Microsoft has been ruling the tech world for decades and has changed the way we work with computers. Probably, we cannot imagine the technology industry without them. They are also well known for their multiple products and services, operating systems, cloud computing services, CRMs, and many other products.
Two of the well-known products of Microsoft among enterprises are SharePoint and Dynamics 365. These two products not only make carrying out tasks easier for the companies but also helps them streamline their operations. And in this blog, we are going to talk about dynamics sharepoint integration and how enterprises can benefit by doing so.
First, let’s understand each of them in brief, and then we’ll discuss the steps for integrating them.
What is SharePoint?
According to Microsoft, “Organizations use SharePoint to create websites. One can organize, share, store, and even access information from any device. You can access SharePoint via various web browsers like Microsoft Edge, etc.”
In other words, SharePoint is a content/document management and collaboration tool developed by Microsoft. It is essentially useful for internal purposes and works as a content management system for organizations.
What is Dynamics 365?
Dynamics 365 is a cloud-based solution that combines customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) with the power of Artificial Intelligence. With the help of Dynamics 365, you can securely manage your customers’ data.
The biggest advantage of using it is that if as a company you are heavily dependent on Microsoft products like Office 365 then having Dynamics 365 means easy integration with other products.
Now, let’s go step by step on how you can integrate SharePoint with Dynamics 365 and what are the advantages of the same.
Benefits of Dynamics SharePoint Integration
While Dynamics 365 is great for managing customer relationships and tracking sales or service activities, it isn’t designed to store large volumes of documents. That’s where SharePoint comes in. By integrating SharePoint with Dynamics CRM, businesses can offload document storage to SharePoint, dramatically reducing the cost and improving efficiency.
One of the most significant benefits of Dynamics SharePoint integration is centralized document management. Users can create, store, and manage documents directly from within the Dynamics interface, while the files are physically stored in SharePoint. This not only saves CRM storage space (which can be costly) but also ensures easy retrieval and version control.
Collaboration becomes much smoother as teams can co-author documents, manage permissions, and maintain audit trails more effectively. It also enhances compliance and security with SharePoint’s advanced controls.
Ultimately, this integration streamlines workflows, reduces data duplication, and increases team productivity, making it an essential upgrade for any enterprise using Microsoft’s business tools.
Pre-requisites:
Before, starting the integration check the following:
– Purchase the license or install SharePoint
– The user who is setting up the integration must have System Administrator rights for CRM and SharePoint.
– On the basis of your requirements, locate the exact SharePoint site, or create a new SharePoint site collection.
– Add the SharePoint website to the trusted site in Internet Explorer.
Now without any further ado, let’s start with the step by step process of integration:
Step 1: Open Dynamics 365, navigate to Settings → Advanced Settings. You will find this option only if you have System Administrator rights.
Step 2: Choose System and then click on Document Management.
Step 3: Then click on Configure Server-Based SharePoint. Upon clicking this, you will find option Define Deployment where you will get two options:
– Online
– On-premises
For this demonstration, we are going to choose Online. After selecting the option, now click onNext.
Step 4: Now you will come on Prepare Sites. Here, you need to add the URL to your SharePoint website and click Next. Once your website is successfully validated, you will see the next section i.e. Validate Sites. Here, you will see the Validation Succeeded. Now, click Finish.
Step 5: Now, go back to the Document Management Settings. Here, you will need to select the entities for which you want to enable SharePoint folders.
Step 6: Next up, you will see the pop-up screen. Here you need to select the entities which you want to store and click Next. Going further, you can create folders based on entities and also create subfolders for individual Accounts and Contacts.
Step 7: Once the libraries are set up, click on Finish.
Your integration of SharePoint and Dynamics CRM is set now. In your Dynamics CRM section, you will see the Documents section. Before you start using it, make sure that you have set the permissions properly.
Don’t stop with this integration, you can go one step further by integrating our Dynamics Portal solution with Dynamics CRM and SharePoint to streamline your business operations throughout.
Portal Application vs Web Application – Which One Fits Your Microsoft Stack?
As your organization grows, choosing the right interface for customer or user interaction becomes critical. If you’re using tools like Dynamics 365 and SharePoint, you may be wondering whether to build a portal application or a traditional web application.
A portal application is a secure, role-based interface built to extend your CRM or ERP system to external users like customers, partners, or vendors. It connects directly with Dynamics CRM, providing users access to relevant data, documents (from SharePoint), or services without exposing the core system. It’s ideal for businesses seeking tailored self-service capabilities and seamless integration across the Microsoft ecosystem.
A web application, on the other hand, is generally standalone. While customizable, it may require more effort to integrate with Dynamics and SharePoint, and doesn’t offer the built-in security or data handling that Dynamics portals provide.
If you’re already using Dynamics 365 and SharePoint, a portal application is the more strategic, scalable choice, especially for businesses focused on secure data sharing and user autonomy.
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