Standard, Custom, Activity, Virtual & Elastic Tables Explained
In Microsoft Dynamics 365 and the broader Power Platform, not all tables are created equal. As you design solutions or scale your CRM architecture, choosing the right table type is crucial. The platform offers several table types Standard, Custom, Activity, Virtual, and Elastic tables each built to solve specific business and technical challenges.
Selecting the right one not only improves performance but also enhances maintainability, reporting, and user adoption. In this guide, we break down each table type, explain when to use them, and explore how they can transform your overall Dynamics 365 architecture.
Why Table Types Matter in Dynamics 365
Tables (formerly known as entities) define how data is stored, accessed, and related within your CRM or Power Apps environment. Using the wrong table type can lead to:
- Performance bottlenecks
- Unnecessary storage consumption
- Integration challenges
- Difficulty scaling your apps
- Poor user experience
Understanding your options allows you to design smarter, more efficient solutions.
1. Standard Tables
Standard (out-of-the-box) tables come packaged with Dynamics 365 applications. These include widely used business-oriented tables such as:
- Accounts
- Contacts
- Opportunities
- Cases
- Leads
Why Standard Tables Are Useful
- They follow Microsoft best practices
- Are deeply integrated with other modules
- Provide built-in business logic and relationships
- Reduce customization and maintenance needs
When to Use Them
Always start with Standard tables when they fit your business requirement. Reusing what already exists saves time, avoids data fragmentation, and ensures future compatibility.
2. Custom Tables
Custom tables allow you to tailor the platform to your organization’s unique processes. If no Standard table fits your data model, a Custom table gives you complete flexibility.
Why Custom Tables Matter
- They support custom business processes
- Allow unlimited custom fields and relationships
- Integrate seamlessly with other Dataverse features
- Enable highly specific data modeling
When to Use Them
Use a Custom table when:
- The data does not logically belong in a Standard table
- You need unique business logic or automation
- You want to avoid misusing existing tables for unrelated purposes
Custom tables ensure your architecture remains clean and scalable.
3. Activity Tables
Activity tables are a special type designed to track interactions, such as:
- Emails
- Phone Calls
- Appointments
- Tasks
- Notes
Entities classified as activities share:
- A common Activity schema
- Timeline visibility on records
- Regarding relationships
Why Activity Tables Are Important
They unify communication tracking across the system and help teams understand the full history of customer engagement.
When to Use Them
Use an Activity table when you need to track an interaction between users and customers, especially one with a time component or follow-up requirement.
4. Virtual Tables
Virtual tables allow Dataverse to display data that lives outside of Dynamics—without copying or storing it. They connect to external sources such as:
- SQL databases
- Azure services
- Third-party APIs
- Custom connectors
Why Virtual Tables Are Powerful
- Reduce storage costs
- Provide real-time access to external systems
- Remove the need for data duplication or sync jobs
- Allow external data to behave like native Dataverse data
When to Use Them
Ideal for:
- Integrations where data must remain in an external system
- Read-only or real-time data needs
- Avoiding expensive Dataverse storage when syncing large datasets
Virtual tables streamline integrations while maintaining a connected user experience.
5. Elastic Tables
Elastic tables (formerly “Azure-backed tables”) are designed for high-volume, fast-changing data. They are optimized for scenarios involving:
- Massive datasets
- High-frequency writes
- Telemetry or IoT device data
- Event or log tracking
- Time-series data
Unlike standard Dataverse tables, Elastic tables use scalable Azure storage behind the scenes, making them suitable for workloads that Dataverse’s relational model isn’t built to handle.
When to Use Them
Choose an Elastic table when you need:
- To process thousands or millions of records rapidly
- Cost-effective storage for large data streams
- Real-time ingestion without degrading Dataverse performance
Elastic tables open the door to big-data scenarios inside the Power Platform.
Final Thoughts: Choosing the Right Table Type
Each table type in Dynamics 365 serves a purpose:
- Standard tables → Best for core CRM functionality
- Custom tables → Perfect when you need tailored data modeling
- Activity tables → Ideal for tracking interactions and touchpoints
- Virtual tables → Great for external or real-time data without duplication
- Elastic tables → Built for massive, fast-moving datasets
Choosing the right table type leads to:
- Better performance
- Cleaner architecture
- Lower storage costs
- Greater scalability
- A more intuitive user experience
Understanding these options empowers architects, admins, and makers to build smarter, future-ready solutions in Dynamics 365 and the Power Platform.
