM 2011 SDK.
SiteMap Editor
 Tanguy Touzard's offering for CRM 2011 SiteMap editing matches many of the capabilities of Patrick Verbeeten's CRM 4 counterpart.
Microsoft Dynamics CRM SiteMap Editor Microsoft Dynamics CRM SiteMap Editor provides a quick and easy way for users to update the site map through a user interface within Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Users will be able to immediately see the updated navigation pane when they publish the customizations.  This solution works with both Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online and Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 (on premises). 

Free Solutions

Skype Connector Skype Connector Tool for organizations that are looking to integrate Skype and Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. Make calls to phone numbers or Skype Names from a Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Contact Record. Solution is provided by Zero2Ten.
Royalty free Icon Solution A CRM 2011 solution which includes 22 royalty free icons which you can use in your CRM 2011 projects.  Visit the blog page here

 

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Comments
  • 31 May 2011 11:19 PM

    George Doubinski edited Revision 25. Comment: Added Metablast to Documentation

  • 31 May 2011 11:22 PM

    George Doubinski edited Revision 26. Comment: Added Metablast to Documentation

  • 31 May 2011 11:26 PM

    George Doubinski edited Revision 27. Comment: Added Metablast to Documentation

  • 4 Aug 2011 6:57 AM

    A. Gemin edited Revision 48. Comment: Added two updated tools

  • 31 Aug 2011 1:07 AM

    DavidBerry edited Revision 50. Comment: Added the User Settings Utility from Amreek Singh

  • 27 Sep 2011 4:31 AM

    Tanguy T [MVP CRM] edited Revision 52. Comment: Add role updater tool in Deployment Helpers

  • 27 Sep 2011 4:39 AM

    Tanguy T [MVP CRM] edited Revision 53. Comment: Add new image

  • 9 Jan 2012 7:48 PM

    Fantastic article!!

  • 21 Feb 2012 7:23 PM

    Brilliant Article , Thanks for posting it ..

  • 29 Mar 2012 10:38 AM

    JLattimer edited Revision 67. Comment: Added link to development best practices

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