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Preserving Dependencies During a Live Assist Upgrade

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It is normally hard to upgrade Live Assist if you have made any customizations to it. This is why we ask that you try to avoid dependency issues. Of course, we do understand that it is not always possible to do so. In case you do have dependency issues, this article provides a possible workaround for the upgrade.

The workaround may allow you to upgrade without having to use Option 2 of the upgrade guide. It is a possible way to preserve dependencies and make sure data is not lost during the process. However, we cannot guarantee that it will work in each situation. 

Step 1: Find and review your customizations

Follow the steps listed under pre-upgrade checks of the upgrade guide to check for customizations and retrieve any dependencies. You must have a good knowledge of your existing dependencies before you try this approach. 

It would also be wise to carefully document all of your customization and dependencies, so that you can re-apply them manually if needed.

Step 2: Create an "Unmanaged Solution" in Dynamics to preserve your entity customizations and dependencies

The workaround uses an "Unmanaged Solution" to allow export and re-import of customizations and dependencies. Since Live Assist is a "Managed Solution" in Dynamics it cannot be edited or exported itself. 

  1. Open the Power Apps portal and open Solutions from the left navigation pane.
  2. Confirm you are in the correct Environment. Look for the Environment name on the right side of the top menu bar. If it is not the correct environment, click on the listed environment and select the proper one in the list that opens. 
  3. Click the New solution button to create a new unmanaged solution. Give it a name and description of your choice and select the default publisher. Then Save. Your new solution will open.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Solutions page. The New solution button is highlighted.
  4. Click the Add existing button. Add all entities that have a dependency on Live Assist. Make sure you add everything you found in step 1.
    The Power Apps portal open to an Unmanaged solution. The Add Existing button is highlighted.
  5. For each entity you add, link it by adding a many-to-one relationship.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Relationships list for an Entity linked to an Unmanaged solution. The New Relationship button is highlighted as well as the Many-to-one option.

    Important: You must do this with each entity you added

  6. The entity linked with Live Assist should be shown in the relationship list.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Relationships list for an Entity linked to an Unmanaged solution. A relationship with LAD365 is highlighted in the list.
  7. Creating this relationship will create a dependency on the Live Assist solution. This is how you know it was linked properly. 
    The Power Apps portal open to the Dependencies list for the LAD365 Solution. The same relationship shown in the previous screenshot is visible here as well.

Step 3: Export the solution you created and the data from the Account Entity table

  1. Go back to the Solutions page, select your unmanaged solution from the list, and click the Export solution button. Follow the steps in the window that opens to create an export.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Solutions page. The Export solution button is highlighted.
  2. You also need to export the data from the Account Entity table. To do so, open your unmanaged solution from the solutions list. Use the Objects pane to open Account from the Tables group. Then click the Export button to export the data. Make sure that the file format is in CSV.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Objects list for an Unmanaged solution. The Accounts object is open from the Tables group. The export data button is highlighted.
    The Account export pop-up with a link to download the exported data.

Step 4: Remove dependencies on Live Assist to prepare for the upgrade

Now that you have saved the customizations and dependencies in your export, you need to remove them so you can upgrade. 

  1. Go back to the Solutions page, and then switch to the classic view. You can do this by using the more commands (three dots) button. Then click Switch to classic. 
    The Power Apps portal open to the Solutions page. The More Commands (three dots) menu is open, with Switch to classic highlighted.
  2. A new tab will open with the legacy view. 
    The Dynamics 365 classic solutions view
  3. Select and delete any dependencies on the Live Assist solution you want to upgrade.
    The dependencies list for the LAD365 solution
    A relationship is open from the LAD365 dependencies list. The delete button is highlighted.
  4. Go back to the Solutions page in the modern Power Apps portal. (It should still be open as a different tab in your browser.) Delete the unmanaged solution you made earlier by selecting it in the list and clicking Delete.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Solutions page. The solution created earlier is selected. The Delete button is highlighted.

Step 5: Upgrade your Live Assist installation

Follow the steps in under the upgrade the Live Assist package heading of the upgrade guide. After you have confirmed that the latest version was installed, you can continue to the next step. 

Step 6: Import the "Unmanaged Solution" you created to restore your entity customizations and dependencies

When you import that solution that you exported earlier, it will restore your entity customizations and dependencies. It will automatically be linked with Live Assist since the relationships you built before will connect each entity to both the unmanaged solution and Live Assist. 

  1. Open the Power Apps portal and open Solutions from the left navigation pane.
  2. Confirm you are in the correct Environment. Look for the Environment name on the right side of the top menu bar. If it is not the correct environment, click on the listed environment and select the proper one in the list that opens. 
  3. Click the Import solution button. In the panel that opens, choose the solution you exported earlier and follow the steps to import it.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Solutions page. The Import solution button is highlighted.
    A message says Currently importing solution and the solution name
  4. Your dependencies on Live Assist will be restored when your solution is imported. 
    The dependencies list for the LAD365 solution shows the dependencies have been restored
    The dependency details for the LAD365 solution shows the dependencies have been restored
  5. You also need to import the data from the Account Entity table that you exported earlier. To do so, open your unmanaged solution from the solutions list. Use the Objects pane to open Account from the Tables group. Then click on Import data from Excel using the dropdown next to the Import button.
    The Power Apps portal open to the Objects list for an Unmanaged solution. The Accounts object is open from the Tables group. The import menu is open and the import data from excel button is highlighted.
  6. In the panel that opens, choose the file that you exported earlier. It must be in CSV format. Confirm that it is mapped correctly. Wait until mapping status is successful, and then finish the steps to complete the import.
    The import data pane with a file selection field. A file with a CSV extension has been chosen and the mapping status is uploading.
    The import data pane showing Mapping was successful

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