Outlook 2011 configuration issue
Last week I installed Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 for Microsoft Office Outlook and encountered a peculiar issue. The installation went just fine, but when I tried to add an organization within the configuration wizard I received an error message. When I press "Test connection", it worked just fine, but when I press on OK, it keeps giving the message "The server address (URL) is not valid". To fix this, add an extra entry with the server's IP address and servername to the hosts file on your client machine located in "C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts". I ran the configuration wizard again and now the organization was added succesfully.
Remarks: This issue will most probably appear when your computer is not part of the same domain as your CRM 2011 server.
Source: http://gustafwesterlund.blogspot.com/2010/12/crm-2011-release-candidate-and.html
Extracting data from Outlook for MS CRM Data Migration
Found this interesting article on Customer Effective about various alternatives for extracting data from Outlook for import in MS Dynamics CRM. Here’s a summary:
In most situations, it is preferable to extract all Outlook data, clean/de-duplicate it in Excel or SQL Server, then import the scrubbed data in to CRM. This is sometimes easier said than done. There are several ways to do it:
- Outlook import/export wizard
- Scribe
- Copy and paste to Excel
- Microsoft Access
- CodeTwo Outlook Export
CRM 2011 Microsoft Outlook Client
Tripp Parker wrote an interesting article on the CRM Team Blog about the CRM 2011 Microsoft Outlook Client. A quick overview:
- Customizable reading pane (to show follow ups, categories and/or charts)
- View your CRM views in tabs and pin them to the tabbed area to keep them open
- Conditional formatting, follow ups, and categories on your CRM views
- Social Connector to display a contact’s social network activity (LinkedIn / Facebook) directly within your CRM views
For the exact details see: Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 ~ Living in Outlook