Outlook 2010 Ribbon and CRM Dynamics 4.0 Integration

The introduction of Outlook 2010 brings some very handy improvements to email management.  Unfortunately, as of this post the default offering of the Outlook client for CRM Dynamics 4.0 is 10.  When installed in Outlook 2010 the client version 10 installs in the add in section of the ribbon.  This is makes the add in essentially useless.  Fortunately the client 11is now available if you know to go look for it.  After the install of the CRM client 11 for Outlook the CRM tool bar will be added to your ribbon in Outlook 2010. 

 

Once installed you will have the ability to move and modify your view in 2010.  To install the cumulative roll-up 11 chose the "CRMv4.0-KB981328-i386-Client-ENU.exe" file for download.

Dynamics CRM 4.0 Outlook client and the 64bit version of Outlook 2010

As clients begin the process of updating their software it is common for businesses to make the move to 64 bit systems.  During the Windows install the help screens make this seem like such a good idea.  Micrsoft however still recommends running the 32bit version of Office on your 64bit operating system.

Currently Microsoft CRM Outlook Connected does not support the 64bit version of Office Outlook 2010.  While direct access to CRM through IE is not affected this does prevent the installation of the CRM Outlook Client.  The ability to embed CRM into Outlook is one of it greatest strengths from a user adoption and consistency of use position.  As such, this is a deal killer when considering upgrading to 64 bit Office.  In general the advantages of running the 64 bit version of Office will pale incomparison to the ability to embed CRM in Outlook

Microsoft has reported that it has no immediate plans to support the 64bit version of Office Outlook with the CRM Dynamics 4.0 Client so we will need to wait for CRM 5.0.  For most organizations this will not be a major concern.

Troubleshooting Dynamic Worksheets for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0

The use of Dynamic Worksheets and Pivot tables for automatically refreshing data from CRM into your Excel based reporting can be a handy and powerful tool.  Personally, I dread repopulating a static worksheet with data and find it is often easier to recreate the report instead.  Obviously this can be a time draining endeavor and the use of dynamics worksheets is a big help.

But what do you do if your dynamic worksheet looks like this?

If you are experiencing this view you are likely accessing a web facing CRM deployment and/or are not on the same domain as the CRM instance.  To resolve this you will need to install the Outlook Client for CRM which can be downloaded here. (Don’t forget you will need to roll this up to the current version.  First install roll-up 7 for a cumulative roll-up to that point and then the latest roll-up will be cumulative from 7).

The installation of the Outlook Client will tie you to the CRM instance and you will be able to download and refresh Dynamic Worksheets and Pivot tables from the CRM instance.