Common Data Service and PowerApps

A couple of weeks ago, our Dynamics developers, Linus Österberg and Mikhail Bogunov, traveled to Amsterdam to attend Extreme 365. The most important takeaway from the conference was that Microsoft is now focusing its efforts on Common Data Service and PowerApps.

Common Data Service – the platform that connects with your other business systems

Common Data Service is a platform that allows you to store data in a secure, cloud-based environment. When you use Common Data Service, you can easily and seamlessly share data with your other business systems through so-called connectors(pre-built connections between different systems and the platform). Today, there is an entire library of connectors in Azure, giving you ample opportunities to start connecting your systems right away without having to write code.

Before Common Data Service existed, developers had to connect different business systems using code.
With Common Data Service, it is now easy to connect different business systems using various drag-and-drop features.

PowerApps – fast and easy app development tailored to your business needs

PowerApps is a set of services and connectors that allows you to quickly create applications tailored to your specific business needs.  By storing data either in the underlying data platform(Common Data Service) orin various data sources such as SharePoint, Excel, Office 365, Dynamics 365, or SQL Server, you can now connect PowerApps to your business data in a simple and seamless way.

Apps created with PowerApps now allow you to transform your manual business processes into digital and automated ones. Many of the apps are standardized and come with pre-built features, while others are completely blank so you can build the app yourself according to your specific preferences and needs. As a result, the need for coding skills has been significantly reduced.

All apps created in PowerApps are now dynamic, so you can easily run them in a web browser or on a mobile device without any issues.

Why should my business invest in Common Data Service and PowerApps?

• Simple data storage –both metadata and data are stored in the cloud, so you no longer need to worry about how your data is stored.
• Easy to protect data –since your data is stored using a structured model, it’s also easy to manage access permissions for your data. Users can only view the information you grant them access to.
• Easy access to Dynamics 365 data –your data from all Dynamics 365 applications can now be stored in the Common Data Service, allowing you to easily create apps that access all your Dynamics 365 data.
• Smart metadata features –you can now leverage data types and relationships directly from PowerApps.
• Just-in-time capability– your data can be retrieved immediately, if needed.
• Platforms have become more open—this gives you the ability to use data across system boundaries in a way that’s completely different from before.

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