Use of Context Methods in Lasernet FO Connector

This article introduces the Lasernet Connector Context Method coding framework for Lasernet FO Connector. This framework enables you to migrate highly complex data selections and calculations from FinOps methods into an XML structure.

Before using the framework, consider whether your requirements can be met using the Query Wizard functionality.

The following documentation includes examples demonstrating the capabilities of the Query Wizard when enabling the Group by query property:

• Query Wizard - Examples - Lasernet FO Connector User Guide

• Calculations - Custom / Direct SQL

Prerequisites

Access to Visual Studio for Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations and some developer experience.

Create a Lasernet Connector Context Method

To create a Lasernet Connector context method, follow the steps described in the following sections.

1. Create a Class

Create a new class in Visual Studio, such as the one below.

It is important to add the suffix _Extension to the class name to identify that the method can be used in Lasernet FO Connector, for instance, in a report’s structure.

public static class LACContextMethod_Extension
{
}

2. Create a Method

2. Create a method within the class, such as the one below. In this example, the CustConfirmJour table is used as the first argument; therefore, the method is selected from this table. The second argument should always be LACContext.

• context.newSection adds a new section to the XML structure.

• context.newElement adds a new element to the XML structure.

public static class LACContextMethod_Extension
{
    public static void LAContextMethod(CustConfirmJour custConfirmJour, LACContext context)
    {
        XmlNode sectionNode = context.newSection('MyCustomSectionInReport');
        context.newElement("MyCustomDetail", CustConfirmJour.confirmAmount, sectionNode);
    }
}

3. Once this is done, rebuild the code in Visual Studio and either start Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations from Visual Studio or refresh an existing FO session.

4. Click the Clear Lasernet cache button in the General FastTab of the Lasernet parameters page to refresh the list of methods that can be selected in Lasernet FO Connector.

5. Navigate to Lasernet > Common > Reports and select the desired report. Then, click Structure (Elements) on the Action pane.

6. Once the Structure (Elements) form opens, select the newly created method. In the following example, the LACContextMethod is added to the SalesConfirmReplacement report.

When the report is run, it contains the following information from the Lasernet Connector context method:

Common

When creating your method, instead of selecting a specific table, you can use the Common placeholder, which enables you to use the method on any Lasernet FO Connector table.

In the example below, Common is used to insert markups and charges.

By using Common for markupTrans, the method can be used on any table and, therefore, in any report. Follow these steps:

1. Use context.newLabel to insert a label into the XML structure.

public static class LACContextMethod_Extension
{
    public static void LACMarkupTrans(Common common, LACContext context)
    {
        XmlNode detailNode,sectionNode = context.newSection("Markup");
        MarkupTrans markupTrans;
        context.newLabel('Label_MarkupTxt', "@SYS13566", sectionNode);
        context.newLabel('Label_MarkupValue', "@SYS23652", sectionNode);
        while select * from markupTrans
            where markupTrans.TransTableId == common.TableId
            && MarkupTrans.TransRecId == common.RecId
        {
            detailNode = context.newSection("MarkupDetail", sectionNode);
            context.newElement("MarkupTxt", markupTrans.Txt, detailNode);
            context.newElement('MarkupValue', MarkupTrans.Value, detailNode, extendedTypeNum(MarkupValue));
        }
    }
}

2. Rebuild the code in Visual Studio, then click the Clear Lasernet cache button on the Lasernet parameters page of Lasernet FO Connector.

3. Add the newly created method to the desired report’s structure.

When the SalesConfirmReplacement report is run on a sales order containing charges and markups, the output will look similar to the following XML:

Formatting

Formatting can be achieved using an “extended datatype” or an expression:

• Extended datatype:

context.newElement("LACConfirmAmountExtended", CustConfirmJour.confirmAmount, sectionNode, ExtendedTypeNum(AmountCur));

• The convert2CultureStrCutom function, which can use the same expression as the Lasernet FO Connector user interface.

context.newElement('LACConfirmAmount', context.convert2CultureStrCustom(custConfirmJour.confirmAmount, 
'###(.)##[,]##'),SectionNode);
context.newElement('LACConfirmDate', context.convert2CultureStrCustom(custConfirmJour.ConfirmDate, 'yyyy(-)MM-dd'),SectionNode, 
extendedTypeNum(TransDate));

Date

Date Time

Number

Time

The following example shows different formatting of the confirmAmount and any markup and charges from CustConfirmTrans (line level) to the XML structure:

public static class LACContextMethod_Extension
{
    public static void LAContextMethod(CustConfirmJour custConfirmJour, LACContext context)
    {
        XmlNode sectionNode = context.newSection('MyCustomSectionInReport');
        context.newElement("MyCustomDetail", CustConfirmJour.confirmAmount, sectionNode);
        context.newElement("ConfirmAmount", CustConfirmJour.confirmAmount, sectionNode, ExtendedTypeNum(AmountCur));
        context.newElement('ConfirmAmount5Decimals', context.convert2CultureStrCustom(custConfirmJour.confirmAmount, '', 5), sectionNode); 
        context.newElement('ConfirmAmountFixFormat', context.convert2CultureStrCustom(custConfirmJour.confirmAmount, '###(.)##[,]##'),SectionNode);
        context.newElement('ConfirmDate', context.convert2CultureStrCustom(custConfirmJour.ConfirmDate, 'yyyy(-)MM-dd'),SectionNode, 
        extendedTypeNum(TransDate));
        
        XmlNode detailNode;
        MarkupTrans markupTrans;
   
        while select * from markupTrans
            where markupTrans.TransTableId == custConfirmJour.TableId
            && MarkupTrans.TransRecId == CustConfirmJour.RecId
        {
            detailNode = context.newSection("MarkupDetail");
            context.newElement("MarkupTxt", markupTrans.Txt, detailNode);
            context.newElement('MarkupValue', MarkupTrans.Value, detailNode, extendedTypeNum(MarkupValue));
        }
    }
}

Tutorial Model

You can find more information and examples on how to use the Lasernet Connector Context Method coding framework in the LACTutorialContextMethodsTutorial_Tutorial class from our open source tutorial model, “Lasernet Tutorials”. A new model is released with each new Lasernet FO Connector version and can be downloaded from the Files section of the Lasernet Support Portal.