Every CRM professional has faced this at some point: a workflow that performs flawlessly in testing but slows everything down when deployed at scale. You must have encountered this while handling a bulk update of 10,000 account records during a data migration in Dynamics 365 CRM.
Although triggering a synchronous workflow in Dynamics 365 CRM may seem straightforward, it is not ideal for large-scale operations. When handling bulk record updates, the system may experience performance issues, including frozen screens, delayed processes, and timeout errors that flood the logs. This highlights a key best practice: synchronous workflows are not designed for high-volume or resource-intensive tasks.
To overcome this, you can consider using Background Operations — a Dynamics 365 capability that allows time-consuming processes to run asynchronously without blocking user actions.
What is Background Operation in Dynamics 365 CRM?
In Dynamics 365 CRM, a Background Operation refers to a process or task that runs asynchronously in the system, meaning it executes in the background without blocking user interactions. These operations are designed to handle long-running, resource-intensive, or bulk processes that could otherwise slow down the system if run synchronously.
Why use a Background Operation?
Imagine a CRM administrator responsible for reassigning thousands of leads or updating thousands of account records after a territory restructure.
If you run this as a synchronous workflow, the system processes each record sequentially — waiting for one to finish before moving to the next. This results in:
- Slow user experience for everyone in the system.
- Timeout errors and failed workflow executions.
- Locked resources, affecting other ongoing processes.
The synchronous process creates a bottleneck, forcing the entire organization to wait for a single workflow to complete.
That’s where Background Operations comes into the picture!...Read More>>
