New DataTypes in the MS CRM 2011

In Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, the programming model has been changed to use native .NET types whenever possible.

Type Mapping Between Versions

The following table shows the mapping between the defined type for an entity attribute, the type that is used in a record, and the type that was used in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0.

AttributeTypeCode	Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 type	Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 type
AttributeTypeCode.BigInt	long	N/A
AttributeTypeCode.Boolean	bool	CrmBoolean
AttributeType.CalendarRules	EntityCollection or CalendarRules[]	DynamicEntity[] or calendarrule[]
AttributeType.Customer	EntityReference	Customer
AttributeType.DateTime	System.DateTime	CrmDateTime
AttributeType.Decimal	decimal	CrmDecimal
AttributeType.Double	double	CrmFloat
AttributeType.EntityName	string	Attributes with ObjectTypeCode in DisplayMask
AttributeType.Integer	int	CrmNumber
AttributeType.Lookup	EntityReference	Lookup
AttributeType.ManagedProperty	BooleanManagedProperty	N/A
AttributeType.Memo	string	System.String
AttributeType.Money	Money	CrmMoney
AttributeType.Owner	EntityReference	Owner
AttributeType.PartyList	EntityCollection or ActivityParty[]	activityparty[] or DynamicEntity []
AttributeType.Picklist	OptionSetValue	Picklist
AttributeType. Uniqueidentifier (Formerly PrimaryKey)	System.Guid	Key
AttributeType.String	string	System.String
AttributeType.State	OptionSetValue or enumeration generated for the entity state	EntityNameStateInfo
AttributeType.Status	OptionSetValue	Status
AttributeType.Uniqueidentifier	System.Guid	UniqueIdentifier
AttributeType.Virtual	Not used in records.	Not used in records.

Other Type Changes

The following table lists other notable type changes that were not listed in the table above.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 type	Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 type
DynamicEntity	Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.Entity
CrmAttributeType Class (MetadataService)	Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.Metadata.AttributeTypeCode
Moniker Class (CrmService)	Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.EntityReference
SecurityPrincipal Class (CrmService)	Microsoft.Xrm.Sdk.EntityReference