generator-nullfactory-xrm

Dynamics CRM / 365 Project Structure Generator

A yeoman generator for scaffolding Solution Packager-compatible Dynamics 365 project structures.

The project structure is built around the Solution Packager (provided as part of the official SDK) and the Microsoft.Xrm.Data.PowerShell module. It facilitates the quick creation of team builds and release strategies with minimal effort and enables you to maintain a single source of truth for your CRM solutions.

Installation

First, install Yeoman and generator-nullfactory-xrm using npm (we assume you have pre-installed node.js).

npm install -g yo
npm install -g generator-nullfactory-xrm

Then generate your new project:

yo nullfactory-xrm

Execution

Template questions and their purpose:

1. Visual Studio solution file name? The visual studio solution filename.
2. Visual Studio project prefix? The prefix for the projects generated. This can be an organization name or preferred convention.
3. Source CRM server url? This is the source CRM server url. Example:[https://sndbx.crm6.dynamics.com](https://sndbx.crm6.dynamics.com)
4. Source CRM solution name? The name of the CRM solution to be extracted.
5. Add *.WebResource project? Specifies if a new project should be created to manage the web resouces.
6. Add *.Plugin project? Specifies if a new plugin project should be created.
7. Add *.Workflow project? Specifies if a new workflow project should be created

Post Installation Setup

Start off by running the _RunFirst.ps1 powershell script located in the generated root folder. This script would restore and update the packages used by the Nullfactory.Xrm.Tooling

.\_RunFirst.ps1

Next, if you opted to add either a plugin or workflow project, ensure that the assembly is signed with a new key.

Optionally, install the Microsoft.Xrm.Data.PowerShell powershell module. On a Windows 10 or later, do this by executing the included powershell script Nullfactory.Xrm.Tooling\_Install\Install-Microsoft.Xrm.Data.PowerShell.ps1 or manually running the following command:

Install-Module -Name Microsoft.Xrm.Data.PowerShell -Scope CurrentUser -Force

Even if you skip this step, the sychrnoization PowerShell script would attempt to install it automatically. The PowerShell scripts require a minimum of PowerShell 5.0 and Microsoft.Xrm.Data.PowerShell 2.5.

Install Customised .gitignore

If the underlying repository is git, run the following command to install a customised version of the gitignore file. This file is structured to include the binaries within the Nullfactory.Xrm.Tooling\bin\coretools folder.

yo nullfactory-xrm:gitignore

Pull the CRM Solution into the Project Structure

Anytime the CRM solution needs to be pulled down into the project structure, execute the script located at Nullfactory.Xrm.Tooling\Scripts\Pull-CrmSolution.Param.ps1.

Resource Mapping

Edit the mapping file to map to the appropriate resource project. They are located in the Nullfactory.Xrm.Tooling\Mapping folder. More information on the structure of the mapping file can be found here

Building the CRM Solution

The repackaging the extracted solution is integrated as a post-build step of the solution class library. Simply build it to output both a managed as well as unmanaged CRM solution package.

Install a YAML based CI Build

Use the following command and prompts in order to generate a tailored YAML CI build file.

yo nullfactory-xrm:cibuild

Currently supports only Visual Studio Team Services.

Source Control, CI Builds and Release Management

More information on source control management, setting up continuous integration builds and automated releases:

• Release Strategy for Dynamics CRM - Part 1 - Preparation
• Release Strategy for Dynamics CRM - Part 2 - Setting Up the Build
• Release Strategy for Dynamics CRM - Part 3 - Setting Up the Release
• Release Strategy for Dynamics CRM - Part 4 - Versioning
• Release Strategy for Dynamics CRM - Part 5 - Deploy Third-Party Solutions

Feedback

Please submit any feature requests or issues found to https://github.com/shanec-/generator-nullfactory-xrm/issues

License

Copyright © Shane Carvalho. Licensed under the GPL-3.0 License.