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Microsoft Dynamics CRM - implementation, customization and support
Byte Solutions has been providing CRM solutions for more then 20 years. We support many CRM products including ACT, GoldMine, Heat, SugarCRM and SalesForce but have been most successful with the ease of use and low cost of implementing and customizing Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Microsoft CRM is the right choice for customers who are looking for speedy, cost-effective, and flexible CRM solutions.
Microsoft Dynamics CRM is more than CRM, it is a fully capable Web-Based Line-of-Business Applications Platform. Creating custom entities to support your specific business needs can be quick and easy, yet capable of creating sophisticated applications that integrate with other business systems.
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The new release of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 formerly code named "Titian" adds significant new benefits and capabilities. Some of the exciting features in the new release are:
- An advanced multi tenant architecture that supports multiple customers per server
- Extended global capabilities including user choice of more than 25 languages and pervasive support for multiple currencies
- New business intelligence capabilities including cross-entity views and an end-user ad hoc reporting wizard
- Advanced business process automation based on Microsoft Windows Workflow Foundation
- New collaboration capabilities with Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 including real-time presence indicators within the CRM application
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| Byte Solutions has extensive experience with implementation, customization and data migration with Microsoft CRM. We are experts with Microsoft SQL and specialized data transformation as well as integrating CRM with existing systems. |
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Acquiring, servicing, and retaining customers are key challenges for every business. A streamlined strategy that connects all customer-facing processes and activities can help keep customer relationships at a desired level. With CRM solutions, you can craft such a strategy. You can integrate sales, services, and marketing processes to provide a satisfactory customer experience while maximizing your revenue potential.
Microsoft CRM offers a unified view of customer information and interactions through integrated sales, marketing and customer service features. This approach enables organizations to share information, accelerate sales, identify new revenue opportunities and deliver more consistent customer service. Out of the box, it provides a complete suite of powerful marketing, sales and service capabilities, all with a familiar and consistent user experience based on Microsoft Office and Microsoft Outlook.
Business moves at light speed today, requiring that every company continuously reexamine direction, strategies, suppliers, partners—literally every variable and relationship that might lead to complacency. The intensified search for competitive advantage may mean that some of your best customers pick up and leave without you ever knowing that there was a problem. How well can you react to—and even predict—ever-shifting customer needs and competitor moves?
Infuse your organization with new levels of customer intelligence using Microsoft Dynamics CRM version 3.0, an all-new customer relationship management (CRM) system that gives every customer-facing employee the information they need to truly impress customers. With Microsoft CRM, you can create a centralized repository of customer data that sits neatly alongside Microsoft Office and Microsoft Office Outlook -- the applications your employees probably use every day. From Outlook, employees access Microsoft CRM sales, marketing, and customer service modules to make sales decisions, market products, solve problems, and get strategic views of the business. It's CRM that works - and works very well - because it works the way your users already do, works the way your business already does, and works the way technology should.
Microsoft Dynamics CRM Outlook Integration
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- Make more informed decisions.
- Reduce your sales cycles.
- Deepen customer relationships.
- Grow your business.
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CRM Requirements
The hardware and software requirements discussed in this article are provided as general requirements. There are many factors that must be considered that can affect these requirements, including:
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Number of servers involved and how they are configured |
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Dependency of Microsoft Dynamics CRM on Microsoft SQL Server 2000 or Microsoft SQL Server 2005 |
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Number of users the Microsoft CRM implementation will support |
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Integration of Microsoft CRM with the Microsoft Exchange servers |
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Performance of your servers and the local area network |
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Whether or not you already have Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services installed |
The Microsoft CRM 3.0 Implementation Guide provides detailed information about the installation and implementation requirements for Microsoft CRM 3.0. The following additional installation topics are covered in Chapter 5 of the guide:
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Multiple server deployment (including hardware recommendations for Microsoft SQL Server and Exchange Server) |
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Single server deployment |
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Installing Microsoft CRM on a virtual machine |
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Using special and extended characters |
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Planning server requirements for reporting |
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=1ff067f8-4f77-40f0-ae9c-68ada7d4f16a&displaylang=en
Microsoft CRM Professional Server system requirements
The following table shows the system requirements for Microsoft CRM Professional Server.
| Requirement |
Minimum |
Recommended |
Computer/processor |
Dual 1.8 GHz Pentium (Xeon P4) |
Dual 1.8 GHz Pentium (Xeon P4) or better |
Memory (RAM) |
512 megabytes (MB) |
1 gigabyte (GB) |
Hard disk |
8 GB free hard-disk space |
SCSI with hardware RAID 5 with 10 GB free hard-disk space |
Network card |
10/100 Mbps |
Dual 10/100/1000 Mbps |
Operating system |
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Microsoft Windows 2000 Server |
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Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server |
With the latest Windows 2000 service pack
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Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2 |
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Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Standard, Enterprise, or Web Editions |
All with the latest service pack |
Internet Information Services (IIS) |
Version 5.0 (included with Windows 2000 Server) or later |
Version 6.0 (included with Windows Server 2003) |
Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) |
Version 2.71a |
Version 2.8 (included with Windows Server 2003) |
Note: When you use Microsoft Windows 2000 Server or Windows Server 2003, you can combine Microsoft CRM Server on the same computer as either SQL Server or Exchange Server, but Microsoft does not recommend these configurations.
Microsoft CRM Small Business Edition Server system requirements
Microsoft CRM Server Small Business Edition is designed for Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 Premium Edition, on which Microsoft CRM Server can coexist on the same computer as both Microsoft SQL Server and Exchange Server. Small Business Server can be deployed in operating environments that support fewer than 75 users.
The following table shows the system requirements for Microsoft CRM Small Business Edition Server.
| Requirement |
Minimum |
Recommended |
Computer/processor |
Dual 1.8 GHz Pentium (Xeon P4) |
Dual 1.8 GHz Pentium (Xeon P4) or better |
Memory (RAM) |
512 megabytes (MB) |
1-gigabyte (GB) |
Hard disk |
8 GB available hard disk space |
SCSI with hardware RAID 5 |
Network card |
10/100 Mbps |
Dual 10/100/1000 Mbps |
Modem |
None |
Two modems, one for Shared Fax Service and one for Remote Access Service, Shared Modem Service, and Internet Security and Acceleration Server dial-up service |
Network card |
10/100 Mbps |
Dual 10/100/1000 Mbps |
Operating system |
Only Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 Premium Edition |
Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 Premium Edition |
Internet Information Services (IIS) |
Version 5.0 (included with Windows 2000 Server) or later |
Version 6.0 (included with Windows Server 2003) |
Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) |
Version 2.71a |
Version 2.8 (included with Windows Server 2003) |
Additional software components required
The following table shows the additional software component requirements for Microsoft CRM Server.
| Component |
Notes |
Indexing Service |
Installed and service started. |
Microsoft XML Core Services (MSXML) |
Version 4.0 with Service Pack 2 (installed during Microsoft CRM Server installation) |
Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 |
Installed during Microsoft CRM Server installation. |
The computer that is running Microsoft CRM Server must also have access to computers in the same Active Directory service domain that are running:
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Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Service Pack 4 and the latest updates or SQL Server 2005 |
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Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 or Microsoft Exchange 2000 Server with the latest service pack |
Microsoft CRM Web software requirements
Microsoft CRM Server is accessed through a client. This client is either Microsoft Internet Explorer or Microsoft Office Outlook.
Microsoft CRM 3.0 Web client
To use Internet Explorer, you must have the following:
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Microsoft Windows 2000 (Server or Professional) with Service Pack 4, Microsoft Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 1, or Windows Server 2003 (Web, Standard, or Enterprise) |
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Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1 |
Microsoft CRM 3.0 client for Microsoft Office Outlook software requirements
There are two Microsoft CRM clients for Outlook:
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Microsoft CRM 3.0 desktop client for Microsoft Office Outlook. Install this client on workstations (including computers that are shared by several users) that do not go offline and do not have a connection to the local area network. |
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Microsoft CRM 3.0 laptop client for Microsoft Office Outlook. Install this client on computers that go offline. |
Both Microsoft CRM clients for Outlook require:
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Windows 2000 Professional with SP4 or Windows XP Professional with SP1 (Service Pack 2 is supported but not required) |
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Microsoft Office 2003 Editions with SP1 |
OR
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Microsoft Office XP (2002) with SP3 |
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Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 SP1 |
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Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 |
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Windows Indexing Service (for only the Microsoft CRM laptop client for Outlook) |
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Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Desktop Engine (MSDE) (for only the Microsoft CRM laptop client for Outlook) |
Although both clients have similar software requirements, there are the following differences:
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Both clients cannot be installed and cannot co-exist on the same computer at the same time |
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You can install the Microsoft CRM laptop client for Outlook for only an individual user |
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To switch from one client to the other on the same computer, you must uninstall the client you do not want and install the client that you want to use |
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The Microsoft CRM desktop client for Outlook supports multiple users. However, each person logging on to the client computer must use the same client installation and the computer must be set to only one language configuration |
Microsoft CRM-Exchange E-Mail Router requirements
The following is a list of prerequisite software and configuration items that must be installed before installing the Router:
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Microsoft Windows 2000 Server (or Advanced Server) with Service Pack 4, or Windows Server 2003 (Web, Standard, or Enterprise). Also install the following applications:
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Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 |
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Microsoft CRM Server must be installed and operational |
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Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 must be installed and operational on the computer where the Router is to be installed |
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The user installing the Router must be a member of the Domain Administrators group and have Local Administrator credentials on the Microsoft Exchange Server |
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It is required that you log on to the computer where the Router is to be installed as a user that has Local Administrative privileges on the computer running Microsoft CRM |
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The following components are required and are installed during Microsoft CRM-Exchange E-Mail Router installation:
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Microsoft XML Core Services (MSXML) 4.0 with SP2 |
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Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 |
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0 Customer Stories
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0 gives you the power you need to achieve that competitive edge. Businesses of all sizes, reaching across a wide range of industries, can gain a deeper understanding of customers and markets and then pursue the opportunities that emerge at every stage of the customer life cycle. Fast, flexible, and affordable, Microsoft CRM can drive improvements for every business process that touches your customers. Look here for additional success stories...
Download this file to learn how Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0 has helped businesses around the world build profitable customer relationships.
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CommtechWireless |
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Absolute Software |
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Greater Twin Cities United Way |
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Roman Meal Company |
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Volvo Baumaschinen Österreich GmbH |
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Essex Medical & Forensic Services Ltd. |
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CSR Limited |
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Travel Global Systems |
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Mall GmbH |
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Euphonix, Inc. |
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Perot Systems Corp. |
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Pellerano & Herrera |
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Corillian Corp. |
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Grosvenor Group |
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InfoMentis, Inc. |
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Tourism Whistler |
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RightNow Business Development Systems |
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Missouri House of Representatives |
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