Customization

Client extension features

Part 9 of "11 things to know about customization"

There are three main client extension features in Microsoft Dynamics CRM that you can also use for customization tasks: SiteMap, ISV.Config, and IFrames.

In addition, Microsoft Dynamics CRM provides a designated folder to place custom code within the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Web site and on Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Microsoft Office Outlook.

These features are designed to allow for other applications, usually Web sites, to be integrated into Microsoft Dynamics CRM. The applications you integrate can be as complex as a new module developed by a third-party independent software vendor (ISV) or as simple as a link to an HTML page providing information for users.

On This Page

User Interface Style Guide

Site Map

On the left side of the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Web application there is an area called the Navigation Pane. The Navigation Pane contains the Workplace, Sales, Marketing, Service, Settings, and Resource Center areas.

You can change these navigation areas. You can add, remove, and modify these areas to change the text or the icons they display using the Site Map. These changes also affect Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Microsoft Office Outlook. But the appearance is different because Microsoft Office Outlook displays the areas as folders and sorts them alphabetically.

You can change the groups available in the Workplace area. This changes the options available to users when they click the Personalize Workplace link and also when they select Options from the Tools menu.

The main purpose of the Site Map is to allow for developers to add their own modules to Microsoft Dynamics CRM, so there is not an easy graphical user interface to change this. The process is to export the Site Map exactly as you would export any entity, open the XML file, and make modifications. All the valid XML elements are documented in the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Software Development Kit. You then import the file back into Microsoft Dynamics CRM to see the changes. More information about importing and exporting customizations: Part 6: Transportable customizations.

Microsoft Dynamics ISV Architect Evangelist John O'Donnell points out that the ability to control navigation is valuable when his clients want to reduce the number of options available or group items in different ways. He also emphasizes that it is important to keep a backup of the original site map before making changes.

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ISV.Config

ISV.Config resembles Site Map except that you use it to create custom buttons, menus, and navigation areas for the forms and views for the application and each entity. Each of these items can be configured to open a specific URL to a page that will be displayed in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, or JScript can be added to perform actions. These features help an ISV integrate their solution – but you can also use them for simpler customizations. Perhaps you want the users to have easy access to a Windows SharePoint Services site where you document the procedures related to a particular type of record or you want to access a publicly available Web site or Web service. You could configure a custom button to make that page or Web service easily available. The process of customizing ISV.Config is the same as Site Map.

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IFrames

IFrames are another type of client extension feature. IFrame is an abbreviation for "Inline Frame". This lets you insert a Web page within a Microsoft Dynamics CRM form. An ISV can use this to expose some custom functionality within the form. For example, you could pass the address information from a contact to the IFrame. The target of the IFrame is a Web page that uses that information to retrieve a map based on the address information.

IFrames are easier to configure than Site Map or ISV.Config because there is a graphical user interface. You can add an IFrame within the entity form customization area.

Add or edit an IFrame

In the Navigation Pane, click Settings, click Customization, and then click Customize Entities.
Open the entity and then click Forms and Views.
In the list of forms and views, select Form.
On the More Actions menu, click Edit.
To add an IFrame, in the Common Tasks area, click Add an IFRAME.
– OR –

Select a tab and then the IFrame in the tab you want to edit, and then in the Common Tasks area, click Change Properties.
For more steps, click the "Edit the main form for an entity" option in the Help topic "Edit Entity Forms".
Caution

Because applications can interact with each other through an IFrame, by default, in the Security section, the Restrict cross-frame scripting check box is selected. Remove this restriction only if you are sure the site you are using as the target of the IFrame can be trusted

Microsoft Dynamics ISV Architect Evangelist John O'Donnell points out that IFrames can be manipulated using form event scripts. One powerful technique is to use the form OnLoad event to change the URL for an IFrame.

For example, when you have a Windows SharePoint Services site where every account in Microsoft Dynamics CRM has a matching Windows SharePoint Services page where the URL is linked to the account number. When the account is opened in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, the IFrame URL is modified by code so that the Windows SharePoint Services page is displayed in the IFrame.

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ISV folder

Microsoft Dynamics CRM now provides a specific folder on the server and in Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Outlook where custom Web pages and Web services can be added to Microsoft Dynamics CRM. This folder provides a supported location for custom code to be placed so that it works well with Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Web pages and Web services that are located in this folder will frequently be referenced by Site Map, ISV.Config, and IFrames.

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User Interface Style Guide

When you create custom pages that are displayed within Microsoft Dynamics CRM, you can design them so that they maintain a consistent user interface (UI) with the rest of the application.

The Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 UI Style Guide is a valuable resource that provides information that designers can use to create CSS styles and icons that will match the Microsoft Dynamics CRM user interface.

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