Embed PowerApps apps

In Platform update 14, Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations supports integration with Microsoft PowerApps, a service for developers and non-technical users to build custom business apps for mobile devices, tablets, and the web without writing code. PowerApps developed by you, your organization, or the broader ecosystem can then be embedded in the Finance and Operations client to augment the product's functionality. For example, you might build a PowerApp to supplement Finance and Operations with information retrieved from another system.

To learn more about embedding PowerApps, watch the short How to embed PowerApps in Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations video.

Adding an embedded PowerApp to a page

Overview

Before embedding a PowerApp into the Finance and Operations client, you first need to find or build a PowerApp with the desired visuals and/or functionality. We will not describe the detailed process for building a PowerApp here. The Introduction to PowerApps topic is a good starting point if you are new to PowerApps.

When you are ready to embed a specific PowerApp, you can choose between one of two ways of accessing the PowerApp on a page, whichever route better fits your scenario. The first way is through the PowerApps button that has been added to the standard Action Pane. PowerApps added using this mechanism will appear as menu items inside the PowerApps menu button. When selected, each of these menu items will open a side pane that contains the embedded PowerApp. Alternatively, you may choose to show a PowerApp directly on a page as a new tab, FastTab, blade, or as a new section in a workspace.

When configuring your embedded PowerApp in Finance and Operations, you can select a single field that you want to send as input to the PowerApp. This allows the PowerApp to be responsive based on the data that you are currently viewing in Finance and Operations.

Details

The following instructions show how to embed a PowerApp into the Finance and Operations web client.

1. Go to the page where you would like to embed the PowerApp. This will be the same page that contains any data that needs to be passed to the PowerApp as input.
2. Open the Insert a PowerApp pane:
   • Click Options, and then select Personalize this form. Under the Insert menu, choose PowerApp. Finally, select the region where you would like to add the PowerApp. If you want to embed the PowerApp under the PowerApps menu button, choose the Action Pane. If you want to embed the PowerApp directly onto the page, choose the appropriate tab, FastTab, blade, or section (if you're on a workspace).
   • If the PowerApp will be accessed using the PowerApps menu button, you can alternatively click the PowerApps menu button in the standard Action Pane, and then select Insert a PowerApp.
3. Configure the embedded PowerApp:
   • The Name field indicates the text shown for the button or tab that will contain the embedded PowerApp. Oftentimes, you may want to repeat the name of the PowerApp in this field.
   • App ID is the GUID for the PowerApp that you want to embed. To retrieve this value, find the PowerApp on web.powerapps.com and then locate the App ID field under Details.
   • For Input data for the PowerApp, you can optionally select the field that contains the data that you want to pass to the PowerApp as input. See the section later in this topic titled Building a PowerApp that leverages data from Finance and Operations for details on how the PowerApp can access the data sent from Finance and Operations.
   • Choose the Application size that matches the type of PowerApp that you're embedding. Select Thin for PowerApps built for mobile devices, and Wide for PowerApps built for tablets. This ensures a sufficient amount of space is allotted for the embedded PowerApp.
   • The Legal entities FastTab provides the ability to choose which legal entities the PowerApp is available for. The default is to show the PowerApp in all legal entities.
4. After confirming that the configuration is correct, click Insert to embed the PowerApp on the page. You will be prompted to refresh the browser in order to see the embedded PowerApp.

Read More: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/unified-operations/fin-and-ops/get-started/embed-power-apps

Videos for Finance and Operations

This page lists Microsoft-created "how-to" and Tech talk videos relating to Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations that are available on YouTube and other sites.

Dynamics 365 YouTube channel

On the Microsoft Dynamics 365 YouTube channel, you can find videos created by Microsoft that demonstrate a wide range of business solutions for Dynamics 365 products. This section lists the "how-to" videos for Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations that are hosted on the channel.

Videos are listed by feature, so scroll down to see the entire list of video content.

Data integration

• Prospect to cash integration
• Synchronize a work order between Dynamics 365 for Field Service and Finance and Operations

Data management

• Use data entities and data packages in Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations

Development

• Optimization advisor
• Setting up a development branch and build
• Setting up a development machine
• Visual Studio Team Services integration with Lifecycle Services

Explore the user interface

• Add custom fields
• Embed PowerApps

Financial management

• Find the version of Report designer
• Cost control mobile workspace
• Get started with Cost accounting
• Use Excel for cost analysis

Intelligence

• Bring your own database (BYOD) to Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations

Lifecycle Services (LCS)

• Asset library in Lifecycle Services
• Cloud-hosted environments
• Creating support tickets from Dynamics 365 for Operations
• Deploying environments
• Getting started with Lifecycle Services
• Deploying code to a sandbox environment
• Deploying code to a production environment
• Implementation projects in Lifecycle Services
• Manage the code upgrade and tool process in Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations
• Managing business process libraries in Lifecycle Services
• Methodologies in Lifecycle Services
• Request a Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations production environment
• Refreshing data in a production environment
• Uptake a new Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations platform release after Platform update 3
• Use telemetry to monitor key performance counters in Dynamics Lifecycle Services

Office integration

• Create an Excel template for header and line patterns in Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations

Organization administration

• Document management

Procurement and sourcing

• Approve purchase orders on a mobile device
• Onboard a new vendor

Production control

• Batch balancing
• Enhancements to the production order release process
• Visual scheduling with Gantt chart for production and batch orders

Warehouse management

• Release production picking to the warehouse in batch
• Use warehouse template to copy configuration

FastTrack Tech Talks

FastTrack for Dynamics 365 Tech Talks focus on providing technical depth and best practices that provide customers and partners with detailed knowledge that's specific to the subject areas. The following section lists FastTrack Tech talk recordings that are available to stream or download. You can also download a PDF copy of the presentation deck from the Tech Talk site.

Data management

• Copy into legal entity (DYN383PAL)
• Data management (DYN445PAL2)
• Reduce data import and export time using configurations (DYN315PAL)

Demo data

• Demo data packages (DYN443PAL)

Deployment

• On-premises deployment (DYN382PAL2)

Learn More: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/unified-operations/fin-and-ops/get-started/videos

Prepare for go-live

This topic describes how to prepare to go live with a Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations project by using Microsoft Dynamics Lifecycle Services (LCS).

This graphic lists the phases of the go-live process. 

The following table lists all the steps in the process, with the expected duration and who is responsible to take the action.

	Action	Duration/When	Who	Notes
1	Update Go-live date in LCS	At the latest 2-3 months in advance	Partner/Customer	The milestone dates should be kept up-to-date on an ongoing basis
2	Complete and send check list	After UAT complete	Partner/Customer	Follow instructions in FastTrack Go-live Assessment
3	Project Assessment (Fast Track Essentials)	2 business days for initial report, plus additional time for mitigation, if required	FastTrack Architect	Architect delivers assessment after checklist is received and continues review until questions are clarified and mitigations are in place, if applicable.
	Project Workshop (Fast Track)	To coordinate with architect assigned	FastTrack Architect
4	Release for production deployment	Upon successfully completed assessment	FastTrack Architect	If the production deployment request has already been submitted, deployment will start now
5	Production deployment request	Self-service	Customer	The production deployment request should only be submitted after the FastTrack Architect has finished the assessment
	Sizing	Immediate in case of automatic sizing. Could require further clarifications of the subscription estimate.	Sizing team	Automatic sizing based on subscription estimate by default, manual sizing by exception.
	Deployment	48 hours	Dynamic Service Engineering (DSE)	Status in LCS reflects the deployment progress
6	Deployable Package Installation request	Self-service	Customer	Follow the instructions in Apply a deployable package
	Package installation	Depends on number of packages, minimum 5 hours lead time and 4 hours downtime per package	Dynamic Service Engineering (DSE)
7	Database Copy from Sandbox request (if applicable)	Self-service	Customer	Must exactly follow instructions documented in Copy a Finance and Operations database from SQL Server to a production Azure SQL Database environment
	Copy database	5 hours lead time and 2 hours downtime	Dynamic Service Engineering (DSE)
8	Production ready	After all previous steps have been completed	Customer/Partner	Customer/Partner can take control of the production environment
	Cutover activities	Depends on the project	Customer/Partner
9	Go live	Depends on the project	Customer

Completing the LCS methodology

A major milestone in each implementation project is the cutover to the production environment.

To help guarantee that the production environment is used for live operations, Microsoft will provision the production instance only when the implementation is approaching the Operate phase, after the required activities in the LCS methodology are completed. For more information about the environments in your subscription, see the Licensing guide.

Customers must complete the Analysis, Design and develop, and Test phases in the LCS methodology before the Configure button that is used to request the production environment becomes available. To complete a phase in LCS, you must first complete every required step in that phase. When all the steps in a phase are completed, you can complete the whole phase. You can always reopen a phase later if you must make changes. If you require more help, see Lifecycle Services for Finance and Operations customers.

The process of completing a step has two parts:

• Do the actual work, such as a fit-gap analysis or user acceptance testing (UAT).
• Mark the corresponding step in the LCS methodology as completed.

It's good practice to complete the steps in the methodology as you make progress with the implementation. Don't wait until the last minute. Don't just click through all the steps so that you can get a production environment. It's in the customer's best interest to have a solid implementation.

UAT for your solution

During the UAT phase, you should test all the business processes that you've implemented, and any customizations that you've made, in a Sandbox: Standard Acceptance Test environment in the implementation project. To help guarantee a successful go-live, you should keep the following points in mind as you complete the UAT phase:

• Test cases cover the whole scope of requirements.
• Test by using migrated data. This data should include master data and opening balances, even if they aren't yet final.
• Test by using the correct security roles (default roles and custom roles) that are assigned to users.
• Make sure that the solution complies with any company-specific and industry-specific regulatory requirements.
• Document all features, and obtain approval and sign-off from the customer.

It isn't enough that you test in an environment that is a developer or demo topology, regardless of whether the environment is a cloud-hosted environment or a downloaded virtual hard disk (VHD). Here are the reasons:

• The topology of the Tier-1 environments differs from the topology of your production environment. It's important that you test all functionality on a Tier-2 or higher sandbox environment in the Microsoft-managed subscription. It's especially important that you test integrations, printing functionality, workflow functionality, and warehouse and retail devices in the sandbox environment.
• System performance can't be measured when you do the UAT on local virtual machines (VMs) or VMs that are privately hosted.
• To prevent delays during the cutover process, it's important that the team experience the servicing in LCS during the implementation. This servicing includes the processes of applying deployable packages, creating service requests, and moving database between environments.

FastTrack Go-live assessment

Finance and Operations customers should complete a Pre go-live review with the Microsoft FastTrack team before they request their production environment. If you aren't familiar with Microsoft FastTrack, see Microsoft FastTrack for Dynamics 365 overview.

About eight weeks before go-live, the FastTrack team will ask you to fill in a Pre go-live checklist:

• If you have 150 or more seats, and a Microsoft solution architect is assigned to your project, the solution architect will contact you.
• If you have 20–149 seats, the checklist will be sent to you from go-live@microsoft.com.

You can also download the checklist from CustomerSource.

The project manager or a key project member must complete Pre go-live checklist during the Pre go-live phase of the project. Typically, the checklist is completed four to six weeks before the proposed go-live date, when UAT is completed or almost completed.

When you've completed the Pre go-live checklist, follow one of these steps:

• If you have 20–149 seats, send the checklist to go-live@microsoft.com.
• If you have 150 or more seats, and a Microsoft solution architect is assigned to your project, send the checklist to the solution architect.

After the checklist is submitted, a Microsoft solution architect will review the project and provide an assessment that describes the potential risks, best practices, and recommendations for a successful go-live of the project. In some cases, the solution architect might highlight risk factors and ask for a mitigation plan. When the assessment is completed, the solution architect will indicate that you're ready to request the production environment in LCS.

If you request the production environment before the assessment is completed, the deployment will be put on hold until the assessment is successfully completed.

Requesting the production environment

After you've completed the Analysis, Design and develop, and Test phases in the LCS methodology, and the Go-live assessment has concluded that the project is ready, you can request your production environment.

We recommend that you select a generic user account as the Admin user of the environments that you deploy. If you use a named user account, you might not be able to access an environment if that user isn't available. Here are some scenarios where the Admin user must access an environment:

• First sign-in to any environment after initial deployment – In this case, the Admin user is the only user who can access the environment.
• First sign-in to a sandbox environment after a database refresh from the production environment – In this case, all user accounts except the Admin account are disabled.

Your production environment should be deployed to the same datacenter where your sandbox environments are deployed.

After you've signed off on the request for the production environment, Microsoft is responsible for deploying the production environment for you. The Microsoft service level agreement (SLA) for deployment of a production environment is 48 hours. The production environment can be deployed at any time within 48 hours after you submit the request, provided that your usage profile doesn't require additional information. You can view the progress of the deployment in LCS. Typically, the status of the production environment request remains Queued for a few hours before it's changed to Deploying.

When you submit the deployment request, a service request for the Microsoft Dynamics Service Engineering (DSE) team is automatically created. You can view this service request in the Service requests list in LCS. If the DSE team has questions that prevent it from deploying the production environment, it will add a comment to the service request. For example, the DSE team might ask that you update the subscription estimate or change the datacenter. In some cases, you might have to clear the sign-off from the production deployment request to make changes. You can clear the sign-off only while the status of the production environment request is Queued. To clear the sign-off, click the Queued button. The status of the request is returned to Configure. You can then make any changes that are required and sign off again.

Read More : https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/unified-operations/fin-and-ops/imp-lifecycle/prepare-go-live