Tag: Dynamics NAV

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Upgrading my G/L Source Names Extension to AL – step 2

So, where is step 1?  Step 1 was converting C/AL code to AL code.  This we did with AdvaniaGIT and was demonstrated here.

First thing first!  I received the following email from Microsoft.

Hello,

The decision has been made by our SLT, that the use of a Prefix or Suffix is now a mandatory requirement. If you are already using this in your app(s), great. If not, you will want to do so.

We are coming across too many collisions between apps in our internal tests during builds and have seen some in live tenants as well. It makes the most sense to make this a requirement now. If you think about it in a live situation, if a customer installs an app before yours and then tries yours but gets collision issues, they may just decide to not even continue on with yours.

Also, I have been made aware that adding a prefix or suffix after you already have a v2 app published can make the process complicated for you. Therefore, since you all have to convert to v2 anyway, now is a good time to add in the prefix/suffix.

The following link provides the guidelines around using it here

If you haven’t reserved your prefix yet, please email me back to reserve one (or more if needed).

Thank you,

Ryan

Since my brand is Objects4NAV.com I asked for 04N as my prefix and got it registered.  Since we got this information from Microsoft, every object that we develop in NAV 2018 now has our companies prefix in the name.

Starting my AL development by opening Visual Studio Code in my repository folder.  I updated my setup.json to match the latest preview build as Docker container and then selected to Build NAV Environment using AdvaniaGIT.

After download and deployment of the container I noticed that the container had a brand new version of the AL Extension for Visual Studio Code.  I looked at the version installed and that was an older version.

I uninstalled the AL Language extension and restarted Visual Studio Code.

As you can see on the screenshot above we now don’t have any AL Language extension installed.  I executed the Build NAV Environment command from AdvanaiGIT to install the extension on the Docker container.  In this case I already had a container assigned to my branch so only three things happened.

  • uidOffset in the container database was updated.  This is recommended for C/AL development.
  • License file is updated in the container database and container service.  The license used is the one configured in branch setup.json or the machine settings GITSettings.json
  • AL Language Extension is copied from the container to the host and installed in Visual Studio Code.

Again, restarting Visual Studio Code to find that the latest version of AL Language Extension has been installed.

I then executed two AdvaniaGIT actions.

  • Update Launch.json with current branch environment.  This will update the host name and the service name in my AL Launch.json file to make sure that my AL project will be interacting with the branch container.
  • Open Visual Studio Code in AL folder.  This will open another instance of Visual Studio Code in the AL folder.

Immediately after Visual Studio Code was opened it asked for symbols and I agreed that we should download them from the container.

Everything is now ready for AL development using the latest build that Microsoft has to offer.

I started  Edit – Replace in Files in Visual Studio Code.  All my objects have a name that start with G/L Source Name.  I used this knowledge to apply the prefix.

By starting with the double quote I make sure to only update the object names and not captions.  All captions start with a single quote.  I got a list of all changes and needed to confirm all changes.

The field name I add to G/L Entry table does not match this rule so I needed to rename that my self.  Selecting the field name and pressing F2 allows me to rename a field and have Visual Studio Code update all references automatically.

Pressing F5 started my build, publish and debug.

My extension is installed and ready for testing.

There are a few more steps that I need to look into before publishing the new version of G/L Source Names to Dynamics 365.  These steps will appear here in the coming days.  Hope this will be useful to you all.

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Don’t worry about DotNet version in C/AL

When using DotNet data type in NAV C/AL we normally lookup a sub type to use.  When we do the result can be something like

Newtonsoft.Json.Linq.JObject.'Newtonsoft.Json, Version=6.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=30ad4fe6b2a6aeed'

Then, what will happen when moving this code from NAV 2016 to NAV 2017 and NAV 2018.  The Newtonsoft.Json version is not the same and we will get a compile error!

Just remove the version information from the sub type information.

Newtonsoft.Json.Linq.JObject.'Newtonsoft.Json'

And NAV will find the matching Newtonsoft.Json library you have installed and use it.

This should work for all our DotNet variables.

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AzureSQL database gives me change tracking error

I just uploaded a SQL bacpac to AzureSQL.  This I have done a number of times.  Connected my service to the SQL database and tried to start the service.

This time I got an error.  Looking in Event Viewer I can see.

The following SQL error was unexpected:
  Change tracking is already enabled for database '2018-IS365'.
  ALTER DATABASE statement failed.
  SQL statement:
  IF NOT EXISTS (SELECT * FROM sys.change_tracking_databases WHERE database_id=DB_ID('2018-IS365')) ALTER DATABASE [2018-IS365] SET CHANGE_TRACKING = ON (CHANGE_RETENTION = 10 MINUTES, AUTO_CLEANUP = ON)

I looked into the SQL database, and sure enough there was a line in sys.change_tracking_databases table.  The problem was that in that table the [database_id] was equal to 48 while

SELECT db_id('2018-IS365')

resulted in 49.  Hence the error and my service tier failing to start.

To remove the change tracking from the database I executed (found here)

DECLARE @SQL NVARCHAR(MAX)='';
SELECT @SQL = @SQL + 'ALTER TABLE ' + s.name + '.[' + t.name + ']' +
 ' Disable Change_tracking;'
FROM sys.change_tracking_tables ct
JOIN sys.tables t
 ON ct.object_id= t.object_id
JOIN sys.schemas s
 ON t.schema_id= s.schema_id;
PRINT @SQL;
EXEC sp_executesql @SQL;

ALTER DATABASE [2018-IS365] SET CHANGE_TRACKING = OFF;

The service tier will take care of turning the change tracking on again when it starts.  You might need to repeat these steps if restarting the service tier.

According to Microsoft a fix is in the pipeline and likely ships in CU2.

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Using AdvaniaGIT – Convert G/L Source Names to AL

Here we go.

The NAV on Docker environment we just created can be used for the task at hand.  I have an Extension in Dynamics 365 called G/L Source Names.

I need to update this Extension to V2.0 using AL.  In this video I go through the upgrade and conversion process using AdvainaGIT and Visual Studio Code.

In the first part I copy the deltas from my Dynamics 365 Extension into my work space and I download and prepare the latest release of NAV 2018 Docker Container.

Using our source and modified environments we can build new syntax objects and new syntax deltas. These new syntax deltas are then converted to AL code.

 

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Using AdvaniaGIT in Visual Studio Code

It has become obvious that the future of AL programming is in Visual Studio Code.

Microsoft has made a decision to ship all their releases as Docker Containers.

The result of this is a development machine that does not have any NAV version installed.  I wanted to go through the installation and configuration of a new NAV on Docker development machine.

Here is what I did.

I installed Windows Server 2016 with Containers.  The other option was to use Windows 10 and install Docker as explained here.

After installing and fully updating the operating system I downloaded and installed Visual Studo Code.

After installation Visual Studio Code detects that I need to install Git.

I selected Download Git and was taken to the Git download page.

I downloaded and installed Git with default settings.

To be able to run NAV Development and NAV Client I need to install prerequisite components.  I copied the Prerequisite Components folder from my NAV 2018 DVD and installed some of them…

Let’s hook Visual Studio Code to our NAV 2018 repository and install AdvaniaGIT.  I first make sure to always run Visual Studio Code with administrative privileges.

Now that we have our AdvaniaGIT installed and configured we can start our development.  Let’s start our C/AL classic development.  Where this video ends you can continue development as described in my previous posts on AdvaniaGIT.  AdvaniaGIT also supports NAV 2016 and NAV 2017.

Since we are running NAV 2018 we can and should be using AL language and the Extension 2.0 model.  Let’s see how to use our repository structure, our already build Docker container and Visual Studio Code to start our first AL project.

So as you can see by watching these short videos it is easy to start developing both in C/AL and AL using AdvaniaGIT and Visual Studio Code.

My next task is to update my G/L Source Names extension to V2.  I will be using these tools for the job.  More to come soon…

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Using AdvaniaGIT – FTP server for teams

So, you are not the only one in your company doing development, right?

Essential part of being able to develop C/AL is to have a starting point.  That starting point is usually where you left of last time you did some development.  If you are starting a task your starting point may just be the localized release from Microsoft.

A starting point in AdvaniaGIT is a database backup.  The database backup can contain data and it should.  Data to make sure that you as a developer can do some basic testing of the solution you are creating.

AdvaniaGIT has a dedicated folder (C:\AdvaniaGIT\Backup) for the database backups.  That is where you should put your backups.

If you are working in teams, and even if not you might not want to flood your local drive with database backups.  That is why we configure an FTP server in C:\AdvaniaGIT\Data\GITSetting.json.

{
    "ftpServer":  "ftp://ftp02.hysing.is/",
    "ftpUser":  "ftp_sourcetree",
    "ftpPass":  "*****",
    "licenseFile":  "Advania.flf",
    "workFolder":  "C:\\NAVManagementWorkFolder\\Workspace",
    "patchNoFunction":  "Display-PatchDayNo",
    "defaultDatabaseServer":  "localhost",
    "defaultDatabaseInstance":  "",
    "objectsNotToDelete":  "(14125500..14125600)",
    "sigToolExecutable":  "C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Windows Kits\\10\\bin\\x64\\signtool.exe",
    "codeSigningCertificate":  "CodeSign_Certificate.pfx",
    "codeSigningCertificatePassword":  "****",
    "setupPath":  "setup.json",
    "objectsPath":  "Objects",
    "deltasPath":  "Deltas",
    "reverseDeltasPath":  "ReverseDeltas",
    "extensionPath":  "Extension1",
    "imagesPath":  "Images",
    "screenshotsPath":  "ScreenShots",
    "permissionSetsPath":  "PermissionSets",
    "addinsPath":  "Addins",
    "languagePath":  "Languages",
    "tableDataPath":  "TableDatas",
    "customReportLayoutsPath":  "CustomReportLayouts",
    "webServicesPath":  "WebServices",
    "binaryPath":  "Binaries",
    "testObjectsPath":  "TestObjects",
    "datetimeCulture":  "is-IS",
    "NewSyntaxPrefix":  "NewSyntax",
    "targetPlatform":  "DynamicsNAV",
    "VSCodePath":  "AL"
}

When we start an action to build NAV development environment the AdvaniaGIT tools searches for a database backup.

The search is both on C:\AdvaniaGIT\Backup and also on the root of the FTP server.

Using the function Get-NAVBackupFilePath to locate the desired backup file it will search based on these patterns.

    $FilePatterns = @(
        "$($SetupParameters.navRelease)-$($SetupParameters.projectName).bak",
        "$($SetupParameters.navRelease)/$($SetupParameters.navVersion)/$($SetupParameters.projectName).bak",
        "$($SetupParameters.navRelease)/$($SetupParameters.projectName).bak",
        "$($SetupParameters.navRelease)-$($SetupParameters.navSolution).bak"
        "$($SetupParameters.navRelease)/$($SetupParameters.navVersion)/$($SetupParameters.navSolution).bak",
        "$($SetupParameters.navRelease)/$($SetupParameters.navSolution).bak")

The navRelease is the year (2016,2017,…).  The navVersion is the build (9.0.46045.0,9.0.46290.0,10.0.17972.0,…)

The projectName and navSolution parameters are defined in Setup.json (settings file) in every GIT branch.

{
  "branchId": "3ba8870a-0274-4162-8ea2-66e314bb3e34",
  "navSolution":  "IS",
  "storeAllObjects":  "true",
  "navVersion":  "9.0.48992.0",
  "projectName": "ADIS",
  "baseBranch": "IS",
  "uidOffset": "10000200",  
  "objectProperties": "true",
  "datetimeCulture":  "is-IS"
}

Combining these values we can see that the search will be done with these patterns.

    $FilePatterns = @(
        "2016-ADIS.bak",
        "2016/9.0.48992.0/ADIS.bak",
        "2016/ADIS.bak",
        "2016-IS.bak"
        "2016/9.0.48992.0/IS.bak",
        "2016/IS.bak")

And these file patterns are applied both to C:\AdvaniaGIT\Backup and to the FTP server root folder.  Here are screenshots from our FTP server.

Looking into the 2017 folder

And into one of the build folders

My local backup folder is simpler

This should give you some idea on where to store your SQL backup files.

 

 

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Using AdvaniaGIT – Docker Containers

There is a new kid in town.  His name is Docker.

Microsoft is saying:

We are currently investigating how we can use Docker for deploying NAV. For test purposes we have created a Docker Container Image with the NAV Developer Preview, which you can try out.

Docker Containers is a technology where you, instead of virtualizing the entire machine, only virtualize the services and share resources from the host computer. Read more about it here: https://www.docker.com/what-docker

Read more about how to get started with Docker here: https://docs.docker.com/docker-for-windows/install/

So what does this mean?

We can install NAV environments as container both in Azure and on premise.  We can have multiple NAV versions to work with without having to install, so there is no conflict.  We can also get access to container images that are still in preview.

Note what Microsoft says, they are investigating.  The NAV Container Image service is not public yet.  You need authentication to get access.  This project has a place on GitHub.  To get access please contact Microsoft or send me a line and I will point you in the right direction.

The easiest way to get started is to try the NAV Developer Preview template on Azure,  http://aka.ms/navdeveloperpreview.  This will give you a full development environment for NAV Extension2.0 using VS Code.

It should be straight forward to install AdvaniaGIT on top of the NAV Developer Preview and start from there.  We can also start from Azure template called “Windows Server 2016 Datacenter – with Containers”.

The local option is to install Docker on our Windows laptop.  If you would like to use Docker on your laptop you need to change one setting after installation.  You need to switch to Windows containers.  Your laptop will most likely restart during installation and configuration of Docker so make sure to have your work saved.

If you are planning to run a Docker-Only environment you don’t need to install NAV.  Still there are prerequisite components that you must install.  These components can be found on the NAV DVD folder “Prerequisite Components”.  From the “Microsoft SQL Server” folder install sqlncli64.msi and ReportBuilder3.msi.  From the “Microsoft Visual C++ 2013” folder install vcredist_x64.exe.  From the “Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Tools for Office Redist” install vstor_redist.exe.  From the “Microsoft Report Viewer” folder install both SQLSysClrTypes.msi and ReportViewer.msi.  You should now be ready for the next step.

So, let’s get started

In your C:\AdvaniaGIT\Data folder open DockerSettings.json

{
  "RepositoryPath": "navdocker.azurecr.io",
  "RepositoryUserName": "7cc3c660-fc3d-41c6-b7dd-dd260148fff7",
  "RepositoryPassword": "access_key_for_the_repository"
}

That’s all.  Your are now ready to use Docker with AdvaniaGIT.  Make sure to always have the latest version of AdvaniaGIT installed.

You can even use the “devpreview” build of NAV TENERIFE to do vNext development both in C/AL and AL.

Stay tuned, the AdvaniaGIT journey will continue…

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Using AdvaniaGIT – How to configure licenses

When NAV environments are built a development license is uploaded to the development database.

Make sure to save your development licenses in your AdvaniaGIT license folder.

There are two ways to configure which license is used.  First with the “licenseFile” property of GITSettings.json in your AdvaniaGIT data folder.

{
  "ftpServer": "ftp://ftp02.hysing.is/",
  "ftpUser": "ftp_sourcetree",
  "ftpPass": "******",
  "licenseFile": "Advania.flf",
  "workFolder": "C:\\AdvaniaGIT\\Workspace",
  "patchNoFunction": "Display-PatchDayNo",
  "defaultDatabaseServer": "localhost",
  "defaultDatabaseInstance": "",
  "objectsNotToDelete": "(14125500..14125600)",
  "sigToolExecutable": "C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Windows Kits\\10\\bin\\x64\\signtool.exe",
  "codeSigningCertificate": "",
  "codeSigningCertificatePassword": "",
  "setupPath": "setup.json",
  "objectsPath": "Objects",
  "deltasPath": "Deltas",
  "reverseDeltasPath": "ReverseDeltas",
  "extensionPath": "Extension1",
  "imagesPath": "Images",
  "screenshotsPath": "ScreenShots",
  "permissionSetsPath": "PermissionSets",
  "addinsPath": "Addins",
  "languagePath": "Languages",
  "tableDataPath": "TableDatas",
  "customReportLayoutsPath": "CustomReportLayouts",
  "webServicesPath": "WebServices",
  "binaryPath": "Binaries",
  "targetPlatform": "DynamicsNAV",
  "VSCodePath": "AL",
  "NewSyntaxPrefix": "NewSyntax"
}

Just specify the file name in the license folder.

The license configured in GITSettings.json will be used as default for all builds.  However, as mentioned earlier, every settings in GITSettings.json can be overwritten by the settings in each branch.

The settings file in each branch is named according to the “setupPath” parameter in GITSettings.json.  If we take a look at the setup.json file for my G/L Source Names solution.

{
  "branchId": "479e77f3-031a-49fe-bb6a-314464c6a9a8",
  "navVersion": "10.0.15052.0",
  "navSolution": "W1",
  "projectName": "GLSOURCENAMES",
  "baseBranch": "master",
  "storeAllObjects": "false",
  "uidOffset": "70009200",  
  "licenseFile": "Kappi.flf",
  "versionList": "GLSN10.0",
  "objectProperties": "true",
  "datetimeCulture": "is-IS",
  "targetPlatform": "Dynamics365",
  "appId": "479e77f3-031a-49fe-bb6a-314464c6a9a8",
  "appName": "G/L Source Names",
  "appPublisher": "Objects4NAV",
  "appVersion": "1.0.0.1",
  "appCompatibilityId": "",
  "appManifestName": "G/L Source Names",
  "appManifestDescription": "G/L Source Names adds the source name to the G/L Entries page.  Source Name is the customer in sales transaction and the vendor in purchase transactions", 
  "appBriefDescription": "Source Names in G/L Entries",
  "appPrivacyStatement": "http://objects4nav.com/privacy",
  "appEula": "http://objects4nav.com/terms",
  "appHelp": "http://objects4nav.com/glsourcenames",
  "appUrl": "http://objects4nav.com",
  "appIcon": "Logo250x250",  
  "appDependencies":
    [
  
    ],
  "appPrerequisites":
    [
  
    ],
  "permissionSets":
    [
  		{"id": "G/L-SOURCE NAMES",    "description": "Read G/L Source Names"},
  		{"id": "G/L-SOURCE NAMES, E", "description": "Update G/L Source Names"},
  		{"id": "G/L-SOURCE NAMES, S", "description": "Setup G/L Source Names"}
  	],
  "webServices":
    [
    
    ],
  "dotnetAddins":
    [
  
    ],
  "tableDatas":
    [
   
    ]
}

Here I need to use another license file.  The one used when I applied for the object range for my extension.

Licenses are not to be stored in SQL backups used by AdvaniaGIT.  When using AdvaniaGIT to create SQL backups the license is removed before creating the backup and reinstalled afterwards.

The first function that is executed after SQL database restore is a database upgrade with the development environment.  This must be done to make sure that the database fits the service version being used.  For this database upgrade function to be successful, first either make sure that the database does not contain expired license, and make sure that you have a valid license in the master database.

There are a few ways of doing this.  First, there is an option when installing NAV to upload the license.

Secondly, in the development environment you can upload a license, going through Tools and License Information.

But make sure that the database your development environment is connected to does not have the “Save license in database” set like here, going through File, Database and Alter.

The third option is to use the server administrative shell.

Hope this helps.  More to come soon.  Stay tuned…