Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics 365 – Add Custom Button on Entity with URL Action

Ribbon Workbench for Dynamics 365 – Add Custom Button on Entity with URL Action

Dynamics 365 provides extensive customization capabilities that allow organizations to extend the user experience beyond standard functionality. One of the most commonly requested customizations is adding a custom button to an entity form, grid, or command bar that opens an external URL, Power App, Power BI report, SharePoint page, or third-party application.

Ribbon Workbench is a popular community tool used to visually customize command bars and ribbons in Dynamics 365 through a drag-and-drop interface. It enables administrators and developers to add, modify, and control custom commands without manually editing Ribbon XML.

What is Ribbon Workbench?

Ribbon Workbench is a tool that allows developers to customize:

• Entity Forms
• Home Grids
• Subgrids
• Command Bars
• Ribbon Buttons

The tool provides visual ribbon editing capabilities and is commonly used to create custom buttons, commands, display rules, and actions.

Why Add a Custom Button?

Organizations frequently need quick access to:

Power BI Reports

Open dashboards directly.

SharePoint Documents

Navigate to document locations.

External Applications

Launch integrated business systems.

Power Apps

Open Canvas Apps.

Power Pages

Navigate to customer portals.

Internal Websites

Access company resources.

Example:

Customer Record
↓
Custom Button
↓
Open Customer Portal

Business Scenario

Suppose users open an Account record.

Requirement:

Account Record
↓
Click Button
↓
Open Customer Portal

Instead of copying URLs manually, users can click a custom ribbon button.

Prerequisites

Before starting:

Install Ribbon Workbench

Import Ribbon Workbench into Dynamics 365 and open it from a solution. Typical customization workflows involve importing the solution and then selecting the target solution inside Ribbon Workbench.

Create a Solution

Example:

CRM Customizations

Add:

Account Entity

or any target entity.

Step 1: Open Ribbon Workbench

Navigate to:

Solutions
↓
Ribbon Workbench

Select:

Your Solution

The entity command bar loads into the designer. Ribbon Workbench loads ribbon components from the selected solution and displays them visually for editing.

Step 2: Locate Entity Ribbon

Example:

Account Entity

Select:

Form Ribbon

or

Home Grid Ribbon

Depending on where the button should appear.

Step 3: Add New Button

From the Ribbon Workbench toolbox:

Buttons
↓
Drag Button
↓
Drop on Ribbon

Configure:

Label

Open Portal

Tooltip

Open Customer Portal

Icon

Portal Icon

Ribbon Workbench supports assigning custom 16x16 and 32x32 images for command buttons.

Step 4: Create a Command

Every button requires a command.

Create:

OpenPortalCommand

Commands define what happens when users click a ribbon button.

Step 5: Configure URL Action

Add:

URL Action

Example:

https://portal.contoso.com

When users click:

Open Portal

The URL opens automatically.

Ribbon actions can invoke URLs or JavaScript functions and can pass contextual information through parameters.

Step 6: Pass Record Information Dynamically

Many scenarios require passing record data.

Example:

https://portal.contoso.com/customer?id=

Append:

AccountId

Result:

https://portal.contoso.com/customer?id={GUID}

The portal opens the correct customer record.

Ribbon actions support passing contextual information such as selected records, entity names, and form context using CRM parameters.

Example URL

https://portal.contoso.com/customer?id={AccountId}

Output:

https://portal.contoso.com/customer?id=6A7D1234

Users are redirected to the corresponding customer page.

Step 7: Configure Display Rules

Display rules control button visibility.

Example:

Show button only when:

Status = Active

or

Form Type = Existing Record

Dynamics 365 ribbon customization supports display rules based on form state, entity properties, user privileges, and client type.

Step 8: Configure Enable Rules

Enable rules determine whether the button is clickable.

Example:

Record Owner = Current User

or

Status = Active

If conditions fail:

Button Disabled

Step 9: Publish Changes

Click:

Publish

Ribbon Workbench updates command definitions and deploys the customization.

Example Workflow

Account Record
↓
Custom Button
↓
Pass Account ID
↓
Open URL
↓
Customer Portal Opens

Open Power BI Report

URL:

https://app.powerbi.com

Custom Button:

View Dashboard

Users access reports directly from CRM.

Open Power Apps

URL:

https://apps.powerapps.com/play/APPID

Custom Button:

Open Power App

Launch a Canvas App from Dynamics 365.

Open SharePoint Folder

URL:

https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/projects

Custom Button:

Open Documents

Users access project documents instantly.

Advanced Scenario

Pass Multiple Parameters

Example:

https://portal.contoso.com
?accountid={AccountId}
&name={AccountName}

Workflow:

Record Open
↓
Button Click
↓
Pass Record Data
↓
External Application

Using JavaScript Instead of Direct URL

Some scenarios require additional logic.

Command:

JavaScript Function

Example:

function OpenPortal(id)
{
    window.open(
        "https://portal.contoso.com?id=" + id
    );
}

Ribbon commands can invoke JavaScript and receive form context parameters such as PrimaryControl for accessing record information.

Real-World Example

Customer Self-Service Portal

Entity:

Account

Button:

Open Portal

Action:

Pass Account ID

Result:

Customer portal opens directly for the selected account.

This eliminates manual searching and improves productivity.

Best Practices

• Use Display Rules
• Show buttons only when required
• Use Enable Rules
• Prevent invalid actions
• Pass Dynamic Parameters
• Avoid hardcoded values
• Use Secure URLs (HTTPS)
• Test Across Environments
• Validate URLs after deployment
• Use Solution-Based Deployment

Ribbon Workbench vs Modern Command Designer

Modern Dynamics 365 also provides Command Bar customization capabilities directly in Power Apps. However, Ribbon Workbench remains useful for advanced scenarios and legacy command customizations.

Benefits

• Faster Navigation – Access external systems instantly.
• Improved User Experience – Reduce manual navigation.
• Better Productivity – One-click access to business applications.
• Seamless Integration – Connect Dynamics 365 with external systems.
• Flexible Customization – Support any URL-based business process.

Common Use Cases

• Customer Portals
• SharePoint Integration
• Power BI Reports
• Power Apps
• Internal Applications

Conclusion

Ribbon Workbench remains one of the most powerful tools for customizing Dynamics 365 command bars and ribbons.

By adding custom buttons with URL actions, organizations can integrate Dynamics 365 with Power Apps, Power Pages, SharePoint, Power BI, and external business applications while improving user productivity and simplifying navigation.

Whether you need to open reports, portals, document libraries, or third-party systems, custom ribbon buttons provide a flexible and user-friendly solution for extending Dynamics 365 functionality.