Dynamics 365 App for Outlook Part 9 - App for Outlook Components

Welcome back for Part 9 of the Dynamics 365 App for Outlook blog series! In this post, we will take a closer look at the components that make up the Dynamics 365 App for Outlook.

I want to be sure that we address the following dashboard right away. Any user that needs the ability to Track or Set Regarding within the App for Outlook will need to have access to the App for Outlook Dashboard

This is required to see the Tracking pane. This Tracking pane cannot be customized. For example, you cannot change the label "Set Regarding". If you have access to the App for Outlook Dashboard in your security role, you will see this pane on Emails or Appointments. 

Without access to that dashboard, users will still have access to the Dynamics 365 App for Outlook, as long as their security role allows for it. But they will not see the Track/Regarding pane. 

Now, let's break down the components below

1- This is referred to as the Track Regarding Card. This section pulls from the Regarding Entity Quick View form. In this case, it is the Account entity, using the App for Outlook Account Card form.

2- This is the Recipients Pane. It displays the resolved or unresolved recipients on the Email or Appointment, using the email address to determine whether or not it exists in Dynamics.

3- This section of the app displays the details of the selected recipient. For example, if it resolves to a Contact, this will be the App for Outlook Contact Card form. Although they are both Quick View forms, this is NOT the App for Outlook Contact Quick View form. 

4- If the recipient is a Contact, this displays data from the App for Outlook Contact Quick View form, such as Parent Account (company name)

Now that we have looked at the components of the app in terms of tracking and regarding record information, let's look at a few other areas I get questions about. 

The Dynamics 365 App for Outlook is just another model-driven app. Although some areas cannot be customized, many can. To access the app designer, append /apps to your URL and click the ellipses on the Dynamics 365 App for Outlook app. Click Open in App Designer.  

Once you are in the App Designer, you can click on the Sitemap to modify the sitemap that is accessible through the App for Outlook. You can customize the sitemap to your needs. It is important to remember, that once you add an entity to the sitemap, that entity is also added to the Entity View of the app. What does this mean? That means if the entity is enabled for Activities, it will also return as an option within the Set Regarding lookup for users to select as the regarding record. Currently, removing an entity from the Entity Definition is the only way to prevent a specific entity from appearing in the Set Regarding lookup. 

There is a product suggestion available to vote on the ability to have separate Regarding lookup configuration, so it is separate from those entities you want available in the sitemap and the rest of the App for Outlook. Take a look here

From the information in the previous paragraph, we can extend that to the Unknown Recipient card that appears for an email address that does not resolve to a record in Dynamics. 

By default, Contact and Lead are options that will appear to resolve an unresolved email address, as long as they exist in the Entity View.

If either or both of these is removed from the app's Entity View, Account will be an option to resolve the email address against. See below:

If you remove the Contact entity from the Entity View, it will no longer resolve to Contacts in the Set Regarding lookup

Additionally, it will not give you the option to Add as Contact for unknown recipients email addresses.

If the Contact entity does exist in the Entity View, but the user does not have any Create permissions, this will also remove the Add as Contact option for unknown recipients.

An important note for all forms and records that appear in the App for Outlook, since this is simply a model-driven app, the security context of the user is considered for record types, forms and so on.

Stay tuned for Part 10 of the Dynamics 365 App for Outlook Series coming next month!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 10