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Dynamics 365 Community / Forums / Microsoft Dynamics CRM (Archived) / custom data entry scre...
Microsoft Dynamics CRM (Archived)

custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

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Posted on by iruser2 2,046

I need to make a custom data entry screen that will allow a variable amount of columns.

Customers have a variable amount of locations

So I have my customer / location entity created already

In the custom data entry window I need to enter the customer and click save so that I can get a screen reads the customer / location relationship and populates as many columns as is needed

Customer  Location 1  Location 2  Location 3

Data 1        12               12               14

Data 2        15                8                26

Total row    27               20              40

My challenge is there are variable amounts of locations.  Sometimes 1, sometimes 3, sometimes as many as the CRM client is willing to enter.  Yes the form can get wider, as wide as there are locations.

Can this be done?  If so how? 

*This post is locked for comments

  • Pasha Tretyak Profile Picture
    Pasha Tretyak on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    I side with opinion to have a row (separate record) for each location. The requirement for total needs to be further clarified - is it per month/year/all of the history of interaction? Rollup fields with configured filters might be the way to go.

  • iruser2 Profile Picture
    iruser2 2,046 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    agreed, I did not understand.  thanks for trying!

  • iruser2 Profile Picture
    iruser2 2,046 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    thanks Wayne.  This is a new D365 purchase so we will have the most recent version.  I will get the developer to look at this.  

  • Suggested answer
    gdas Profile Picture
    gdas 50,085 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    Hi ,

    unfortunately you did not understand what i wrote. I also tried to make it normalised to make location as a lookup or record .that's what I have mentioned subgrid here for  one customer you can add multiple location.

  • Verified answer
    Wayne Walton Profile Picture
    Wayne Walton 13,726 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    Something to note, if you're working in the newest release of Dynamics (v9), they have released a development framework for the UI called custom controls.  

    It would be entirely possible for your developer to make a subgrid custom control that lays things out like in your original post (with your data labels on the left) while still adhering to the entity model of CRM.  I don't know your budget or timeline, but it's definitely worth a shot if that's the difference between users using the system, and not using the system.

    You could also build a web resource that does something very similar if you're in an older version of CRM.

  • iruser2 Profile Picture
    iruser2 2,046 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    that is what my programmer is telling me.  From a user perspective this will be an awfully hard sell (they currently do this in excel where adding the extra column is easy) and extremely esthetically unpleasing.

    The data 1 data 2 labels are some very long questions making them column headings will be ugly.

    I was hoping someone had a work around.  

    Flipping the data it is I guess.

    thanks!

  • Verified answer
    Wayne Walton Profile Picture
    Wayne Walton 13,726 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    You have your data flipped on its head.  You don't make one field per location.  You make Location be a Row (in CRM-speak, an Entity) and then make the columns (fields) be your data.  Then the Location row only needs the maximum number of Data fields an individual location would need.

  • iruser2 Profile Picture
    iruser2 2,046 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    That is what I was afraid of.  My problem is that some customers have over 100 locations.  Is it appropriate to pick an arbitrary number of say 200 and make 200 columns on the form?

    If I did do that, can the column headings be populated by the already set up relationship between the customer and the location?

    i.e. in the example table can Location 1, 2, and 3 auto populate from a business rule knowing that sometimes the business rule will find 1 location and other times it could find over 100?

    thanks!

  • Wayne Walton Profile Picture
    Wayne Walton 13,726 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    Nothing natively allows for variable numbers of columns, but it would be valid to just have empty columns for the locations that don't need it.

  • iruser2 Profile Picture
    iruser2 2,046 on at
    RE: custom data entry screen with variable amount of columns

    thanks for the reply.

    I'm very new to d365 and learning the phrases for different elements.

    I honestly don't know if this would fulfill the requirement as I don't understand your answer.  I know a sub grid is like a view to other data.

    Would related columns (option set or any type of field) allow for multiple / a variable number of columns?

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