How the transition will affect users of CRM Online

On July 19th, 2012 Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online on-boarded to a new administration portal and billing platform. Together the portal and billing platform are referred to as the Microsoft online services environment. This environment is designed to streamline and improve the customer experience across all Microsoft online services. It enables customers to manage their Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online and Office 365 subscriptions from one location and also delivers enhanced regulatory and industry compliance.

Prior to the introduction of this environment, customers who created a subscription using Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online used a different administration portal and billing platform. For the purposes of this article, this legacy platform will be referred to as CTP (Commerce Transaction Platform). This original platform for the service will be decommissioned in the Q4 2013 timeframe, and customers will be moved to Microsoft’s standard administration, billing and provisioning environment for cloud services (the Microsoft online services environment).

I often get asked about the transition experience for customers transitioning from the CTP platform to the Microsoft online services environment.

On the CTP platform users logged into CRM Online using their LiveID credentials, whereas users logging into the Microsoft online services environment are using a different set of credentials - the Microsoft Online Services ID, the unique ID that is required to administer or use Microsoft online services. The Microsoft online services ID can be created when you try or buy a Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online or Office 365 plan for the first time. Alternatively, an administrator creates a new ID when creating a new user.

So how will the transition affect your users of CRM Online

1. Once transitioned users will need to input their new cloud managed credentials when logging on to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online. Each customer is encouraged to create a communication plan ensuring that each user has received a communication telling them what their new user name and password will be prior to the transition.
2. If your users access Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online using the Outlook client and experience logon difficulties even after inputting the correct cloud managed credentials or federated IDs then they may need to run the Outlook Configuration wizard to set the Server URL to “CRM Online”.

To read more on the topic of credentials and much more on the transition itself you can download the Transition Guide here

See also

• Transition Center (automated) - link

Comments

• Anonymous
  November 26, 2013
  Any plans to allow companies to use their email address for login names?  Moving to a proprietary login format will impact user adoption of using CRM.  Having another unique cloud username/password is a real challenge with users.