Connect to Dynamics 365 Business Central Data from Blazor Apps

Blazor is a framework for developing modern, client-side web UIs using .NET technology. Instead of coding in JavaScript, developers can use the familiar C# language and .NET libraries to build app UIs.

The CData ADO.NET Provider for Dynamics 365 Business Central can be used with standard ADO.NET interfaces, such as LINQ and Entity Framework, to interact with live Dynamics 365 Business Central data. Since Blazor supports .NET Core, developers can use CData ADO.NET Providers in Blazor apps. In this article, we will guide you to build a simple Blazor app that talks to Dynamics 365 Business Central using standard SQL queries.

Install the CData ADO.NET Provider for Dynamics 365 Business Central

CData ADO.NET Providers allow users to access Dynamics 365 Business Central just like they would access SQL Server, using simple SQL queries.

Install the Dynamics 365 Business Central ADO.NET Data Provider from the CData website or from NuGet. Search NuGet for "Dynamics 365 Business Central ADO.NET Data Provider."

Create a Dynamics 365 Business Central-Connected Blazor App

Start by creating a Blazor project that references the CData ADO.NET Provider for Dynamics 365 Business Central

1. Create a Blazor project on Visual Studio.
2. From the Solution Explorer, right click Dependencies, then click Add Project Reference.
3. In the Reference Manager, click the Browse button, and choose the .dll file of the installed ADO.NET Provider (e.g. System.Data.CData.D365BusinessCentral.dll, typically located at C:\Program Files\CData\CData ADO.NET Provider for Dynamics 365 Business Central\lib etstandard2.0).

SELECT Dynamics 365 Business Central Data from the Blazor App

1. Open the Index.razor file from the Project page.
2. In a D365BusinessCentralConnection object, set the connection string:

   To authenticate to Dynamics 365 Business Central, you must provide the User and AccessKey properties.

   To obtain the User and AccessKey values, navigate to the Users page in Dynamics 365 Business Central and then click on Edit. The User Name and Web Service Access Key values are what you will enter as the User and AccessKey connection string properties. Note that the User Name is not your email address. It is a shortened user name.

   To connect to data, specify OrganizationUrl. If you have multiple companies in your organization, you must also specify the Company to indicate which company you would like to connect to. Company does not need to be specified if you have only one company.

   For example: OrganizationUrl=https://myaccount.financials.dynamics.com/;

3. The code below creates a simple Blazor app for displaying Dynamics 365 Business Central data, using standard SQL to query Dynamics 365 Business Central just like SQL Server.

         @page "/"
         @using System.Data;
         @using System.Data.CData.D365BusinessCentral;
         
         <h1>Hello, world!</h1>
         
         Welcome to your Data app.
         
         <div class="row">
             <div class="col-12">
         
                 @using (D365BusinessCentralConnection connection = new D365BusinessCentralConnection(
                   "OrganizationUrl=https://myaccount.financials.dynamics.com/;"))
                 {
                     var sql = "SELECT accountid, Name FROM Accounts";
                     var results = new DataTable();
         
                     D365BusinessCentralDataAdapter dataAdapter = new D365BusinessCentralDataAdapter(sql, connection);
                     dataAdapter.Fill(results);
         
                     <table class="table table-bordered">
                         <thead class="thead-light">
                             <tr>
                                 @foreach (DataColumn item in results.Rows[0].Table.Columns)
                                 {
                                     <th scope="col">@item.ColumnName</th>
                                 }
                             </tr>
                         </thead>
                         <tbody>
                             @foreach (DataRow row in results.Rows)
                             {
                                 <tr>
                                     @foreach (var column in row.ItemArray)
                                     {
                                         <td>@column.ToString()</td>
                                     }
                                 </tr>
                             }
                         </tbody>
                     </table>
                 }
             </div>
         </div>
       

4. Rebuild and run the project. The ADO.NET Provider renders Dynamics 365 Business Central data as an HTML table in the Blazor app.

   At this point, you have a Dynamics 365 Business Central-connected Blazor app, capable of working with live Dynamics 365 Business Central data just like you would work with a SQL Server instance. Download a free, 30-day trial and start working with live Dynamics 365 Business Central data in your Blazor apps today.