Edit and Search External Act CRM Objects in Salesforce Connect

CData Connect Cloud, enables you to access Act CRM data from cloud-based applications like the Salesforce console and mobile applications like the Salesforce Mobile App. In this article, you will use CData Connect Cloud and Salesforce Connect to access external Act CRM objects alongside standard Salesforce objects.

Connect to Act CRM from Salesforce

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

(Optional) Add a New Connect Cloud User

As needed, create Users to connect to Act 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. On 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 Act 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 "Act CRM" from the Add Connection panel
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Act CRM.

   The User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, must be set to valid Act! user credentials. In addition to the authentication values, see the following:

   • Connecting to Act! Premium

     In addition to the authentication values, the URL to Act! is also required; for example https://eup1-iis-04.eu.hosted.act.com/.

     Additionally, you must specify the ActDatabase you will connect to. This is found by going to the About Act! Premium menu of your account, at the top right of the page, in the ? menu. Use the Database Name in the window that appears.

   • Connecting to Act! Premium Cloud

     To connect to your Act! Premium Cloud account, you also need to specify the ActCloudName property. This property is found in the URL address of the Cloud account; for example https://eup1-iis-04.eu.hosted.act.com/ActCloudName/.

   Note that retrieving ActCRM metadata can be expensive. It is advised that you set the CacheMetadata property to store the metadata locally.

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

Add Act CRM OData Endpoints in Connect Cloud

After connecting to Act 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 Act CRM connection (e.g. ActCRM1) 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 Act CRM data from Salesforce Connect.

Connect to Act CRM Data as an External Data Sources

Follow the steps below to connect to the feed produced by Connect Cloud.

1. Log into Salesforce and click Setup -> Integrations -> External Data Sources.
2. Click Now External Data Sources.
3. Enter values for the following properties:
   • External Data Sources: Enter a label to be used in list views and reports.
   • Name: Enter a unique identifier.
   • Type: Select the option "Salesforce Connect: OData 4.0".
   • URL: Enter the URL to the OData endpoint of Connect Cloud: https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/service
4. Select the Writable External Objects option.
5. Select JSON in the Format menu.
6. In the Authentication section, set the following properties:
   • Identity Type: If all members of your organization will use the same credentials to access Connect Cloud, select "Named Principal". If the members of your organization will connect with their own credentials, select "Per User".
   • Authentication Protocol: Select Password Authentication to use basic authentication.
   • Certificate: Enter or browse to the certificate to be used to encrypt and authenticate communications from Salesforce to your server.
   • Username: Enter a CData Connect Cloud username (e.g. user@mydomain.com.
   • Password: Enter the user's PAT.

Synchronize Act CRM Objects

After you have created the external data source, follow the steps below to create Act CRM external objects that reflect any changes in the data source. You will synchronize the definitions for the Act CRM external objects with the definitions for Act CRM tables.

1. Click the link for the external data source you created.
2. Click Validate and Scan.
3. Select the Act CRM tables you want to work with as external objects.

Access Act CRM Data as Salesforce Objects

After adding Act CRM data as an external data source and syncing Act CRM tables as external objects, you can use the external Act CRM objects just as you would standard Salesforce objects.

• Create a new tab with a filter list view:

• Create reports of external objects:

• Create, update, and delete Act CRM objects from the Salesforce dashboard:

Simplified Access to Act CRM Data from Cloud Applications

At this point, you have a direct, cloud-to-cloud connection to live Act CRM data from Salesforce. For more information on gaining simplified access to data from more than 100 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources in cloud applications like Salesforce, refer to our Connect Cloud page.