Common Data Service, the underlying platform behind Dynamics 365 and Power Platform has been renamed to Microsoft Dataverse.
Why the name change?
Following on from July’s announcement of Microsoft Dataflex, Microsoft have revealed that Common Data Service will instead now be called Microsoft Dataverse. Copyright issues surrounding the Dataflex name forced a rethink at Microsoft, so Common Data Service (initially earmarked as Dataflex Pro) becomes Microsoft Dataverse and Microsoft Dataflex (also temporarily referred to as Project Oakdale) becomes Microsoft Dataverse for Teams.
What is Microsoft Dataverse for Teams?
Microsoft Dataverse for Teams is a low-code platform that allows organisations to quickly develop and roll out custom apps and chatbots, using Power Apps and Power Virtual Agents. It had been in preview since September, but general availability for the product has been announced this week. The platform allows for custom data structures to be built and maintained, using a user-friendly interface, meaning that simple apps can be developed quickly; all within Microsoft Teams.
Is there anything else I need to know?
To simplify some of the terminology used across the various platforms, Microsoft have announced some terminology changes:
| Legacy Term | New Term |
|---|---|
| Entity, entities | Table, tables |
| Field, fields Attribute, attributes |
Column, columns |
| Record, records | Row, rows |
| Option set, multi select option sets Picklist, picklists |
Choice, choices |
| Two Options | Yes/No |
Summary
We’re excited to see what Microsoft has planned for Microsoft Dataverse for Teams and we will report on further announcements on the product as they happen. The terminology changes were unexpected but understandable – Microsoft want the Dataverse platform to be approachable to all, so a simplification and standardisation of the terms used makes sense. If you are an existing Strategy 365 client and wish to discuss any of the above, please feel free to get in touch with one our experts.
