Operators and Values in xRM Data Guard
Every validation rule in xRM Data Guard is powered by two essential components: the Operator and the Value. Together, they form the logic that defines how your data is validated, allowing organizations to enforce data quality, integrity, and compliance directly within Microsoft Dynamics 365.
Understanding Operators
Operators determine how a field’s value is compared or evaluated. They act as the logical core of a validation rule, specifying the exact condition under which a record passes or fails. xRM Data Guard provides a wide range of operators, from simple comparisons to complex expressions.
| Operator | Description |
|---|---|
| Equal | Checks if a field exactly matches a given value. |
| Not Equal | Validates that a field does not match a given value. |
| Contains Data | Ensures a field is not empty or null. |
| Not Contains Data | Checks that a field is empty or not filled. |
| Begins with | Validates that a field starts with a specific string (e.g., “+49”). |
| Not begins with | Ensures that a field does not begin with the defined pattern. |
| Ends with | Checks if a field ends with a specific character or string. |
| Not ends with | Validates that a field does not end with a certain sequence. |
| Greater than | Compares numeric or date values to ensure they are higher than a defined limit. |
| Greater or Equals | Validates that a value is equal to or greater than another value. |
| Less than | Ensures a numeric or date value is smaller than a defined limit. |
| Less or Equals | Checks that a value is less than or equal to the given input. |
| Length min. | Defines the minimum number of characters a field must contain. |
| Length max. | Defines the maximum number of characters allowed in a field. |
| Regex | Applies advanced pattern-based validation using regular expressions. |
How Values Work
The Value defines what the operator is validating against. Depending on the operator, this could be a number, a piece of text, or a regular expression pattern. For example:
- +1 — used with Begins with to validate international phone numbers
- ^[a-zA-Z0-9]*$ — used with Regex to prevent special characters
- !$ — used with Ends with to detect values ending with “!”
- ^\\s*$ — used with Contains Data to ensure a field is not empty
Combining Operators and Values
By combining operators and values, administrators can define highly specific validation rules that reflect real-world business requirements. For instance:
Example 1:
Operator: Begins with
Value: +1
→ Ensures all phone numbers start with the United States country code.
Example 2:
Operator: Regex
Value: ^[a-zA-Z0-9]*$
→ Ensures that a Contact’s name does not contain special characters.
Example 3:
Operator: Length max.
Value: 50
→ Prevents field entries longer than 50 characters.
Testing Rules in Dry-Run Mode
Before deploying rules into production, xRM Data Guard allows administrators to run validations in Dry-Run mode. This ensures that rules behave as expected without blocking real user operations — a powerful way to test and fine-tune your validation setup safely.
Conclusion
Operators and Values form the backbone of data validation in xRM Data Guard. Their flexibility makes it possible to enforce both simple and highly complex business rules — ensuring your Dynamics 365 data remains clean, compliant, and trustworthy.
