My report from the technical conference.

For the first session of the last day, I went to Ask the Experts: Developer and customization experience with Peter Villadsen, Robert Badawy,and  Joris de Gruyter. Quite the lineup!

Being an Ask the Experts, it had no set structure other than a Question & Answer format. Here are my scribbled notes on them. Note that it seemed everyone was sick & there was a lot of coughing during the questions and answers.

1. Replicated DB’s: adding indexes, etc.
2. Upgrade: prepare your code in 2012, split it in AX 7. Wiki has hints on code upgrade
3. One solution with two projects: cut and paste across projects
4. No need for remote based app / remote desktop
5. Security and data
6. DB replicas are read only, near real time. Can we query this? Not sure
7. SSRS still used, pretty unchanged. We don’t yet support extensions on reports
8. Jobs – now class – static void main(Args) and set as startup. Alternatively for data update you can create a data project. Use the data management framework
9. Alternative to SSIS: Whole new world of BI. Use Wiki > Analytics
10. PowerBI?
11. Move elements to different model? Yes. In projects via cut and paste. Alternatively just move the files. While you’re doing that, consider creating extensions.
12. Wiki > Developer > Code migration > Prepare to migrate 
13. Something how long it takes to run. Load balancing, zero downtime, deployment – automated on our end but manual work on Microsoft’s end. They are improving.
14. Printers – still support ZPL / zebra. Install an app locally that has access to printers
15. Extensions – there is a metadata API. It’s all file based.
16. How to develop. We do not recommend or support development in a shared AOS. Multiple developers can be on the same box. You can also duplicate the modelstore: Copy the packages folder in C:\ or J:\
17. XLNT framework? Use Raw API and somewhat raw API
18. Deploying deltas. If you overlay, it contains models underneath it
19. Unit tests. You can write unit tests. Remember that testing is very data bound. Microsoft test code is large
20. Multiple developers on the same box. Production database copied to development box – talks are ongoing
21. How browser connects to server. Use SysOperation framework. Use cancel button
22. Models, XML files are design time concept. Labels have no IDs now. You should name your labels
23. Explanation of packages and extensions. In the file system you see packages when you create an extension. You create a new package.
24. Copy of production database that’s not being refreshed for sandbox – the features exist, are currently being worked on.
25. Code refactoring. There are not very good tools. Macros cause issues.

Here I need to give a shout out to the guy with the great shoes! Keep on stylin’!

Happy DAXing!