When to Use Azure Data Factory vs Logic Apps in Dynamics 365 Integrations
You’re integrating Dynamics 365 CRM with other systems—but you’re confused:
Should I use Azure Data Factory or Logic Apps?
Both support connectors, data transformation, and scheduling—but serve different purposes.
When you’re working on integrating Dynamics 365 with other systems, two Azure tools often come up: Azure Logic Apps and Azure Data Factory (ADF). I’ve been asked many times — “Which one should I use?” — and honestly, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. Based on real-world experience integrating D365 CRM and Finance, here’s how I approach choosing between Logic Apps and ADF.
When to Use Logic Apps
Azure Logic Apps is ideal when your integration involves:
1. Event-Driven / Real-Time Integration
- Trigger a process when a CRM record is created or modified.
- Example: When a lead is created in CRM, notify a sales manager in Teams.
2. REST APIs and Lightweight Automation
- Works well with HTTP connectors, OData, webhooks, or any service with APIs.
- Example: Syncing customer data from CRM to a REST-based ERP system.
3. Business Process Workflows
- Logic Apps is great for orchestrating step-by-step logic, approvals, and conditions.
- Example: When an opportunity is won, update SharePoint and send approval email.
4. Quick and Visual Flow Creation
- Best when you want to quickly build and visualize integrations using the designer.
Azure Data Factory is better for:
1. Large Volume, Batch Data Movement
- Move hundreds of thousands of records on a schedule.
- Example: Daily export of CRM contact data to Azure Data Lake or SQL Server.
2. ETL / ELT Scenarios
- Use ADF when you need Extract, Transform, Load patterns.
- Example: Pull CRM data, clean it in Data Flow, and load into a data warehouse.
3. Integration with Data Lakes and Warehouses
- ADF works well with Azure Synapse, Data Lake, Parquet files, etc.
- Example: Scheduled batch job moving data from Dataverse to Synapse for reporting.
4. Advanced Data Flow Transformation
- ADF’s Mapping Data Flows allows joins, lookups, conditional splits—not supported in Logic Apps directly.
Feature Comparison Table
| Feature | Logic Apps | Data Factory |
| Trigger on Record Creation/Update | Yes | No (Batch Only) |
| Handles APIs (HTTP, REST, OData) | Excellent | Limited |
| Real-time Integration | Yes | No |
| Large Data Volumes (Batch) | Limited | Excellent |
| Data Lake / Warehouse Integration | Basic (via connectors) | Deep support |
| Visual Workflow | Visual Designer | Visual (for Data Flows) |
| Custom Code / Transformation | Limited (use Azure Function) | Strong via Data Flows |
| Cost for High Volume | Higher (Per Run) | Cost-efficient for batch |
Real-World Scenarios
- Use Logic Apps When:
- You want to send an email when an invoice is overdue in CRM.
- You need to sync record updates from CRM to an external system via HTTP in real-time.
- You want to automate approvals with CRM, Outlook, and SharePoint.
2. Use ADF When:
- You need to extract 10 million contact records from CRM daily and load them to Data Lake.
- You’re building a data pipeline from CRM → SQL → Power BI.
- You want to perform joins and aggregations before storing data.
To conclude, choose Logic Apps for real-time, low-volume, API-based workflows.
Use Data Factory for batch ETL pipelines, high-volume exports, and reporting pipelines.
Integrations in Dynamics 365 CRM aren’t one-size-fits-all—pick the right tool based on the data size, speed, and transformation needs.
- Combine both: Use Logic Apps for triggering, and ADF for heavy lifting.
- Use Azure Function with Logic Apps for custom transformation.
- Store integration configs and logs in Blob Storage or Table Storage.
We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfonts.com
