Managing External Content types in SharePoint 2010

Managing External Content types in SharePoint 2010

An external content type is an XML file that defines an object, such as "Customer," "Order," or "Contact," that can be used in a business application. The definition can include the following information:

The fields of data that are contained in the object

The methods to create, read, update, query, or delete that object

Actions that users can take on the object

Information that supports connecting to the external data source that provides the object’s data

External content types define data that is stored in a supported external system, such as a SQL Server database or other relational database, a SharePoint site, a Web service, or a custom data connector.

An external content type can be added to the Business Data Connectivity service in the following ways:

Use Microsoft SharePoint Designer 2010 to create a new external content type.

Use the external content type designer in Microsoft Visual Studio 2010. The external content types can then be included in a solution package and deployed to the Business Data Connectivity service.

Import an application model into the Business Data Connectivity service application that contains one or more external content types. The external content types are added to the Business Data Connectivity service application.

After an external content type is added to the Business Data Connectivity service application, administrators of that service application can modify its permissions, or add more features such as actions and profile pages.

In this article:

Set permissions on an external content type

View all external content types for an instance of a Business Data Connectivity service application

View all external content types contained in a model

View details of an external content type

Delete an external content type

Add an action to an external content type

Specify the profile page host for a Business Data Connectivity service application instance

Create or update a profile page for an external content type

Set permissions on an external content type

You set permissions on an external content type to specify who can edit the content type, who can execute operations (such as read or update) on it, who can use it to create external lists, and who can set permission on it.

We recommend that you give specific permissions to each user or group that needs them, in such a way that the credentials provide the least privilege necessary to perform the needed tasks. For more information about setting permissions, see Business Connectivity Service permissions overview in "Business Connectivity Services security overview (SharePoint Server 2010)".

To set permissions on an external content type

1. Verify that you have one of the following administrative credentials:

You must be a farm administrator.

You must be an administrator of the Business Data Connectivity service application and have Set Permissions permission on the external content type.

2. On the Central Administration Web site, in the Application Management section, click Manage service applications.

3. In the list of service applications, click the row that contains the Business Data Connectivity service application.

4. On the Service Applications tab, in the Operations section, click Manage.

5. On the Edit tab, in the View group, click External Content Types.

6. Click the check box of each external content type for which you want to set permissions.

7. In the Permissions group, click Set Object Permissions.

8. In the box, type the user accounts, groups, or claims for which permissions will be granted, and then click Add.

Note:

The user account, group, or claim cannot have a vertical bar (|) in its name.