Find the next available time within a specific time period

Can I do this task?

Use this procedure to find the next available time based on a specific date, or range of dates, within the next day, week, or month.

1. In the Navigation Pane, click Service, and then click Service Calendar.
2. On the Actions toolbar, click Schedule.

   Note: If you click New, and then Service Activity, you will create a service activity without checking for available times.

3. On the Schedule Service Activity form, you must enter the following information:
   • Service

     Locate and select the service you want to schedule. You can select a record from a filtered list in the Form Assistant pane A search pane that displays a list of filtered records. The records displayed are determined by which field that you are in and what data that you enter. In some areas of Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, you can also create a follow-up activity from the Form Assistant pane pane. Using the Form Assistant pane is an alternative to using the Look Up Records dialog box., or you can click the Lookup button to search for other records.

4. Under Scheduling Information, select criteria for the times you want.
   • Start Date
     • To search for a time on a specific date, select Specific Date, and then enter the date you want.
     • To search within a range of dates, select Range of Dates, and then enter the On or After and On or Before dates. You can also select specific days of the week.
     • To search for times today, select Today.
     • You can also search for times based on dates relative to today, such as Tomorrow, This Week, or Next Week.
   • Start Time
     • To search for a specific time, select Specific Time, and then enter the specific time.
     • To search within a specific range of time, select Range of Times, and then enter the earliest and latest times you want the service activity to start.
     • You can also search for times based on the time of day, such as Morning or Evening.
   • Duration

     Do not clear the Use Default Duration check box and change the duration unless you want to schedule more time than the default duration of the service. The maximum duration of a service activity is 10 days.

5. Click Find Available Times. The next available times are displayed.
6. Under Available Times click on the start or end time of the time you want to schedule, and then click Schedule. If you click the service or resource links, the related form opens.

   The Schedule Service Activity form closes and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online fills in the information from the selected time into the Service Activity form.

7. On the Service Activity form, enter any additional information about the service activity.
   • Subject

     You must enter a subject. The first 12 characters appear on the Service calendar and the calendar in your Workplace.

     You can save the service activity now, or continue to add information.

   • Customers

     If this service activity is for a customer, you can locate and select the account or contact. You can select a record from a filtered list in the Form Assistant pane A search pane that displays a list of filtered records. The records displayed are determined by which field that you are in and what data that you enter. In some areas of Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, you can also create a follow-up activity from the Form Assistant pane pane. Using the Form Assistant pane is an alternative to using the Look Up Records dialog box., or you can click Lookup to search for other records.

   • Resources

     Locate and select the user, or facility and equipment that you want to schedule. You can select a record from a filtered list in the Form Assistant pane A search pane that displays a list of filtered records. The records displayed are determined by which field that you are in and what data that you enter. In some areas of Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, you can also create a follow-up activity from the Form Assistant pane pane. Using the Form Assistant pane is an alternative to using the Look Up Records dialog box., or you can click Lookup to search for other records.

   • Location

     You can enter an address or room number where the service activity will occur.

   • Show Time As

     If you want to change the initial status of the service activity, select a status from the list. If you select any of the statuses under Scheduled, that block of time on the schedule is set so that another service activity or appointment cannot conflict with it during automatic scheduling. Forced service activities and appointments might conflict.

   • Site

     Changing the Site after you have selected a time for the service activity is not recommended. Resources are assigned to sites. If the selected resources are not available at the selected site, there might be conflicts. To record the specific room or address of the service activity, enter that information in the Location box on the Service Activity form.

   Notes

   You can add additional information about the customer and service activity in this area. For example, you could enter the symptoms of a problem, special requests by the customer, or any messages to pass on to the resources providing the service.

8. On the Details tab, you can select and locate a record in the Regarding box to link to this service activity. You can also set a Priority for the service activity, and record a Category and Sub-Category.
9. Click Save or Save and Close.

   The service activity appears as a color block on the Service calendar, as well as on the calendar in the Workplace and Activities areas.

Tip

Important

• Changing any information in the Scheduling Information area after you have selected a time for the service activity is not recommended. Doing so might cause conflicts in the schedule.
• In the list of possible service activity search results, you can click the Page Back arrow to initiate a new search. Paging back does not display the previous page.