Connect/Authenticate Console App to MS Dynamics CRM/CE

Let's break down the code line by line with references to relevant Microsoft articles:

using Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk;
using Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.Client;

• Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk: This namespace contains classes and interfaces for interacting with Microsoft Dataverse (formerly Dynamics CRM). It includes types for entities, attributes, and service operations[1].
• Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.Client: This namespace provides classes for connecting to web services, sending requests, and receiving responses. It includes types for authentication and service proxies[2].

Method Definition

public static OrganizationServiceProxy GetOrgServiceProxy(appConfigSettings settings, bool setEndpointBehavior)

• Static Method: This method can be called without creating an instance of the class.
• Parameters:
  • appConfigSettings settings: An object containing CRM settings such as server URL, organization name, username, and password.
  • bool setEndpointBehavior: A flag indicating whether to set endpoint behavior.

Create the Service Management Object

var orgServiceManagement = ServiceConfigurationFactory.CreateManagement<IOrganizationService>(
    new Uri(string.Format("{0}/{1}/XRMServices/2011/Organization.svc", settings.CrmServerUrl, settings.OrgName)));

• ServiceConfigurationFactory.CreateManagement: This method creates a service management object for the specified service type (IOrganizationService) using the provided URI[3].
• URI Construction: Constructs the URI for the organization service endpoint using the CRM server URL and organization name.

Optionally Set Endpoint Behavior

if (setEndpointBehavior)
{
    var behavior = new ProxyTypesBehavior() as IEndpointBehavior;
    behavior.ApplyClientBehavior(orgServiceManagement.CurrentServiceEndpoint, null);
}

• ProxyTypesBehavior: This class enables early-bound entity types on a service proxy[4].
• ApplyClientBehavior: Applies the behavior to the current service endpoint[4].

Create Authentication Credentials

var authCredentials = new AuthenticationCredentials();
switch (orgServiceManagement.AuthenticationType)
{
    case AuthenticationProviderType.ActiveDirectory: // Active Directory
        authCredentials.ClientCredentials.Windows.ClientCredential = new NetworkCredential(settings.Username, settings.Password);
        break;

    default:
        authCredentials.ClientCredentials.UserName.UserName = settings.Username;
        authCredentials.ClientCredentials.UserName.Password = settings.Password;
        break;
}

• AuthenticationCredentials: Represents client-side user logon credentials[5].
• AuthenticationProviderType: Determines the type of authentication (e.g., Active Directory or other types)[5].
• NetworkCredential: Sets the credentials for Windows authentication[5].

Authenticate and Get the Service Proxy

var authenticatedCredentials = orgServiceManagement.Authenticate(authCredentials);
return new OrganizationServiceProxy(orgServiceManagement, authenticatedCredentials.SecurityTokenResponse);

• Authenticate: Authenticates the user with the provided credentials[5].
• OrganizationServiceProxy: Provides an authenticated WCF channel to the organization service[6].

App Config File

<appSettings>
    <add key="orgName" value="crmdev" />
    <add key="crmServerUrl" value="https://crmdev.business.com" />
    <add key="username" value="service-account" />
    <add key="password" value="Password@12345" />
</appSettings>

• App Settings: Contains key-value pairs for configuration settings such as organization name, CRM server URL, username, and password.

Summary

• Namespaces: Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk and Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.Client provide types for CRM interactions[1][2].
• Service Management: Created using ServiceConfigurationFactory.CreateManagement[3].
• Endpoint Behavior: Optionally set using ProxyTypesBehavior[4].
• Authentication: Managed using AuthenticationCredentials and authenticated with orgServiceManagement.Authenticate[5].
• Service Proxy: Returned as an OrganizationServiceProxy[6].