Set up an online store

Applies To: Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R3, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R2

This topic explains how to set up an online store, which is a type of retail channel that customers can access on the web. An online store gives a retailer an online presence so that their customers can purchase products from their online store in addition to their brick-and-mortar store. Customers who purchase products from the online store can have the products shipped to them, or they can pick up the products from a local store.

The process of setting up an online store includes the following overall tasks:

1. Create the online store.

2. Add the store to the appropriate organization hierarchies.

3. Configure the store details.

4. Publish the store to a Microsoft SharePoint site.

After you publish the store, you can create retail product catalogs that you can publish to the store. The retail product catalogs contain the products that you offer through the online store. For information about how to create retail product catalogs, see Key tasks: Create retail product catalogs.

Prerequisites

You create an online store in Microsoft Dynamics AX and then publish it to a SharePoint site. Before you can publish an online store, you must do the following:

• In AX 2012 R2 and AX 2012 Feature Pack, set up a distribution location for the online store. For more information, see Create distribution locations for retail databases.

• In AX 2012 R3, set up a channel database profile instead of a distribution location. The channel database profile sets up the links between the online store in Microsoft Dynamics AX and the database that you use to publish the online store. For more information about how to set up a channel database profile, see Set up a channel database profile.

• Configure the appropriate publishing and product catalog site collections for the SharePoint site. For information about how to configure the site collections for a SharePoint site, see Deploy a Microsoft Dynamics AX online store.

Create an online store

Use this procedure to create the basic structure for the online store. The details that you define for the online store in Microsoft Dynamics AX control the behavior of the online store after it is published. For more information, see About online stores.

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. On the Online stores list page, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, click Online store.

2. In the Online store form, on the General FastTab, enter information in the following fields:

   Field	Description
   Name	Enter a name for the new online store.
   Company In AX 2012 R3, this field is called Legal entity.	Select the legal entity that the online store belongs to.
   Warehouse	Select the warehouse that products are shipped or sourced from. This warehouse is used by default. Note In AX 2012 R3, you can only configure a Microsoft Dynamics AX Retail store to use a warehouse that is managed in Inventory management. You can’t configure a Retail store to use a warehouse that is managed in Warehouse management.
   Search name	Enter the store name that is displayed when a shopper searches for the store online.
   Category hierarchy	Select the navigation category hierarchy for the online store. Online stores must be assigned to a category hierarchy that is assigned to the Retail channel navigation hierarchy category hierarchy type. Important In AX 2012 R3, this field is located in the Channel product attributes form, on the General FastTab. To open the Channel product attributes form, in the Online store form, on the Set up tab, click Store product attributes. For information about how to set up a retail channel navigation hierarchy, see Set up a retail hierarchy.
   Currency	Select the currency that is accepted by default for the online store.
   Default customer	Select the default customer for the online store. You can use the default customer as a template for entering the shipping address and other transaction information when a customer is added to an online transaction but is not yet registered in the store.
   Customer address book	Select the address book to which to add customer records that are created in the online store.
   Real-time Service profile	Select the service profile. The online store uses the profile data to access Microsoft Dynamics AX Application Object Server (AOS) to retrieve or update information in real time.
   Channel profile (optional)	Select the channel profile for the online store. The channel profile contains the URLs for the publishing site collection and the catalog site collection for the online store. This control is available only if Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R3 is installed.
   Live channel database (optional)	Select the database for the channel that is currently active. This control is available only if Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R3 is installed.
   Prices include sales tax	Select this check box to indicate that the online store's prices include sales tax or value added-tax (VAT).
   Email notification profile	Select the profile that contains the email message templates to use to communicate with customers at different points in the sales process for the online store.

3. On the Payment accounts FastTab, in the Connectors field, select the payment connector that is used to connect to the payment provider. Then enter the configuration data to enable payment processing for transactions that are received through the online store.

4. On the Languages FastTab, click Add to add the languages that can be displayed in the online store. Select the Default check box to specify the language that appears by default.

Assign an online store to an organization hierarchy

Before you can assign product assortments, fulfill orders for the online store that you created, or generate reports that include information from it, you must assign the store to one or more organization hierarchies. At a minimum, you must assign the online store to an organization hierarchy that includes product assortments. For more information about how to create and modify organization hierarchies, see Create or modify an organization hierarchy.

1. Click Organization administration > Setup > Organization > Organization hierarchies.

2. In the Organization hierarchies form, select the hierarchy to add the online store to, and then click View.

3. In the Hierarchy designer - form, on the Action Pane, click Edit.

4. Click Insert, and then click Retail channel. In the Retail channel form, select an organization to add the online store to, and then click OK.

5. After you finish making changes, follow one of these steps:

   • To save a draft, on the Action Pane, click Save as draft. Your changes are saved, but the hierarchy does not become active.

   • If you have finished making changes to the hierarchy, click Publish and close. When you publish a hierarchy, you must specify an effective date. The effective date indicates when the hierarchy becomes active.

   Note

   If you close the Hierarchy designer - form without saving changes, a message appears asking you to save the hierarchy as a draft or discard your changes. If you close the message without making a selection, your changes are discarded.

6. Repeat steps 2 through 5 to add the online store to additional organization hierarchies.

Configure an online store

After you set up the basic information for an online store and add it to the appropriate organization hierarchies, you can add more configuration data for the store, such as assortments, delivery modes, and attributes. Then, publish the online store to create the basic store structure for the SharePoint site. After the online store is published, you can assign product catalogs to it and publish your retail products to the online store to make the products available to your customers.

Depending on the version of AX 2012 you’re using, use one of the following procedures to configure an online store.

Configure an online store in AX 2012 R2 and AX 2012 Feature Pack

To configure an online store in AX 2012 R2 and AX 2012 Feature Pack, follow these steps:

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. In the Online stores list, double-click a store.

2. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, in the Inventory group, click View assortments.

3. In the View assortments list, double-click an assortment. Alternatively, on the Action Pane, in the New group, click Assortment to add a new assortment.

4. In the Assortments form, on the Retail channels FastTab, add the online store. If you are adding a new assortment, enter any additional details for the assortment. When you are finished, close the form.

5. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, in the Pricing group, click Price groups.

6. In the Retail channel price groups form, add the price groups for the online store, and then close the form. Price groups define the trade agreements and promotions that apply to the online store.

   To view the prices, price adjustments, and discounts of all the products that are assigned to the online store, on the Action Pane, in the Pricing group, click Price list.

7. On the Action Pane, on the Set up tab, follow these steps:

   1. Click Channel attributes to add the attribute groups that apply to the entire store. For example, a channel attribute might include a PayPal address or an IP address for the online store. Channel attributes are applied when the online store is published.

   2. Click Channel product attributes to add attributes that apply to all products in the online store, such as a Universal Products Code (UPC). Channel product attributes are applied to the product listings when the retail product catalog is published.

   3. Click Sales order attributes to add attributes that are specific to sales orders. Sales-order attributes are applied to sales orders that are generated from the online store. For example, you can add a sales order attribute for a gift box.

   4. Click Map attributes. In the Map attributes form, for each category in the online store, select the options that indicate how the attributes for each category or channel product should behave in the online store on the SharePoint site. For example, you can select whether attributes are required, whether they can be used for search, and whether they can be used as a filter in the navigation pane in the online store.

      For more information about how to map attributes, see Manage the search schema in SharePoint 2013 Preview.

   5. Click Modes of delivery to select the delivery methods that are offered by the online store.

   6. Click Payment methods to select the payment methods that are accepted by the online store, such as credit cards and PayPal.

   7. Click Store locator group assignment to assign the online store to a store locator group. When you assign stores to store locator groups, customers can be directed to locations where products are available, based on the retail store or online store where a product inquiry is made.

   8. Click Distribution locations to set up the links between the online store in Microsoft Dynamics AX and the database that you use to publish the online store.

Configure an online store in AX 2012 R3

To configure an online store in AX 2012 R3, follow these steps:

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. In the Online stores list, double-click a store.

2. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, in the Inventory group, click View assortments.

3. In the View assortments list, double-click an assortment. Alternatively, on the Action Pane, in the New group, click Assortment to add a new assortment.

4. In the Assortments form, on the Retail channels FastTab, add the online store. If you are adding a new assortment, enter any additional details for the assortment. When you’re finished, close the form.

5. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, in the Pricing group, click Price groups.

6. In the Retail channel price groups form, add the price groups for the online store, and then close the form. Price groups define the trade agreements and promotions that apply to the online store.

   To view the prices, price adjustments, and discounts of all the products that are assigned to the online store, on the Action Pane, in the Pricing group, click Pricing.

7. On the Action Pane, on the Set up tab, follow these steps:

   1. Click Channel attributes to add the attribute groups that apply to the entire store. For example, a channel attribute might include a PayPal address or an IP address for the online store. Channel attributes are applied when the online store is published.

   2. Click Store product attributes to add, modify, or remove product attributes, attribute values, and attribute metadata for any product or product category in the retail product hierarchy that is assigned to the online store. You can maintain attributes for individual products or product categories or you can maintain product attributes in bulk by using Microsoft Excel.

      To map product attributes to attribute metadata, in the Channel product attributes form, on the Setup tab, click Set attribute metadata.

      For more information about how to map attributes, see Manage the search schema in SharePoint 2013 Preview. For more information about maintaining product attributes for a retail channel, see Add and update product attributes for retail channels.

   3. Click Sales order attributes to add attributes that are specific to sales orders. Sales-order attributes are applied to sales orders that are generated from the online store. For example, you can add a sales order attribute for a gift box.

   4. Click Modes of delivery to select the delivery methods that are offered by the online store.

   5. Click Payment methods to select the payment methods that are accepted by the online store, such as credit cards and PayPal.

   6. Click Store locator group assignment to assign the online store to a store locator group. When you assign stores to store locator groups, customers can be directed to locations where products are available, based on the retail store or online store where a product inquiry is made.

   7. Click Channel database to set up the links between the online store in Microsoft Dynamics AX and the database that you use to publish the online store.

Publish an online store

After you configure an online store, you can publish it. How you publish the online store depends on what version of AX 2012 you’re using and whether you are publishing the online store for the first time or republishing an existing online store.

Depending on the version of AX 2012 you’re using, use one of the following procedures to publish an online store.

Publish an online store in AX 2012 R2 and AX 2012 Feature Pack

Use one of the following procedures to publish an online store depending on your circumstances.

If you are publishing the online store for the first time

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. In the Online stores list, double-click a store.

2. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, click Publish to publish the channel to a SharePoint site. When you click the Publish button, the Publishing status is set to In progress.

3. On the Action Pane, on the Set up tab, click Distribution locations.

4. In the Distribution locations form, click Functions, and then click Deploy initial dataset.

5. In the Select distribution schedule dialog box, select the A-1075_OC job, and then click OK.

6. In the Job for initial replication of data to an environment form, leave all fields as they appear by default, and then click OK.

7. After the scheduler job is complete, one of the following publishing statuses is displayed for the online store:

   • Published – The online store has been published to the SharePoint site. The category navigation has been created in the online store, and retail product catalogs can be published to the online store.

   • Failed – An error has occurred and the publishing process could not be completed.

If you are republishing an existing online store

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. In the Online stores list, double-click a store.

2. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, click Publish to publish the channel to a SharePoint site. When you click the Publish button, the Publishing status is set to In progress.

3. Click Retail > Periodic > Data distribution > Create actions. Leave all fields as they appear by default, and then click OK to run the Create actions job.

4. Click Retail > Periodic > Data distribution > Distribution schedule. In the Distribution schedule form, follow these steps:

   1. In the left pane, select the distribution schedule A-1075_OC.

   2. On the Scheduler jobs FastTab, verify that the job number A-1075_OC is displayed in the list.

   3. Run the scheduler job. To manually run the scheduler job, on the menu bar at the top of the form, click Run now. To run the scheduler job in batch mode, on the Scheduler jobs FastTab, verify that the Enabled check box is selected for the job, and then click Create batch job. In the form that opens, enter information about the batch job. For more information about the options in the form, see Submit a batch processing job from a form.

5. After the scheduler job is complete, one of the following publishing statuses is displayed for the online store:

   • Published – The online store has been published to the SharePoint site. The category navigation has been updated in the online store, and retail product catalogs can be published to the online store.

   • Failed – An error has occurred and the publishing process could not be completed.

Publish an online store in AX 2012 R3

Use one of the following procedures to publish an online store depending on your circumstances.

If you are publishing the online store for the first time

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. In the Online stores list, double-click a store.

2. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, click Publish to publish the channel to a SharePoint site. When you click the Publish button, the Publishing status is set to In progress.

3. Click Retail > Periodic > Data distribution > Distribution schedule. Select the distribution schedule 1070, and then click OK.

4. In the Job for initial replication of data to an environment form, leave all fields as they appear by default, and then click OK.

5. After the scheduler job is complete, one of the following publishing statuses is displayed for the online store:

   • Published – The online store has been published to the SharePoint site. The category navigation has been created in the online store, and retail product catalogs can be published to the online store.

   • Failed – An error has occurred and the publishing process could not be completed.

If you are republishing an existing online store

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. In the Online stores list, double-click a store.

2. In the Online store form, on the Action Pane, on the Channel tab, click Publish to publish the channel to a SharePoint site. When you click the Publish button, the Publishing status is set to In progress.

3. Click Retail > Periodic > Data distribution > Distribution schedule. In the Distribution schedule form, follow these steps:

   1. In the left pane, select the distribution schedule 1070.

   2. Run the scheduler job. To manually run the scheduler job, on the menu bar at the top of the form, click Run now. To run the scheduler job in batch mode, on the Scheduler jobs FastTab, verify that the Enabled check box is selected for the job, and then click Create batch job. In the form that opens, enter information about the batch job. For more information about the options in the form, see Submit a batch processing job from a form.

4. After the scheduler job is complete, one of the following publishing statuses is displayed for the online store:

   • Published – The online store has been published to the SharePoint site. The category navigation has been updated in the online store, and retail product catalogs can be published to the online store.

   • Failed – An error has occurred and the publishing process could not be completed.

   If a retail catalog is set up for the online store, also run the 1150 (Catalog) job to publish the catalog data by following the instructions in step 3.

(IND) Set up tax parameters for an online store

Use the Online stores form to set up the parameters that determine how taxes are displayed for online stores in India and to verify tax registration numbers for the legal entity. The tax registration numbers of the legal entity are displayed on the Tax information FastTab based on the warehouse selection that you make in the Online stores form.

To perform this task, follow these steps:

1. Click Retail > Common > Retail channels > Online stores. In the Online stores list, double-click a store.

2. On the General FastTab, clear the Prices include sales tax check box.

3. In the Sales tax group for inter-state transactions field, specify the sales tax group that is used for transactions for which the origin and delivery addresses are in two different states.

4. Select the Display tax amount per tax component check box to display the tax amount for each tax component. When you check out an item from an online store, the tax amount that is calculated for each tax component is displayed along with the total tax amount.

See also

Online stores (list page)

Online store (form)

About online stores

Set up an assortment

Set up a retail hierarchy

Set up store payment methods

Add and update product attributes for retail channels

Troubleshoot installation issues for a Retail online store