Analyze Dynamics CRM Data in Infragistics Reveal

Reveal, an offering from Infragistics, serves as a data visualization tool that seamlessly integrates with CData Connect Cloud. Together, they empower users to deliver dynamic dashboards using real-time data from a diverse range of data sources, including Dynamics CRM data. In this article, we will guide you through the process of connecting to Dynamics CRM via Connect Cloud and subsequently linking Connect Cloud with Infragistics Reveal to construct a straightforward dashboard.

Connect to Dynamics CRM from Infragistics Reveal

To work with live Dynamics CRM data in Infragistics Reveal, we need to connect to Dynamics CRM from Connect Cloud, provide user access to the connection, and create OData endpoints for the Dynamics CRM data.

(Optional) Add a New Connect Cloud User

As needed, create Users to connect to Dynamics CRM through Connect Cloud.

1. Navigate to the Users page and click Invite Users
2. Enter the new user's email address and click Send to invite the user
3. You can review and edit users from the Users page

Add a Personal Access Token

If you are connecting from a service, application, platform, or framework that does not support OAuth authentication, you can create a Personal Access Token (PAT) to use for authentication. Best practices would dictate that you create a separate PAT for each service, to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on your username at the top right of the Connect Cloud app and click User Profile.
2. Oa the User Profile page, scroll down to the Personal Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give your PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

Connect to Dynamics CRM from Connect Cloud

CData Connect Cloud uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources.

1. Log into Connect Cloud, click Connections and click Add Connection
2. Select "Dynamics CRM" from the Add Connection panel
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Dynamics CRM.

   The connection string options meet the authentication and connection requirements of different Dynamics CRM instances. To connect to your instance, set the User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, to valid Dynamics CRM user credentials and set the Url to a valid Dynamics CRM server organization root. Additionally, set the CRMVersion property to 'CRM2011+' or 'CRMOnline'. IFD configurations are supported as well; set InternetFacingDeployment to true.

   Additionally, you can provide the security token service (STS) or AD FS endpoint in the STSURL property. This value can be retrieved with the GetSTSUrl stored procedure. Office 365 users can connect to the default STS URL by simply setting CRMVersion.

4. Click Create & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Dynamics CRM Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

Add Dynamics CRM OData Endpoints in Connect Cloud

After connecting to Dynamics CRM, create OData Endpoints for the desired table(s).

1. Navigate to the OData page and click Add to create new OData endpoints
2. Select the Dynamics CRM connection (e.g. DynamicsCRM1) and click Next
3. Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Confirm

With the connection and OData endpoints configured, you are ready to connect to Dynamics CRM data from Infragistics Reveal.

Create a Dashboard in Reveal

With Connect Cloud configured, we can visualize Dynamics CRM data in Reveal.

1. Log into Reveal and click Dashboards -> New
2. Click Data Sources -> OData Feed
3. Specify the Connect Cloud OData API endpoint URL (found on the OData page): https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/service
4. Select Generic Credentials and
   • Set Username to a Connect Cloud username (e.g. user@mydomain.com)
   • Set Password to the PAT for the user
5. Select the entity you wish to visualize
6. Select fields and choose a chart type

More Information & Free Trial

At this point, you have created a simple dashboard from live Dynamics CRM data. For more information on creating OData feeds from Dynamics CRM (and more than 100 other sources), visit the Connect Cloud page. Sign up for a free trial and start working live Dynamics CRM data in tools that consume OData APIs.