Capturing the GUID of a new record and saving to a field in MS CRM Online on initial Save.

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Posted on by Chris Vine

Hi,

I have created a Workflow in Microsoft CRM Online that basically sends an email to a customer which a custom URL that is derived from the GUID of the actual record that is related.

I've used some to copy the GUID on the initial save and store into a custom field on the entity. Unfortunately on the initial save it does copy the GUID field until I save again (2x saves).

CODE (OnSave Event)

function AlertGUID() {
var GUIDvalue = Xrm.Page.data.entity.getId();
if (GUIDvalue != null) {
var ConfirmURL = Xrm.Page.data.entity.attributes.get("new_confirmationurl");
ConfirmURL.setValue(GUIDvalue);
}
}

Does anyone know how I can get this to happen on the initial save (and avoid clicking twice)?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Chris

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Mahadeo Matre 17,021 on at

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This is Javascript code..so it will execute before save..if you want on save then plug in is best option..you need to register plugin on post save event.then you will get record id..and then update your custom attribute with guid..

you can do same with custom workflow activity in workflow..

foe both options you need custom development.

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Larry McCoy on at

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Chris,

You won't be able to do this in JavaScript with one save. The OnSave event executes before the database transaction, so the GUID does not yet have a value. That's why it takes two saves, in the first save during record creation, your variable GUIDvalue will be null, so the rest of the script won't set any values.

You can accomplish what you are trying to do with a Plugin that runs on Create. Rather than describe the entire process for your, I found the following article which describes the steps that you would need to follow:

lsharepoint.com/.../using-guid-of-entity-record-in-dynamics-crm-

workflow-designer-a-generic-solution-based-on-custom-plugin/

~Larry

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Bruno Lucas 5,421 on at

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Hi Chris,

When you say initial save, does it mean open a record, change some values and save or open a blank form and create the record?

Xrm.Page.data.entity.getId(); won't have a value on a create.

www.resultondemand.nl/.../6fc1055e-f240-417f-85e0-810b761a48aa.htm

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Aileen Gusni 44,524 on at

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Chris,

See this post:

community.dynamics.com/.../134587

You need to put it in the form onload, instead.

Thanks.

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Chris Vine on at

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Hi Larry. This looks like exactly what I will need to do - however, can you do plugins for Microsoft CRM Online? I vaguely remember someone mentioning you couldn't?

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Aileen Gusni 44,524 on at

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Chris,

Use a plugin oncreate and make sure it is POST event or you can put it in the onload js.

Both can work for crm online.

Thanks.

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Chris Vine on at

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Worked Perfectly.

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Guido Preite 54,086 Moderator on at

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The right approach here is an asynchronous plugin on Create event.

Reasons:

1) An OnLoad JavaScript still requires an additional save (first save of create + additional save to store the value inside the field)

2) There are no guarantees that the OnLoad event will be called (for example when the user do a "Save And Close" when he creates the record)

3) Assuming that the field is read-only it's necessary additional code to handle the read-only status (with setDisabled method)

Advantages of a Plugin:

1) The GUID will be stored no matter how the record is created (CRM UI, SDK, Outlook Synchronization)

2) Fairly simple code:

IPluginExecutionContext context = (IPluginExecutionContext)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(IPluginExecutionContext));

IOrganizationServiceFactory serviceFactory = (IOrganizationServiceFactory)serviceProvider.GetService(typeof(IOrganizationServiceFactory));

IOrganizationService service = serviceFactory.CreateOrganizationService(context.UserId);

if (context.InputParameters.Contains("Target") && context.InputParameters["Target"] is Entity)

{

Entity target = (Entity)context.InputParameters["Target"];

string GUIDValue = target.Id.ToString();

Entity saveTarget = new Entity(target.LogicalName);

saveTarget.Id = target.Id;

saveTarget["mycustomfield"] = GUIDValue;

service.Update(saveTarget);

}

Instead of a plugin is possible to use a Workflow but a Custom Workflow Activity is necessary to grab the GUID.

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Larry McCoy on at

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Chris,

I believe you can do plugins for CRM online, they just need to be registered in the Sandbox. Also, the post that mentioned OnLoad (that you marked as the answer) will still require the entity to be saved twice, and as Guido mentions below, the OnLoad even may not even fire if the user clicks Save and Close. Also, any entity records that are created from a mechanism other than the CRM form (such as a workflow, a plugin, or an external application) will not run any javascript. A plugin is really the best solution. You could technically use a Workflow with a custom workflow activity (in order to get the GUID during the save), but the custom workflow activity would require you to write .NET code anyways so you may as well just use the plugin.

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Community Member on at

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Can i do this from an Out Of The Box workflow?

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