Deprecated APIs

This document provides the list of deprecated APIs and migration guidance for some of the deprecated APIs.

Overview

A number of APIs from Dynamics AX 2012 have been identified. The reason for the deprecation for each API varies. Most commonly, the reasons are one of the following:

• Not suited/applicable to the new client.
• Degrade performance.
• Chatty (cause lot of traffic back and forth between server and client).
• Redundant (framework automatically handles these now).

Throughout this table, under the
Reason for Deprecation heading, "the client" refers to the web client.

List of deprecated APIs

Object	Type	Name	Notes
ActionPane	Method	tabChanged	Updates to ActionPanes (or controls inside of ActionPanes) should be done based on the active row, not when the tab becomes active.
ActionPaneTab	Method	selectionChanged	Updates to ActionPaneTabs (or controls inside of ActionPaneTabs) should be done based on the active row, not when the tab becomes active.
Box	Method	yesNoTextMenu- LinkText
ComboBox	Method	getEditText	Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Redundant. Migration notes Use getText instead.
DataSet DataSetNode DataSetRun	Class		Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 with Enterprise Portal. Reason for deprecation Not applicable in the client. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
DataSourceMethodInfo DataSourceMethodInfoList	Class
DDEClient DDEServer DLL DLLFunction HDC HWnd Thread WinAPINative WinGDI	Class		Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Specific to Dynamics AX 2012 Windows client and not compatible with the client. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
DocumentManagement- Helper	Class
Form	Method	addhistory currentHistoryName currentHistoryState updateHistory	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 with address bar. Reason for deprecation Navigation model in the client has changed. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	arrange
Form	Method	controlCallingMethod
Form	Method	controlMethod- Overload controlMethod- OverloadObject	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 to register override methods. Reason for deprecation This is not a clean and recommended way to register override methods. Migration notes Use registerOverrideMethod instead.
Form	Method	copy cut paste
Form	Method	delAutoCompleteString getAutoCompleteString setAutoCompleteString	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 to set, get, and delete automatic suggestions. Reason for deprecation Specific to Dynamics AX 2012 Windows client. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	firstField
Form	Method	formOnTop	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 to manage windows and navigation. Reason for deprecation The client has a new navigation model. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	hWnd installMessageProc removeMessageProc	Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Specific to Dynamics AX 2012 Windows client and not compatible with the client. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	isPreloadedInstance	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 with preloading. Reason for deprecation Preloading is not applicable in the client. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	lastField nextField nextGroup prevField prevGroup
Form	Method	Lock lockWindowUpdate unLock	Overview These methods were used to prevent the redrawing of windows when performing a set of UI updates. Without these the window would be redrawn in response to each individual change leading to bad end-user experience and degraded performance. Reason for deprecation These methods are specific to the Windows client and are no longer needed for the client. Migration notes A code upgrade rule has been provided to remove occurrences of these APIs. You can safely remove any calls to these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	print printPreview send	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 to override the Auto Report generation for the form Reason for deprecation Microsoft 365 integration offers a better user experience in the client. The ‘Export’ function is available for the user in the Dynamics AX client forms. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	redraw resetStatusBar- BackgroundColor setStatusBar- BackgroundColor sysColorChanged	Overview Used to control styles or colors. Reason for deprecation Remove ability for developers to specify the colors via API for consistent visuals. Migration notes A code upgrade rule has been provided to remove occurrences of the redraw API. Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	reload
Form	Method	resetSize	Overview This method was used when controls were added/removed from a form causing its size to change. Without it the window might not be correctly sized to account for the added/removed controls. Reason for deprecation These methods are specific to the Windows client and are no longer needed for the client. Migration notes You can safely remove any calls to these APIs from your code.
Form	Method	resize
FormActiveXControl FormAnimateControl FormBuildActiveXControl FormBuildAnimateControl FormBuildManaged- HostControl FormBuildSegmented- EntryControl FormManagedHostControl FormSegmented- EntryControl	Class		Overview These were used to host or create various custom controls for Dynamics AX 2012. Reason for deprecation These technologies will not work with the client. Migration notes Application developers need to build replacement controls where needed using the control extensibility features.
FormControl	Method	beginDrag dragDrop dragLeave dragOver dragOverEx dragText drop dropEx dropFile endDrag	Overview Used to enable drag-and-drop scenarios in Dynamics AX 2012. Reason for deprecation Drag-and-drop scenarios are not supported in the client. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code and refactor to enable the scenarios without dependency on drag-and-drop functionality.
FormControl	Method	calcControlSize
FormControl	Method	command processBase processForm processLink processPicture processTitle	Overview Was marked for deprecation in Dynamics AX 2012. Reason for deprecation N/A Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
FormControl	Method	context showContextMenu	Overview This method was used when controls were added/removed from a form causing its size to change. Without it the window might not be correctly sized to account for the added/removed controls. Reason for deprecation These methods relied on APIs that are specific to the Windows client. Migration notes Use getContextMenuOptions and selectedMenuOptions instead.
FormControl	Method	copy cut paste
FormControl	Method	dateTextChange
FormControl	Method	editControl
FormControl	Method	hasControl- PositionOverride
FormControl	Method	helpField
FormControl	Method	hWnd	Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Specific to Dynamics AX 2012 Windows client and not compatible with the client. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
FormControl	Method	inputSearch
FormControl	Method	itemChanging
FormControl	Method	keyDown
FormControl	Method	labelMouseDblClick mouseDblClick	Overview The FormControl.labelMouseDblClick (int x, int y, int button, Boolean Ctrl, Boolean Shift) method is called when the label for a control is double-clicked. It provides the x, y co-ordinates of the mouse pointer, a Boolean to indicate which mouse button was clicked and Booleans to indicate whether the Ctrl and Shift key were pressed. The FormControl.mouseDblClick (int x, int y, int button, Boolean Ctrl, Boolean Shift) method is similar in function to the labelMouseDblClick method. The difference is that this method is called whenever there is a double-click (not just on the labels). Reason for deprecation The double-click action does not translate well to web-based application and touch-based scenarios. Additionally they might end up being chatty in many instances. Migration notes The recommended replacement for these methods is to use a button and the clicked event.
FormControl	Method	labelMousedown labelMouseup mouseDown mouseEnter mouseLeave mouseMove mouseUp	Overview Used to detect and respond to mouse events. Reason for deprecation These are not touchscreen friendly and not supported in the client. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code and refactor to enable the scenarios without dependency on mouse events.
FormControl	Method	onHScroll onVScroll
FormControl	Method	paint
FormControl	Method	prefColumnSize	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 to control width and height Reason for deprecation Not applicable in the client. Migration notes Set the width and height explicitly instead.
FormControl	Method	selectionChanging
FormControl	Method	setScrollInfo
FormControl	Method	size
FormControl	Method	updateWindow
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	AcquireFocus
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	ActiveBackCol ActiveBackColor ActiveBackColorRGB ActiveForeColor ActiveForeColorRGB AlternateRowShading BackgroundColor BackgroundColorRGB BackStyle BackStyleRGB CharacterSet ColorScheme DrawFocusRect ForegroundColor ForegroundColorRGB GridLines GridLinesStyle PromptRect	Overview Used to control styles or colors. Reason for deprecation Remove ability for developers to specify the colors via API for consistent visuals. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	AlignChild AlignChildren AlignControl Border BottomMargin BottomMarginMode ColumnSpace ColumnSpaceMode ColumnSpaceValue Left LeftMargin LeftMarginMode LeftMode RightMargin RightMarginMode SizeHeight SizeWidth TabAppearance TabAutoChange TabLayout TabMode TabPlacement Top TopMargin TopMarginMode TopMode VerticalSpacing VerticalSpacingMode VerticalSpacingValue	Overview Used to control layout. Reason for deprecation Remove ability for developers to control layout using this property to achieve a consistent layout. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code. Use styles or CSS instead.
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	AllowDocking AlwaysOnTop ArrangeGuide ArrangeWhen ContainerScroll- HorizontalOffset ContainerScroll- VerticalOffset IMEMode MaximizeBox MinimizeBox Mode NeededAccessLevel ProgressType Securable SecurityKey StatusBarStyle WindowResize	Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Specific to Dynamics AX 2012 Windows client, no longer needed. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	Bold
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	CanScroll
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	DisabledImage DisabledImageLocation DisabledResource
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	DisplayTarget HyperLinkDataSource HyperLinkMenuItem SaveFilter SaveSize	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 with Enterprise Portal Reason for deprecation Not applicable in the client. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	Font
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	FontSize
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	Frame FramePosition	Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Remove ability for developers to control frames via metadata. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	HideToolbar HorizontalScrollBarVisible Scrollbars VerticalScrollBarVisible	Overview N/A. Reason for deprecation Remove ability for developers to control scrollbars via metadata. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code.
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	ImageMode
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	ImageName
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	ImageResource
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	Italic
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelAlignment
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelBold
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelCharacterSet
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelFont
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelFontSize
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelForegroundColor LabelForegroundColorRGB
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelGuide
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelHeight LabelHeightMode LabelHeightValue
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelItalic
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelUnderline
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	LabelWidth LabelWidthMode LabelWidthValue
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	Location
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	NormalResource
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	ParentPage
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	SearchAfterInput SearchMode
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	SelectControl
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	SendExternalContext
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	ShortKey
FormControl / FormDesign	Property	Underline
FormDataRow	Class
FormDataSource	Property	autoNotify	Overview Was marked for deprecation in Dynamics AX 2012. Reason for deprecation N/A Migration notes Remove usage from your code.
FormDataSource	Method	cacheOnlyMode
FormDataSource	Method	cacheRemoveRecord
FormDataSource	Method	defaultMark
FormDataSource	Method	findRecord findValue	Usage The FormDataSource.findRecord( Common record) method finds a specific record in the data source and makes it the current record. The FormDataSource.findValue(FieldId field, str value) method find a specific value in a specific field in the data source and makes the corresponding record the current record. It uses the FormDataSource.findRecord method for this. Reason for deprecation These methods use linear searching and load a large number of records in memory and negatively impact performance. Migration notes Replace with new APIs. Replace findRecord with positionToRecord and findValue with positionToRecordByValue. New APIs do not work in some cases, most notably with Temp tables and Views. The framework will throw an exception in those cases. If replacing with new APIs is not possible, recommended replacement is to call element.args(). lookupRecord(recordToFind) Followed by FormDataSource.research(false); FormDataSource is the data source that contains the record you want to find. Passing in a “false” argument to research causes it to not retain the current position since we want to change the position to the record we found using args.lookupRecord avoids resetting sort order, ranges, etc.
FormDataSource	Method	getDataRow
FormDataSource	Method	markAllLoadedRecords
FormDataSource	Method	maxPagingRowCountValue pagingEnabled startRowIndex setPagingParameters totalNumberOfRows	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 with Enterprise Portal Reason for deprecation Not applicable in the client. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
FormDataSource	Method	print
FormDesign	Method	cssClass localWebMenu showWebHelp supportReload	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 with Enterprise Portal Reason for deprecation Not applicable in the client. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
FormObjectSetNotify	Method	onPaging- ParametersChanged
FormObjectSetPaging- ParamsChangedEvtArgs	Class
Global xInfo	Method	endLengthyOperation startLengthyOperation	Overview These methods were used to show/stop showing a progress indicator during long running operations. Reason for deprecation In the client, the system automatically takes care of showing/hiding the progress indicator and calls to these APIs are not needed. Migration notes You can safely remove any calls to these APIs from your code.
Image	Method	captureScreen captureWindow clipboardCopy clipboardPaste crop displayImage displayOrign exportBitmap flip getImageDimensionUnits getPixel height imageInfo imageSpotlight promoteColor reduceColorOctree resize rotate saveImage saveType transparent width
ListPage Page	Method	activeActionPane- TabNames	Overview This method was used to find the active action pane tab. Reason for deprecation In the client, Action Pane tabs are handled client-side only, the server is not aware of the state. Migration notes Remove usage of this API from your code.
MessageWin	Class
Object	Method	notify notifyAll wait	Overview Used to block and wait for an interaction/operation and notify to unblock. Reason for deprecation These calls are deprecated for all objects except formRun and it’s derivatives. Migration notes Calls to these APIs from formRun or it’s derivatives are allowed. Calls to these APIs from any other object should be removed.
Object	Method	objectOnServer	Overview Used to determine whether an object is on the server. Reason for deprecation This is redundant and no longer required because all objects are on the server. Migration notes You can safely remove calls to these APIs from you code. It will always evaluate to true.
Object	Method	setTimeOut	Overview This method existed on Object, but was non-functional. The implementation on FormRun was used as a timer to delay the execution of a piece of logic. Reason for deprecation The browser based client no longer supported this implementation. Migration notes Use the new setTimeOutEx method on the FormRun instead. Note that the setTimeOutEx method expects the callback to accept a parameter of type AsyncTaskResult, example: myCallBack(AsyncTaskResult result).
PopupMenu	Class		Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 to get splitters that let users change the size of the two parts that are split. Reason for deprecation Relied on APIs that are specific to the Dynamics AX 2012 Windows Client and cannot be used with the client. Migration notes Use ContextMenu instead.
SysExcel	Class		Overview The SysExcel classes used COM to create and edit Excel workbooks. Reason for deprecation SysExcel relied on calls to Excel COM objects from the client. Those COM objects are not on the server and COM calls are highly discouraged going forward. Migration notes Use the OpenXML .NET framework APIs instead. We are investigating the creation of an assembly that wraps OpenXML to make it easier to call from X++.
SysINetMai SysMailer SmmOutlook	Class		Overview These email related classes used predominantly client-side technologies that are no longer available and/or are highly discouraged. Reason for deprecation The SysINetMail class is being deprecated because it used client-side MAPI. The SysMailer class is being deprecated because it used CDO (a variant of OLE messaging). The classes beginning with SmmOutlook are being deprecated since they use Outlook COM objects. Migration notes Sending email via SMTP using the SysMailerNet class will be supported going forward. We are also actively working on client-side interactive email capabilities.
SysFormSplitter	Class		Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 to get splitters that let users change the size of the two parts that are split. Reason for deprecation No longer needed in the client. Migration notes Controls automatically provide the functionality. You can safely remove any calls to these APIs from your code. A code upgrade rule may be created in the future to automatically remove the usage.
SysListPageHelper	Class
SysSetupFormRun	Class		Overview Used to by classes to indirectly extend FormRun. Reason for deprecation Has been merged with FormRun class. Migration notes Use the FormRun class instead.
TextBuffer	Method	fromFile	Use the .NET StreamReader class instead.
TextBuffer	Method	toFile	Use the .NET StreamWriter class instead.
Thread	Class		Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Specific to Dynamics AX 2012 Windows client and not compatible with the client. Migration notes Consider replacing with the new runAsync method or remove usage of these APIs from your code.
WinAPI	Class		Overview N/A Reason for deprecation Specific to Dynamics AX 2012 Windows client and not compatible with the client. Migration notes Remove usage of these APIs from your code. Replace file access APIs, such as WinAPI::getTempPath, WinAPI::fileExists, with the new file APIs.
WinAPIServer	Method	cryptProtectData cryptUnprotectData	Overview The WinAPIServer::cryptProtectData( CryptoBlob _unEncryptedDataBlob) and WinAPIServer::cryptUnProtectData( CryptoBlob _encryptedDataBlob) methods were used to encrypt and decrypt sensitive data. Reason for deprecation These methods are best suited to desktop usage and not recommended for web-based application usage. They also have a negative impact on performance. Migration notes Use the .NET framework APIs and well-known hashing/security algorithms instead.
xApplication	Method	runAsync	Overview In Dynamics AX 2012 the xApplication::runAsync method was used to make asynchronous calls to methods. Reason for deprecation Replaced with methods better suited to the client. Migration notes Use runAsync methods on the Global or FormRun classes instead. These new versions of runAsync enable the caller to make an async call to a static X++ class method. They leverage the .NET System.Threading.Tasks library to execute an async method in X++. The use of the System.Threading.Tasks.Task type allows the developer to take advantage of the rich set of features available in .NET.
xGlobal	Method	clientKind	Overview Most commonly used to detect presence of client, such as an interactive session. Reason for deprecation Replaced with a method better suited to the client. Migration notes Use global::hasGUI method instead.
xGlobal	Method	computerName
xGlobal	Method	forceFormPreload	Overview Used in Dynamics AX 2012 with preloading. Reason for deprecation Preloading is not applicable in the client. Migration notes Remove calls to these APIs from your code.
xGlobal	Method	terminalServer
xInfo	Method	directory
xInfo	Method	navPane
XmlDocument	Method	LoadSave
XmlWriter	Method	CreateNewFile
XppCompiler	Class