How to Display a Progress Indicator or Loading Screen in Dynamics 365 CE

How to Display a Progress Indicator or Loading Screen in Dynamics 365 CE

In Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement (CE), users may experience delays when executing long-running operations such as data processing, API calls, record creation, or workflow execution.

Displaying a progress indicator or loading screen improves user experience by providing visual feedback that the system is processing the request.

Why Use a Progress Indicator?

• Improve user experience
• Provide visual feedback during processing
• Reduce repeated user clicks
• Prevent confusion during delays
• Make long-running operations appear responsive

Show a Progress Indicator

Use the showProgressIndicator() method to display a loading screen.

Xrm.Utility.showProgressIndicator(
    "Please wait while the record is being processed..."
);

This displays a modal loading screen with a progress message.

Close the Progress Indicator

After processing is complete, close the indicator using closeProgressIndicator().

Xrm.Utility.closeProgressIndicator();

Complete Example

The following example displays a loading screen, performs processing, and then closes the indicator.

function processRecord()
{
    Xrm.Utility.showProgressIndicator(
        "Processing record..."
    );

    setTimeout(function()
    {
        Xrm.Utility.closeProgressIndicator();
    }, 5000);
}

Common Use Cases

• Record creation and updates
• Custom API integrations
• Power Automate trigger execution
• Bulk data processing
• Workflow automation
• External service calls

Best Practices

• Display meaningful progress messages.
• Always close indicators after processing.
• Use loading screens only when necessary.
• Handle exceptions properly.
• Test long-running operations thoroughly.

Advantages of Progress Indicators

• Better user experience
• Professional application behavior
• Reduced user frustration
• Clear processing status
• Improved usability

Key Takeaways

• showProgressIndicator() displays a loading screen.
• closeProgressIndicator() removes the loading screen.
• Useful for long-running operations and integrations.
• Improves user experience and responsiveness.
• Always close the indicator after processing completes.