The new Spring 2015 Release of Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online has been officially released. This Dynamics CRM release preview guide refers to the Spring 2015 update as “2015 Update 1”
As a CRM system administrator, you may control when to install Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online service updates for your organization. To update to the latest release of CRM Online, complete these two steps:
- Review the information on the Manage all CRM Online instances page (on the CRM Online Administration Center) to find out what instances are ready to update and what is the schedule.
- Approve the update.
| Important: |
| Your instance will not be updated unless you approve it. This means your organization will go without the latest features and functionality until you explicitly give approval for the update to happen.If you chose to not apply the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online Spring ‘14 update, it will be applied when you update to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online 2015 Update. Be sure you understand what changes will be applied to your online instance from Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online Spring ‘14 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online 2015 Update. More information: Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2013 Service Pack 1 and CRM Online Spring ’14, Product Updates Installation Information for Microsoft Dynamics CRM Spring Wave ’14, and What’s new for administrators and customizers in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2015 and CRM Online |
There are a lot of major user changes and below is a quick rundown of the major updates. One of the biggest areas of improvement is the UI navigation. Microsoft listened to the community and one of first areas you will notice is that main menu has been updated. The new menu is easier to navigate with less scrolling and clicking. Here is a screen shot of the new menu.
One area you might notice when glancing at these screen shots is that the normal Microsoft Dynamics CRM logo that appears in the top left hand section can be replaced with your own company logo and the color scheme can also be replace with your company’s colors.
You also might notice the new symbol next to the plus button in the top left of the main menu. This is a “recently viewed” button that has your most recent views and recent records plus anything you pin will appear when clicked on.
Another area is that Microsoft provides the ability to conduct analysis in Excel, directly within Microsoft Dynamics CRM. This eliminates the frustration, time and effort required to switch between applications in the middle of completing a business process. For instance, salespeople can now view sales data in familiar Excel spreadsheets, perform what-if analysis, and upload all the changes with one click, all while maintaining the sales workflow.
Some of the other interesting updates include:
- Ability to connect OneNote to CRM which allows you to take notes on OneNote and they will appear in CRM.
- You can also track emails through your phone now. You can create a folder on your phone email and any email you drag into that folder, will be automatically uploaded into CRM.
- You can also now use the Dynamics CRM App for the Outlook Web App.
These are just some of the major updates. We will be going in depth in future blogs, so be sure to check back later. As always, if you have questions, don’t hesitate to contact the Dynamics CRM experts at Affiliated.
Jonathan Fortner, Affiliated, Dynamics CRM Implementation & Support, Ohio
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