Lifecycle Services – Q1 2016 Enhancements – Microsoft Dynamics AX
Posted on: February 24, 2016 | By: Jarrod Kraemer | Microsoft Dynamics AX/365
Logan Consulting is happy to relay the announcement of these cool new features in Lifecycle Services (LCS) during December 2015 and January 2016.
NEW FEATURES
1. Microsoft Dynamics AX Public Preview is here!
The public preview of Microsoft Dynamics AX is now available. You can now sign up and deploy a cloud instance of Microsoft Dynamics AX, based on our latest development milestone, known as CTP8. This public preview of Microsoft Dynamics AX can be deployed through Microsoft Dynamics Lifecycle Services.
Microsoft Dynamics AX CTP8 is available only to existing Microsoft Dynamics channel partners and customers who are currently enrolled in the Business Ready Enhancement Plan (BREP) service plan. Existing customers can find details on how to get to the preview from here.
2. Language preferences
Starting today, LCS will release the public preview of the language preference feature.
To enable this for your account, login to LCS, click on your name on the top right corner, and then select Preferences.
Select your preferred language from the drop down and then click Save.
3. New Unified library
Microsoft shipped the new APQC unified library for the newest version of Microsoft Dynamics AX. This new library is for CTP 8.
4. Updated methodologies
Microsoft shipped two updated methodologies for the newest version of Dynamics AX.
1. To use these new methodology, login to your LCS project and click Change methodology.
2. Select the methodology you want to use and then click Save.
Note: If you want to keep the existing phases and tasks in the methodology keep the toggle set to Yes.
5. New data packages
Over 250 new data packages for CTP 8 were also shipped in this release.
To import these to the project, in your LCS project go to “Asset library“, select Process data package, and then click Import
Select the Process Data Packages from the list and import them into the project.
The Microsoft Dynamics AX Code Upgrade service will now help you upgrade to CTP8.
6. Cloud hosted environments now supports the deployment of Dynamics AX 2012 CU10 for non-demo topologies.
7. LCS is now available in 40 languages.
8. Configuration manager and Data deployment templates for Dynamics AX 2012
A new Configuration section has been added to the Environment page. In your LCS project, when you open a Dynamics AX environment page, you can use the Configuration tab to deploy data templates on that environment.
Deployment templates are a collection of data processing groups. Data processing groups are defined on a Dynamics AX environment and can be pulled into LCS and then grouped into a deployment template. These deployment templates are stored in the asset library of your LCS project.
From the Configuration tab on the environment’s page, you can:
Deploy an existing template on the current environment.
-or-
Create a new deployment template by pulling processing groups from the current Dynamics AX environment, and store the template in the Asset Library.
This new functionality is intended to replace the existing preview version of Configuration Manager which will be removed.
By using deployment templates instead of the configurations used by the Configuration manager:
1. You can control the order in which data entities and data processing groups are applied.
2. You can edit the content of data templates directly from LCS.
9. GER configuration
Microsoft-owned configurations for CTP8 were added under the GER configuration asset type in the Shared asset library. GER provides one common way (through the LCS Asset library) for Microsoft and partners to distribute electronic document configurations to other partners and customers. GER also makes it easier for partners and customers to customize, upgrade, and distribute electronic document formats for their specific business requirements.
10. LCS Administrators
With January release of LCS, all existing Office 365 administrators of your ‘AX 7′ tenant will also be LCS administrators. Previously, one specific user was assigned the role of LCS administrator.
11. Business process modeler
Microsoft addressed the issue with Business process modeler (BPM) search indexing. If you have experienced issues with help content delivery in ‘AX 7′, this fix helps resolve the issues you have seen.
If you have seen the following message in your BPM library, it means that the indexing of the library is pending.
Below is a library that has been successfully indexed.
12. Process data package
Microsoft has made significant performance improvements to process data package creation experience.
Dynamics ‘AX 7′ solutions creators can now add database backups to a solution package.
For additional information please feel free to reach out to us at info@loganconsulting.com or (312) 345-8817.
All the best!
Logan Consulting
www.loganconsulting.com