Access Live Dynamics CRM Data in TIBCO Data Virtualization

TIBCO Data Virtualization (TDV) is an enterprise data virtualization solution that orchestrates access to multiple and varied data sources. When paired with the CData TIBCO DV Adapter for Dynamics CRM, you get federated access to live Dynamics CRM data directly within TIBCO Data Virtualization. This article walks through deploying an adapter and creating a new data source based on Dynamics CRM.

With built-in optimized data processing, the CData TIBCO DV Adapter offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Dynamics CRM data. When you issue complex SQL queries to Dynamics CRM, the adapter pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Dynamics CRM. Its built-in dynamic metadata querying allows you to work with and analyze Dynamics CRM data using native data types.

Deploy the Dynamics CRM TIBCO DV Adapter

1. In a console, navigate to the bin folder in the TDV Server installation directory. If there is a current version of the adapter installed, you will need to undeploy it.

   .\server_util.bat -server localhost -user admin -password ******** -undeploy -version 1 -name DynamicsCRM
   

2. Extract the CData TIBCO DV Adapter to a local folder and deploy the JAR file (tdv.dynamicscrm.jar) to the server from the extract location.

   .\server_util.bat -server localhost -user admin -password ******** -deploy -package /PATH/TO/tdv.dynamicscrm.jar
   

You may need to restart the server to ensure the new JAR file is loaded properly, which can be accomplished by running the composite.bat script located at: C:\Program Files\TIBCO\TDV Server <version>\bin. Note that reauthenticating to the TDV Studio is required after restarting the server.

Sample Restart Call

.\composite.bat monitor restart

Create a Dynamics CRM Data Source in TDV Studio

With the CData TIBCO DV Adapter for Dynamics CRM, you can easily create a data source for Dynamics CRM and introspect the data source to add resources to TDV.

Create the Data Source

1. Right-click on the folder you wish to add the data source to and select New -> New Data Source.
2. Scroll until you find the adapter (e.g. Dynamics CRM) and click Next.
3. Name the data source (e.g. CData Dynamics CRM Source).

4. Fill in the required connection properties.

   The connection string options meet the authentication and connection requirements of different Dynamics CRM instances. To connect to your instance, set the User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, to valid Dynamics CRM user credentials and set the Url to a valid Dynamics CRM server organization root. Additionally, set the CRMVersion property to 'CRM2011+' or 'CRMOnline'. IFD configurations are supported as well; set InternetFacingDeployment to true.

   Additionally, you can provide the security token service (STS) or AD FS endpoint in the STSURL property. This value can be retrieved with the GetSTSUrl stored procedure. Office 365 users can connect to the default STS URL by simply setting CRMVersion.

5. Click Create & Close.

Introspect the Data Source

Once the data source is created, you can introspect the data source by right-clicking and selecting Open. In the dashboard, click Add/Remove Resources and select the Tables, Views, and Stored Procedures to include as part of the data source. Click Next and Finish to add the selected Dynamics CRM tables, views, and stored procedures as resources.

After creating and introspecting the data source, you are ready to work with Dynamics CRM data in TIBCO Data Virtualization just like you would any other relational data source. You can create views, query using SQL, publish the data source, and more.