Working with Records and Activities in Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Outlook

With Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Microsoft Office Outlook, you can work in all areas of Microsoft Dynamics CRM for which you have privileges A user's rights to perform specific actions on specific record types or to perform tasks. Privileges are assigned by system administrators to security roles. Users are then assigned security roles. Examples of privileges include Update Account and Publish Customizations..

Creating New Records and Activities

Create new records Entries in the Microsoft Dynamics CRM database that store all the information about specific items, such as contacts. Records are like individual index cards in an index-card filing system. You can view basic information about records in a list, and you can view or change detailed information about records in a form. and activities Actions to be performed, such as tasks, or communication items that are sent or received, for example, e-mails, phone calls, letters, faxes, and appointments. The status of activities is tracked and the activity history is stored in the system, so users can view the open and closed activities. using Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Outlook in these places:

• Outlook toolbar buttons, menus, and tabs

  More information: Set Personal Options

• toolbar (in Outlook 2007), or the CRM tab on the ribbon (in Outlook 2010)
• CRM menu (in Outlook 2007), or the CRM tab (in Outlook 2010)
• Microsoft Dynamics CRM folders

More information: Save Outlook Contacts, Tasks, and E-mail Messages as Microsoft Dynamics CRM Records

Working Offline

To use the offline feature you need the offline privilege A user's right to perform a specific action on a specific record type or to perform a task. Privileges are assigned by system administrators to security roles. Users are then assigned security roles. Examples of privileges include Update Account and Publish Customizations..

The following list shows the features that are unavailable when you are offline

More information: Working Offline

Synchronizing Reminders and Calendars

Some activities inherit reminders from Outlook. Whether or not an activity has a reminder depends on where it was created:

• Activities created in Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Outlook
• Activities created in the Web Application

Only Microsoft Dynamics CRM appointments and service activities that are tracked in Outlook as appointments appear in both Outlook and Microsoft Dynamics CRM calendars.

Deleting Records and Activities

When you delete a linked contact, task, or appointment in Outlook or in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, one of two things can happen: the linked item can be deleted too, or the linked item remains, but the link is broken and future changes are not synchronized.

• For contacts you own:
  • If you delete a contact from Outlook, it is never deleted from Microsoft Dynamics CRM, but the link is broken and the record is updated.
  • If a contact is deleted from Microsoft Dynamics CRM and the contact is owned by you, it is not deleted from Outlook, but the link is broken and the record is not updated.
  • If a contact is deleted from Outlook by someone else and is owned by you, the contact is not deleted from Microsoft Dynamics CRM, but the link is broken and the record is not updated or recreated in Outlook.
• For contacts you do not own:
  • If a contact is deleted from Outlook by someone else and the contact is not owned by you in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, the contact is deleted from Microsoft Dynamics CRM.
• For other records and activities:
  • If a tracked record is deleted from Outlook, or an appointment declined in Outlook, and then the record or activity is updated in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, the record or activity may be recreated.
  • When you delete an e-mail message, a contact, a completed task, or a past appointment or service activity from Outlook, it is not deleted from Microsoft Dynamics CRM, but the link is broken. However, if you delete a pending (incomplete) task or future appointment from Outlook, it is also deleted from Microsoft Dynamics CRM.
  • If a tracked activity is deleted from Outlook or an appointment is declined in Outlook, and then the Microsoft Dynamics CRM record is updated in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, the record or activity may be recreated during synchronization.
• Pending appointments and tasks:
  • If the appointment is deleted from Outlook by the owner or organizer, it is deleted from Microsoft Dynamics CRM. If it is deleted by a participant, it is not deleted from Outlook .
  • If you delete a pending task from either Outlook or Microsoft Dynamics CRM the linked task is deleted.
• Past appointments and complete tasks:
  • Past appointments and completed tasks are not deleted.

More information: Synchronizing Information