Dilip's blog on DYNAMICS AX

Troubleshooting Batch Client error ClrObject static method invocation error System.Reflection.TargetInvocationException Exception has been thrown by the target of an invocation

2012-01-28T02:12:00.000-08:00

Recently, we shifted our Dynamics AX 4.0 Batch Clients from a Server box to Windows 7 Client. After the move, all other batches were running successfully except this batch which has some custom code to do FTP transmission and then move the files to a different directory

Error:

The batch Client was showing this error “ClrObject static method invocation error” and the inner exception revealed the below detailed error

System.Reflection.TargetInvocationException: Exception has been thrown by the target of an invocation. ---> System.IO.IOException: The process cannot access the file because it is being used by another process.
at System.IO.__Error.WinIOError(Int32 errorCode, String maybeFullPath)
at System.IO.__Error.WinIOError()
at System.IO.File.Move(String sourceFileName, String destFileName)
--- End of inner exception stack trace ---
at System.RuntimeMethodHandle._InvokeMethodFast(Object target, Object[] arguments, SignatureStruct& sig, MethodAttributes methodAttributes, RuntimeTypeHandle typeOwner)
at System.RuntimeMethodHandle.InvokeMethodFast(Object target, Object[] arguments, Signature sig, MethodAttributes methodAttributes, RuntimeTypeHandle typeOwner)
at System.Reflection.RuntimeMethodInfo.Invoke(Object obj, BindingFlags invokeAttr, Binder binder, Object[] parameters, CultureInfo culture, Boolean skipVisibilityChecks)
at System.Refle! ction.RuntimeMethodInfo.Invoke(Object obj, BindingFlags invokeAttr, Binder binder, Object[] parameters, CultureInfo culture)
at ClrBridgeImpl.InvokeClrStaticMethod(ClrBridgeImpl* , Char* pszClassName, Char* pszMethodName, Char* assemblyName, Int32 argsLength, ObjectWrapper** arguments, Boolean* isException)

Troubleshooting Steps:

Tried Restarting Batch Client box and AOS Service but without any luck.

Solution:

As the issue was with the FTP batch job and all other batches were working fine, we tried introducing sleep method with 10 secs of delay before the file move process kicked in. Still didn’t work, increased the delay interval for a further of 60 secs and now the batch started working again.

Microsoft Dynamics Salary Survey 2012

2012-01-25T03:43:00.000-08:00

Nigel Frank is conducting it's annual Microsoft Dynamics salary survey for 2012 (Across the globe). Please read more about it...http://dynamicserphub.com/blog/?p=6

It's a quick survey which you can expect to complete in 5-10 mins time.

Register for Free Webcast on Dynamics AX 2012 Model Driven Layered Architecture Overview

2012-01-19T21:16:00.000-08:00

Register below by clicking the Link:

Microsoft Dynamics Webcast: Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Model Driven Layered Architecture Overview (Level 100)

EventID:1032501357

Starts:Wednesday, January 25, 2012 10:00 AM

Time zone: (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)

Duration: 1 hour(s)

Language(s): English.

Product(s): Microsoft Dynamics Existing Customer Portal.

Audience(s): Non-Tech Influencing BDM.

During this webcast we will look at the Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Model Driven Architecture and explain how it will accelerate the application development process for our partners and customers by enabling them to build solutions more quickly and increasing their time to value. After attending this webcast you’ll have a better understanding how our Model Driven Architecture provides Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 customers the ability to effectively manage the application lifecycle and decrease their total cost of ownership.

Presenter: Arijit Basu, Senior Solutions Architect, Microsoft Corporation

Download WhitePaper on Dynamics AX 2012 Data Upgrade Best Practices

2012-01-11T10:56:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

Wish you all a Very Happy 2012 and hope you had a good break!

Microsoft has released a whitepaper on best practices during Data Upgrade - http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=28701&WT.mc_id=rss_alldownloads_all

The following topics are discussed in the whitepaper:

Analyzing customizations
Purging and archiving data with the Intelligent Data Management Framework
Analyzing space requirements for databases
Creating project plans for testing
Recommended upgrade process
Preparing the source database
Preparing the source AOS instance
Using the state transfer tool
Preparing the target database
Preparing the target AOS instance

Issue Installing Intelligent Data Management Framework

2011-12-27T18:27:00.000-08:00

Correction:

Update from the MS Folks - The correct link to download IDMF Installation and Admin Doc is http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=16111

Sorry, I had a wrong install document which was bunded with Dynamics AX 2012 Upgrade Docs (in which the below AxSummationProject.xpo is mentioned. With the new installation doc, this step is no longer required.

Thought to share with you an issue which I'm facing while Installing IDMF (Intelligent Data Management Framework)

Last week I downloaded Intelligent Management Framework from the below link in CustomerSource

https://mbs.microsoft.com/customersource/downloads/servicepacks/ax_idmf.htm

I followed the Installation manual which comes with the download. There's a section in it which mentions about "Manually Running the Post-installation tasks"

If you go to Step 7 in that Section, you will find instruction to import Summation Xpo.

But, the issue here is you won't be able to find the xpo's anywhere in the location mentioned above. I did a search for the xpo's in my entire hard drive with no luck. Later on, I tried to examine the msi contents by extracting the msi file which I posted here and to my surprise, the .msi package is the culprit as there's no AxSummationProject.xpo in the XPO folder.

Anybody else facing this issue while installing IDMF, please drop a line? I have reported this issue to Microsoft via "Give Feedback" link.

Meanwhile, I was lucky to have an old copy of IDMF setup which I downloaded last year :) and it has the AXSummationProject.xpo which is missing from the current one.

I will be soon write a blog post on how I went with the installation and setup of IDMF. Watch this space!

Greetings of the Season!!

2011-12-22T19:24:00.000-08:00

Dear All,

Wishing each one of You a Merry Xmas and a Happy and Healthy 2012. Njoi!!! :-)

Tip - How to extract files from msi package via command-line

2011-12-21T03:15:00.000-08:00

I had a requirement to extract files from a .msi setup to a local folder, i.e. without running the installer, I found this blog post useful for my purpose

The command is:

msiexec /a msifilepath /qn TARGETDIR=TargetDirectoryPath

Note:

/a represents administrative purpose
/qn displays no user interface

The blog post above uses /qb as the second switch for extraction to target directory but In my case, I used a different switch /qn
/qb displays basic user interface whereas use /qn if you don't want any UI.

You can find more about the command and the switches here
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc759262(WS.10).aspx

How to Install and Configure Dynamics AX 2012 SCOM Pack

2011-12-19T00:00:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends, This is a sequel to my earlier post on Configuring Dynamics AX 2009 MOM Pack.

In this post, I will be covering the steps involved in Installing and configuring Dynamics AX SCOM Pack for monitoring Dynamics AX 2012 Instances.

Introduction:

Monitoring Microsoft Dynamics AX with Operations Manager can reduce the cost of managing a distributed Microsoft Dynamics AX system. Operators and administrators can view information about all Application Object Server (AOS) instances in the environment, take AOS servers offline for maintenance, and troubleshoot problems with AOS instances.

The Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 enables administrators to proactively react to changes in the overall health of the Microsoft Dynamics AX environment, and to adjust the system for optimal performance and reliability

Pre-Requisites:

a. Install SCOM 2007

b. Download and Install Mointoring Pack for Dynamics AX 2012

c. Also you need to install and setup Dynamics AX 2012, AOS, AIF, EP (Different Components which you want to monitor)

d. Windows Powershell should be installed (By default this comes with Windows Server 2008)

Steps to Import Management Pack:

1.Once you have downloaded, the msi for SCOM Pack, Run it to install it. It will prompt for location to
extract the setup files

2. Import the Management Pack

3. Select all Mp’s here (as per below screenshot) The following management packs are available for Dynamics AX:

· Microsoft.Dynamics.AX6.ManagementPack.AIF.Monitoring.mp – Monitors AIF

· Microsoft.Dynamics.AX6.ManagementPack.AOS.Discovery.mp – Monitors and Discovers AOS Rules

· Microsoft.Dynamics.AX6.ManagementPack.AOS.Monitoring.mp – Monitors servers running AOS

· Microsoft.Dynamics.AX6.ManagementPack.ClassLibrary.mp – Common Classes

· Microsoft.Dynamics.AX6.ManagementPack.EP.Monitoring.mp – Monitors EP

· Microsoft.Dynamics.AX6.ManagementPack.SSRS.Monitoring.mp – Monitors SSRS

4. Run the Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Discovery Wizard, and select the computer where Microsoft Dynamics AX components are installed. Agents will be deployed to the appropriate computers as they are discovered. :

· AOS

· Enterprise Portal for Microsoft Dynamics AX

· SQL Server Reporting Services

· SQL Server Analysis Services

Key Monitoring Scenarios

AOS Monitoring

- Tasks

- Events

- Performance counters

- User sessions,

- Environment availability.

Tasks

Tasks enable you to work with AOS instances directly, without having to move work in Microsoft Dynamics AX. You can use tasks to manage and monitor settings for the AOS instances on a server.

To access tasks:

In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, click Application Object Servers, and then click Instances.

The available tasks are shown in the tasks pane on the right, and include:

· Accept or reject client sessions

· Start or stop the service

· Set the startup type

· View online users

These are some cool features present in the current SCOM Pack, you need not visit AX Client to see online users and accept or reject new client sessions, It can be done staying in SCOM Console

Note: The View online users task is also available as part of Environment health. It reports all online users from all AOS instances in an environment.

Events

The management pack collects only the most important events generated on the AOS server. It monitors whether the AOS Service has been stopped and also whether the AOS service is configured properly. Most informational events are not collected.

To see the events that were collected:

In the Authoring pane, click Rules, and then in the Look for box, enter Dynamics.

Performance Counters

The performance counters that are monitored for Microsoft Dynamics AX processes are a subset of those available for monitoring Windows services.

To view AOS counters:

In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, click Application Object Servers, click Performance, and then click Process.

User Sessions

A count of the active user sessions is available.

To view the active user sessions:

In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, click Application Object Servers, click Performance, and then click Session.

To retrieve a list of the users that are currently connected, use the View online users task for an AOS instance

Environment Information and Availability

The management pack provides functionality to perform some monitoring to determine whether an environment is accessible to remote clients. This includes the following checks:

· Whether the RPC port is accessible

· Whether the Web services port is accessible

· Whether connections to the AOS are successful

These monitors, in conjunction with the AOS service availability checks, enable you to quickly identify a problem when encountering connection issues for an AOS.

Note: In order for the environment discovery to work, the Microsoft Dynamics AX database server must be available.

To view the servers that are hosting AOS instances:

In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, click Application Object Servers (AOS), and then click Computers.

To view AOS instances:

In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, click Application Object Servers (AOS), and then click Instances.

Note: If an AOS instance has been uninstalled, it is not removed from the Microsoft Dynamics AX tables and will continue to be displayed in the environment view in Operations Manager. To remove the AOS instance, use SQL Server Management Studio to remove all references to the instance from the following tables in the Microsoft Dynamics AX database:

· SysServerConfig

· SysServerSessions

· SysClusterConfig

Enterprise Portal

Servers that are running Enterprise Portal are automatically discovered by the management pack. These servers are monitored for events and performance counters. The following views are available for the Enterprise Portal:

· Alerts – Lists all the alerts that were generated as a result of monitoring on the server that is running Enterprise Portal.

· Enterprise Portal Computers – Lists all computers where Enterprise Portal has been installed.

· Enterprise Portal Sites – Lists the Enterprise Portal sites that have been discovered. The management pack monitors the configuration and availability of the Enterprise Portal site.

· Events – Lists the Microsoft Dynamics AX events that were generated on the server that is running Enterprise Portal.

· Performance – Lists the Enterprise Portal performance counters from the server that is running Enterprise Portal.

Notes:

· The performance counters for Enterprise Portal are per website, not per server. The counters will return a row of data for each website on a server.

· By design, uninstalling Enterprise Portal does not remove the Enterprise Portal site information from Microsoft Dynamics AX. Until a site has been deleted from within Microsoft Dynamics AX, it will remain visible to the management pack monitoring system.

SQL Server Reporting Services

The management pack provides functionality to automatically discover all the servers that are running SQL Server Reporting Services and that have been configured for use with Microsoft Dynamics AX. The configuration of the Reporting Services service and accounts are also monitored.

Note: By design, uninstalling the Reporting Services extensions does not remove the Reporting Services site information from Microsoft Dynamics AX. Until a site has been deleted from within Microsoft Dynamics AX, it will remain visible to the management pack monitoring system.

SQL Server Analysis Services

The management pack provides functionality to automatically discover all the servers that are running SQL Server Analysis Services and that have been configured for use with Microsoft Dynamics AX.

Note: Once the servers running Analysis Services have been discovered, no further monitoring is performed.

Application Integration Framework

The management pack collects the number of active Application Integration Framework requests and exceptions, as well as monitoring requests that have been pending for longer than the specified interval.

The management pack collects and displays health and performance information about Application Integration requests and exceptions.

Health Monitors

The management pack provides the following general health monitors for jobs:

Long waiting requests – Identifies tasks that have taken longer than the configured threshold to complete.

To view the general health monitors:

1. In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX, click Frameworks, and then click Application Integration Framework Health.

2. Double-click an instance to open the Health Explorer for Application Integration Framework.

Performance Counters

The management pack also collects and displays information about the following under Application Integration Framework Performance:

· Exceptions that throw warnings and errors

· Inbound requests

To view a count of incoming requests and exceptions:

1. In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, click Frameworks, and then click Application Integration Framework Performance.

2. Click the checkbox next to a performance counter to add it to the chart view.

Batch Framework

The management pack collects and displays health and performance information about batch jobs and tasks.

Health Monitors

The management pack provides the following general health monitors for jobs:

· Long executing batch tasks – Identifies tasks that have taken longer than the configured threshold to complete.

· Long waiting batch jobs – Identifies jobs that have a status of ready that have been waiting more than 30 minutes to run.

· Failed batch jobs – Identifies all jobs that have failed.

To view the general health monitors:

1. In the Monitoring pane, click Frameworks, and then click Batch Framework Health.

2. Double-click an instance to open the Health Explorer for Batch Framework.

3. Click a link in the Task pane to view a list of batch jobs or tasks.

Performance Counters

The management pack also collects and displays the number of batch jobs and tasks under Batch Framework Performance, aggregated by the following states:

· Canceled

· Failed

· Waiting

· Running

To view a count of jobs and tasks by state:

1. In the Monitoring pane, click Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, click Frameworks, and then click Batch Framework Performance

2. Click the checkbox next to a performance counter to add it to the chart view.

Dynamics AX 2012 Upgrade Q&A Update

2011-12-18T00:18:00.000-08:00

Couple of months ago, Microsoft Dynamics Community had come out with a great initiative to offer help on Dynamics AX 2012 Upgrade Queries, I had a blog post covering the Q&A link http://daxdilip.blogspot.com/2011/10/dynamics-ax-2012-upgrade-q-link-on.html

Thanks to Andy for inviting me to be part of the Expert panel which involves Brandon, Joris and few other well known active bloggers in Dynamics AX space.

I have tried to answer some of the questions to the best of my knowledge. Andy has recently published out the Q & A here. I know some of the questions might involve more discussions as it's sometimes very difficult to answer without knowing the environment and issue in depth.

Brandon has a post covering the Q & A session in his blog as well http://dynamics-ax.blogspot.com/2011/12/ax-2012-upgrade-questions-answered.html

Looking forward to more such initiatives in Dynamics AX space and Thanks again to Andy and Brandon for inviting me to be part of the panel.

Installing Dynamics AX 2012 on SQL Server 2011/2012 Denali CTP 3

2011-12-12T21:38:00.000-08:00

This post was sitting in my drafts box for a while now, so thought to flush it out :-)

Few months ago, out of curiousity, I had installed SQL Server 2011 "Denali" CTP3 (now called SQL Server 2012) on my local box

Yes, you can have a side-by-side install, In my case I have SQL Server 2008 along with "Denali".

The next step was to try out and see if Dynamics AX 2012 can run on it. Although, Dynamics AX 2012 Setup/Installer complains about the new version, but there's a workaround to set this up.

- Backup the existing AX 2012 database (Baseline and Transactional db's) from SQL Server 2008
- Restore the db onto SQL Server 2012 "Denali"
- Install a new AOS and make it point to the restored DB

And, now your Dynamics AX 2012 is ready and up on SQL Server 2012 :-)

If you are interested to know "What's New in SQL Server 2012" maybe you can have a look at the below links or just "google" it.

http://www.windowsitpro.com/article/sqlserverdenali/sql-server-denali-new-features-140115

http://www.windowsitpro.com/article/sqlserverdenali/sql-server-denali-new-features-140115

I will be exploring the new features of SQL 2012 as and when I get time, I will do some posting on how Dynamics AX can leverage the new and improved features in SQL Server 2012.

Till then, Njoi :-)

Tip str2CapitalWord function to convert string into TitleCase

2011-12-07T21:42:00.001-08:00

We have some custom export routines written in our solution which ftp's .csv file from AX. Now, the target system needed one of the column names in TitleCase.

Solution:

In my previous experience, I have used strUpr and strLwr functions in AX, but never had a requirement to convert something into TitleCase, Initially, for a quick workaround, I used Proper function in Excel to convert the column into TitleCase. But, the right way to fix was in the source program. so as soon as I got some time did bit of digging in AX standard functions and found out we have 2 functions:

1. str2Capital

This function just converts the first letter of the word as UpperCase so didn't match my requirements e.g.

Input String : "new south wales"

Output String: print str2Capital("new south wales") returns New south wales

2. str2CapitalWord

This function was exactly what I was looking for. It converts the first letter of each word in the sentence to

uppercase.

Input String: "new south wales"

Output String: "New South Wales"

How to Virtualize Dynamics AX 2012 Client using App-V

2011-12-05T16:01:00.001-08:00

Thought to share this well written detailed step by step blog post by one of the msdn folks on Virtualizing Dynamics AX 2012 client using Microsoft App-V software. An interesting read!

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/axsupport/archive/2011/12/01/virtualize-the-microsoft-dynamics-ax-2012-client-using-microsoft-application-virtualization-4-6-service-pack-1.aspx

Tip - How to write to utf-8 encoding format using CommaTextIo Class

2011-11-29T21:09:00.000-08:00

A few months back, I had written a basic post on How to export csv data from AX using CommaTextIO Class

Now, we had a requirement to output the file in utf-8 encoding format and the credit for this post goes to Super Mario (Read below to find who Super Mario is ;-) ..) for his tip which I'm sharing with you all.

Tip/Solution:

The UTF-8 encoding was achieved by using an additional parameter while calling the constructor for CommaTextIO class.The 3^rd(optional) parameter is the codepage integer value. It was achieved as per below:

commaTextIo = new CommaTextIo(fileitemdata,#io_write, 65001);

65001 is the Codepage identifier for utf-8

What's interesting in Dynamics AX 2012 for UTF-8:

I was curious to know how UTF-8 is implemented in the new version of Dynamics AX 2012 and did a search at the AOT Level, found that now we have a placeholder for UTF-8 format in AOT > Macros > File

I compared the File Macro in AX 2009 and AX 2012, in AX 2009 there’s no macro for utf-8 but in AX 2012, we have a declaration for it in Macros > File

UTF-8 Format

#define.utf8Format (65001)

But surprisingly it's not used anywhere for e.g. if you see the EditorScripts Class in Dynamics AX 2012, it still uses the literal value 65001 and not the Macro which is defined above.

public void sendTo_file(Editor e)

{

Filename filename;

TextIo io;

int i = strFind(e.path(), '\\', strLen(e.path()), -strLen(e.path()));

str defaultName = subStr(e.path(), i+1, strLen(e.path()));

;

filename = WinAPI::getSaveFileName(0, ['Text','*.txt'], '', "@SYS56237", 'txt', defaultName );

if (filename)

{

// BP deviation documented

io = new TextIo(filename, 'W', 65001); // Write the file in UTF8

io.write(EditorScripts::getSelectedText(e));

}

I extended our current File Macro by including the following utf encoding declarations under Macros > File for our future reference.

UTF Encoding Format

#define.utf7Format (65000)

#define.utf8Format (65001)

#define.utf16Format (1200)

#define.utf32format (12000)

#define.usascii (20127)

Below MSDN link has the definitions of all the codepage values if you are interested.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd317756(VS.85).aspx

Ok Ok... I know you have reached here and still wondering who is Super Mario .. :-) He's my boss who is a techie himself. :-)

Tip - How to get a blank InventDimId out

2011-11-23T21:56:00.001-08:00

Today, while writing a QueryRange, I had to pass a blank InventDimid. Initially, to make life easier ;-). I just put "BLANK".

Then, just did a bit of search and found that InventDim has a static method inventDimIdBlank which was exactly what I required. It returns "AllBlank". Many of you guys might be knowing this one, but just for the ignorant out there (including me) :-) this is a handy tip

InventDim::inventDimIdBlank()

Tip - How to Retrieve AOS Instance name in Dynamics AX via X++ Code

2011-11-23T21:33:00.001-08:00

One of my mates asked me how to retreive AOS Instance name through code. My first impression was that it should be somewhere in the Global Class. But, soon figured out I was wrong, then I jumped into Session Class which has a static method getAOSInstance() which retreives the instance number

The requirement here was to extract the instance name. Suddenly, it striked me, that in standard AX in Administration > Online Users form, the last column shows the AOS instance name.

So, the next step was to go through AOT > Forms > SysOnlineUsers > display method getAOSInstanceName() - here the key is serverSessions.aosId and serverSessions.Instance_Name - combination of both will give you the aos instance.

//BP Deviation documented
display ServerId getAOSInstanceName(SysServerSessions serverSessions)
{
    ServerId            sid = '';
    str                 aosId, machineName, instanceName;
    int                 pos;
    #DEFINE.ATSYMBOL('@')
    ;
    aosId = serverSessions.aosId;
    instanceName = serverSessions.Instance_Name;    pos = strfind(aosId, #ATSYMBOL, 1, strlen(aosId));
    machineName = substr(aosId, 1, pos-1);
    sid = instanceName + '@' + machineName;
    return sid;
}

Sometimes Googling within AX helps  Njoi ;-)

Dynamics AX Product LifeCycle - Some Key Support Dates

2011-11-22T18:25:00.001-08:00

http://support.microsoft.com/lifecycle/search/Default.aspx?sort=PN&alpha=Dynamics%20AX

Above is a good link to be bookmarked, specially if you are interested to know the Support End dates for the Dynamics AX Versions released till date.

Tip - Dynamics AX Client and Run as different user in Windows 7 64 bit

2011-11-22T02:49:00.000-08:00

I wanted to do some User Permissions testing using Dynamics AX Client with different users using Run As Option. i.e. Right-Clicking the client and then bringing up the Windows challenge dialog wherein one can put the user name and password shown below

In previous versions of Windows, when you right-click it will bring up the Run as and you can put the user name and password, but with Windows 7, When you Right-Click it just shows "Run as Administrator"

If you need to "Run as different user" then you need to hold the SHIFT button and then Right-Click AX Client.

Learn more about the tip here http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/run-as-different-user-option-inbuilt-windows-7/

Register for Rapid Start Services in Dynamics AX 2012

2011-11-20T21:04:00.000-08:00

Regsiter for Rapid Start Services in Dynamics AX 2012

Extracted from Kevin's blog below:

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/dynpartnercommunity/archive/2011/11/07/rapidstart-services-for-microsoft-dynamics-ax-2012-partner-web-seminar.aspx

RapidStart Services is a configuration and setup cloud service from Microsoft that allows a fast and easy way to configure and deploy Microsoft Dynamics AX business processes and scenarios. The core benefits for you as our partner would be:

Fast / easy setup of demos and proof of Concepts
Repeatable and reusable templates allowing differentiation
Better collaboration with customers
Structured approach to implementation process
Allows Senior Consultants to focus on high-value adds
Allows Junior Consultants to go further and learn

This training takes place on Tuesday, November 29 at 11:00AM PT. Register today on the Partner Learning Center.

Download WhitePaper on Credit Card Integration in Dynamics AX 2012

2011-11-20T10:27:00.001-08:00

Thought to share with you, the latest whitepaper on Credit Card Processing in Dynamics AX 2012. At a high level, it shows how to setup Credit Card for AX 2012 which integrates with Dynamics ERP - Payment Services provider.

This whitepaper would serve beneficial for those who are planning to implement Credit Card integration with Dynamics AX 2012. Also, Microsoft has a hotfix for Dynamics AX 2009 which is mentioned in the whitepaper.

Some Features:

- Setup Credit Card Processing from a Development perspective
- Automate the process of Authorizing Credit Card amount at the time of order
- Set up Payment Services Providers
- Demo setup
- Dynamics AX 2012 Supports VISA, Master Card, American Express and Discover
- Terms of Payment form modified to cater Credit Card Setup
- New Credit Card Wizard from Customers and Sales Order Form
- Payment Services DLL Reference (from a technical standpoint)
- Credit Card Data Security using TPF (Table Permissions Framework)
- Hotfix for Dynamics AX 2009 to transition to Payment Services Provider Framework

To read in-depth, Please download the whitepaper from this link WhitePaper on Credit Card Processing

How to Configure Kerberos Authentication for SQL and MOSS

2011-11-14T03:44:00.000-08:00

Apart from AX, In my current role, I have been extensively working on MOSS/Sharepoint Administration and Troubleshooting, Configuring Kerberos Authentication for SQL, MOSS Server and SSRS, Planning for Disaster Recovery, Troubleshooting SSRS.

This post is on my experience on setting up Kerberos for our standalone MOSS, SQL and SSRS Servers and troubleshooting IIS for Kerberos.

Server Farm Topology

TEST-DEV2 Server: MOSS Server 2007 Farm (Primary) – Central Administration, IIS

TEST-DEV1 Server:

a. SQL Server 2008 Database Engine, SSRS 2008 (Sharepoint Integrated Mode)

b. MOSS WFE (Web Front End Part of Server Farm configured on TEST-DEV1)

Setup Kerberos for SQL Server (TEST-DEV1)

Before we setup Kerberos for Sharepoint Server, we need to configure SQL for Kerberos

a. Register SPN’s for SQL Server Service (one with NETBIOS and other with FQDN) as shown below

Setspn -a http/<computer-name>.<domain-name>:<port> <domain-user-account>

Setspn Command line Reference - http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb735885.aspx

Test the connectivity on SQL Server is via Kerberos and not NTLM

Logon to SSMS (staying in the same box) and fire the below SQL, if SPN’s are properly setup, then you should see KERBEROS in auth_scheme field.

Another way to test if Kerberos is being used as Authentication scheme is to bring up Central Administration site and now go back to TEST-DEV1 (the host box where SQL is running). Bring up the Event Viewer (check Security tab)

In the Security Log, you should be able to see Success audit record for Logon/Logoff category event

Check the Detailed Authentication information and should be able to see the Login mechanism as Kerberos which confirms our test that MOSS is communicating with SQL via Kerberos

Setup Kerberos for MOSS Server (TEST-DEV2)

Browse to Central Administration website and confirm by going to the Event Viewer of the hostmachine in Security log, (similar to the steps we performed for SQL) that the authentication package here is Kerberos

TROUBLESHOOTING:

Troubleshooting IIS Authentication HTTP Error 401 after Kerberos is setup for MOSS Server Farm

Note: If you are running IIS 7.0 server in a Web farm the KDC will not know in advance which individual server the request may go to and hence ticket decryption may fail

Bring up IIS Manager, Go to each of your websites and turn off the Kernel Mode Authentication under Windows Authentication Advanced Settings option

Let Kernel mode authentication be enabled and the Application pool's identity be used for Kerberos ticket decryption. The only thing you need to do here is:

1. Run the Application pool under a common custom domain account.

2. Add this attribute "useAppPoolCredentials" in the ApplicationHost.config file.

<system.webServer>

</authentication>

</security>

</system.webServer>

Remember there is no GUI setting for this. You need to modify the ApplicationHost.config file from

<%SystemDrive%>/Windows/System32/inetsrv/config folder on the IIS 7.0 machine.

Note:
Tried both the options but Option A works fine with Option B, there’s this frequent system crash as I reckon it’s changing the applicationhost.config file settings. Need to check this behaviour in Production Server as Option B is more performance friendly and recommended approach

Configuring Kerberos for SSRS (running in Sharepoint Integrated Mode):

Setspn -a http/<computer-name>.<domain-name>:<port> <domain-user-account>

Reference - http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc281382.aspx

Open the RsReportServer.config file and locate the <AuthenticationTypes> section. Add <RSWindowsNegotiate/> as the first entry in this section to enable Kerberos

Test: Deploy a Report through BIDS to a Report Center site, http://test-dev2/rc/

Troubleshooting tip: You may run into error rsaccessdenied: The account SHarepoint/System doesn’t have permissions to deploy the report. In order to troubleshoot this error, check if spn’s are properly registered with the sharepoint service account and there’s no duplicity of SPN’s.

Update - Inside Dynamics AX 2012 Videos (Videos #10,11 and 12)

2011-11-10T15:26:00.001-08:00

The video series on "Inside Dynamics AX 2012" is complete now, with Videos on Simplicity, Workflow and Organization Model added.

http://daxdilip.blogspot.com/2011/08/inside-microsoft-dynamics-ax-2012.html

Would recommend you to bookmark it. Njoi :)

Dynamics AX Error executing code: Overflow in internal run stack

2011-11-03T03:52:00.000-07:00

Error:

Got this run-time error during a full run of inventory settlement data - "Error executing Code: Overflow in internal run stack.

Troubleshooting Steps:

After some investigation, found out that this was being caused due to circular reference in one of the settlement transaction due to which the container fills up thereby resulting in run-time stack overflow.

Visual Studio 2010 Error The Product key cannot be used to extend the use of this product

2011-10-30T11:15:00.000-07:00

After a gap of few weeks, today when I fired up Visual Studio 2010 Professional on my lappie, it showed me a dialog box, to obtain a new license key to extend the trial version.

As usual, I tried obtaining a new license online and pasted this key in the activation window and hit Activate button, but no luck, it keeps on throwing this error:

"The product key cannot be used to extend the use of this product"

Searched on the internet and came to this msdn forum http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-HK/vssetup/thread/518bc51d-56e1-4224-89d0-0645808d6b78 which eventually took me to this link, which proved very useful to troubleshoot the above error.

http://www.mydigitallife.info/master-product-key-to-upgrade-activate-visual-studio-2010-ultimate-premium-and-professional/

Tip: You can directly use the master key mentioned in the above link, it starts with YCFHQ..., just google it and you are good to go ;-)

Error executing code: The field with id 0 does not exist in table

2011-10-25T12:28:00.000-07:00

Had been busy past couple of days as was involved in writing a complex API which looks onto the Inventory Cost Breakdown tree and writes the data into a custom table after doing some transformation of data on the go.

As I was developing, I bumped into this run time error:

Error executing code: The field with id 0 does not exist in table

Investigation:

As usual, I googled about this error and came across this blogpost here http://daxline.blogspot.com/2011/08/field-with-id-0-does-not-exist-in-table.html, It's the exact error but the circumstances were different, It talks about the missing field in map whereas in my case I was not using any Maps.

Solution:

It didn't took me long to troubleshoot the issue as I figured out that the table buffer was getting populated incorrectly, meaning I was inheriting the standard AX InventSettlementTreeNodeCalc class for my API and internally, it was calling a method for calculating the adjustments which I didn't require at that stage in the process, and this adjustment call was populating the settlement table buffer and returning it to Inventtrans table buffer thereby giving a run-time error.

Corrected the table buffers and removed the extra call to calculate adjustments as I was doing it towards the end of the process in a separate routine,

Dynamics AX 2012 Upgrade Q&A Link on Community Site

2011-10-17T11:38:00.000-07:00

Dear All,

Glad to know that Microsoft Dynamics Community has come up with a new initiative so that partners, developers and end users who are planning to upgrade to AX 2012 can get some of their queries answered here.

Thanks for MS for providing me an opportunity to be part of the panel. From my experience with AX 2012 so far, I can see there's a huge amount of learning involved with this new release and such Q & A Sessions would foster more knowledge sharing among the community members thereby building a sound knowledgebase around the product.

I encourage you to visit the below link where you can start asking your questions

https://community.dynamics.com/b/communityteam/archive/2011/10/11/have-questions-about-upgrading-to-dynamics-ax-2012-get-your-answers-here.aspx

You can post all your queries between October 17th to October 21st and our community panel experts will try and answer them to the best of their knowledge.

Happy Daxing :)