Online Store Set Up Checklist
Exercise 1: Online Channel Configuration and Publishing
Scenario
In this exercise, you will explore the configuration settings for the online starter store channel. This includes the attributes metadata, the store locator groups and the data distribution setup. Then, you will publish the online channel.
Objectives
The objectives include the following:
Explore the setup of the online channel for the Contoso online starter store.
Publish the online channel.
High Level Steps
The high level steps include the following:
1. Open the Contoso online store channel in Microsoft Dynamics AX. 2. Explore the attributes metadata.
3. Examine the store locator group. 4. Publish the online channel.
Detailed Steps
The detailed steps include the following:
1. Open the Microsoft Dynamics AX client, and then select Retail. 2. In the Common section, expand Retail channels.
3. Select Online stores.
4. In the list of online stores, select Contoso online store. Notice that the navigation hierarchy that is assigned to the Contoso online store is shown in the list. Click Edit on the upper-left side of the screen.
5. If a confirmation dialog box appears, click Yes to confirm that you will edit the store and move the store to the draft mode.
The Online store form is displayed. This form includes the configuration settings for the online store, the online storefront and for Microsoft Dynamics AX processing.
6. Explore the Online store window. Notice that, for example, that you can set up the navigation category hierarchy, the payment connector, the languages, and other options.
7. Click the Set up FastTab,and then click Store product attributes. You will find that the Contoso online store is selected. Now, click the Set up
FastTab, and then click Set attributes metadata.
8. The Set attributes metadata window appears. In the left navigation pane, the category hierarchy is displayed. This is the navigation category that is used to move and browse for products in the online store. Expand the Computers node.
9. Select Laptops,and then expand the Channel product attributes
FastTab.
10. Explore the product attributes that are displayed. You can configure how the different attributes will be used in the online storefront. For example, whether an attribute can be searched, or if an attribute should be used as a refiner. Click the Processor attribute.
Notice that the Processor attribute can be searched, retrieved and refined. This means that the web shopper can filter the laptop listing on the online storefront by using his or her processor characteristics. 11. Click the Dimensions attribute.
Notice that, although the Dimensions attribute can be searched and retrieved, the Dimensions attribute cannot be refined. The web shopper cannot filter the laptop by using his or her dimensions because this attribute is not displayed as a refiner in the Contoso online storefront. 12. Close the Map attributes form.
13. Now, explore the store locator group that is set up for the Contoso online store. The store locator group defines the locations that should be considered for in-store pickup scenarios.
15. In the Store locator groups form, notice that there is only one store locator group, All stores, that is set up for the Contoso online channel, and then click Close to return to the Online store window.
16. Now, explore the profiles that are set up for the Contoso online store. In the Online store window, on the Profiles section, explore the settings for a profile configuration in the Contoso online store, such as the Real-time Service Profile and the Channel profile.
17. In the Online store window, click the Channel FastTab, and then click
Publish.
18. Click Yes in the dialog box that is displayed to confirm the channel publishing.
19. Click Close to close the Online store window.
20. Return to the Retail area page by clicking Retail in the navigation path on the upper side of the screen. Leave the Microsoft Dynamics AX client open if you continue to the next exercise.
In this exercise, you will explore the online store catalog setup and publishing. This includes product improvements that have additional metadata that is specific to the online store. Before products can be improved in a catalog, the products must first be assorted to the channel. Therefore, you will explore the assortment that is assigned to the online store. Then, you will review the product metadata that is shared between channels, before you review the online store catalog. Finally, you will validate and publish the online store catalog to the online store.
Objectives
The objectives include the following:
Explore the online store catalog settings.
Examine the shared metadata and the channel-specific metadata.
Publish the online store catalog.
High Level Steps
The high level steps include the following:
1. Explore the assortment that is used for the online channel. 2. Review shared metadata that is set up by using the attribute
groups.
3. Explore the Electronics catalog settings. 4. Review the channel specific product attributes. 5. Explore listings.
6. Remove a product from the catalog. 7. Publish the catalog to the online store.
Detailed Steps
The detailed steps include the following:
1. Open the Microsoft Dynamics AX client and select Retail if the Microsoft Dynamics AX client is not already open.
3. In the list of assortments,select Contoso Electronics. This assortment is used for the Contoso Electronics channels, and includes an online store.
4. Double-click the assortment to view the assortment’s characteristics.
Or, you can click Edit, and then click Yes to confirm that you want to edit the assortment.
5. Explore the Assortment window. Notice that this assortment is assigned to the online channel.
select Product Information Management, or select Product Information Management area in the left navigation pane. Custom attributes can be defined to add the needed metadata to generate effective search and refinement in the online channel.
8. In the Product Information Management area page, in Setup, expand
Attributes, and then select Attribute groups.
Attributes are grouped for easier management, and then assigned to products at the category level.
11. Close the Attributes group form.
12. Explore the attributes for the SLR cameras that are set up in the online store catalog. Browse to the Retail area page by clicking USMF on the navigation path and select Retail, or selectthe Retail area in the left navigation pane.
13. In the Common section, expand Catalogs, and then select Catalogs. 14. Select the Contoso Base Catalog. This catalog is already published and is
currently being used by the Contoso online store.
15. Click Edit, and then click Yes to confirm that you want to edit the catalog. 16. In the category hierarchy, in Electronics, expand the Cameras node and
attributes improve the product in the online store with additional information.
19. The attributes can also be viewed in list form. Click Show list to view the
attributes in a list. Notice the Attribute source column that lists where the attribute is set up.
20. Click Close to return to the catalog window
21. Explore the listings that are created for the improved product when the catalog is published to the online storefront. In the catalog window, make sure that A. Datum SLR Camera X135 is selected, and then click Listings.
22. Review the listings, and then close the Listings form to return to the
Electronic Catalog window.
23. In the Electronics catalog window, clear the selection for A. Datum SLR Camera X135.
24. Remove a product from the catalog. Select the product variant Pink A. Datum SLR Camera X135, and then on the upper area of the Products list, click Remove.
25. The black product variant is removed. Notice that the pink and the silver variants remain in the catalog.
26. In the Publish group, click Validate catalog to validate that the catalog is ready to be published and that there are no errors in the catalog.
28. After the validation is completed, review the validation results. If there are no errors or alerts, click Close.
29. In the Publish group, click Publish.
Important: The lab environment is set up for the catalog to be automatically approved for publishing. However, in live implementations, we recommend that you start the approval workflow for catalog publishing.
30. In the Publish catalog form, in the Publish field, select Only products that have changed to publish only the changes that are made to a catalog since the last time that the catalog is published.
31. In the Product totals by channel grid, review the number of product listings to be created, updated, or deleted when the publishing process is completed.
32. Click OK to start the publishing process.
33. In the Catalogs form, on the Retail channels FastTab, select an online store, and then click Listings.
34. In the Listings form, review the product listings that the publishing process is creating, updating, or deleting. The following statuses are displayed:
a. In progress – The catalog is being published, republished, or retracted.
b. Success – The publishing process is completed and the product listings are updated in the online store.
c. Error – An error occurred, and the product listing could not be processed.
35. Explore other options in the catalog window if you want, and then close the Microsoft Dynamics AX client.