Getting Started
This page walks you through installing the tool, connecting it to your Dataverse environment, and understanding the basic layout so you can find your way around quickly.
Requirements
- Power Platform Tool Box (PPTB) installed on your machine.
- A Dataverse connection configured in PPTB that points to the environment you want to manage.
- The signed-in account must have at least Security Administrator or System Administrator privileges in that environment to view and edit security roles.
Installation
- Open Power Platform Tool Box.
- Click Tool Gallery in the left sidebar.
- Search for Advanced Security Roles Explorer.
- Click Install.
- The tool now appears in your PPTB tool list.
Connecting to your environment
The tool uses the active connection that is selected in PPTB. It does not ask you to sign in separately.
- In PPTB, make sure a Dataverse connection is selected and active. The connection badge at the top of the screen shows the current environment name.
- Open Advanced Security Roles Explorer from your tool list.
- The tool connects automatically and begins loading roles, tables, and users. This may take a few seconds depending on the size of your environment.
Connection badge — The badge in the top-right of the tool header shows the current connection status. If it shows Not connected, return to PPTB, select a connection, and reopen the tool.
The header
Advanced Security Roles Explorer
[Connection badge] [Theme toggle]
[Edit security roles] [Assign security roles] [Security dashboard]
[Unmanaged roles only ●]
| Element | What it does |
|---|---|
| Connection badge | Displays the name of the currently connected environment |
| Theme toggle | Switches between light and dark mode |
| Tab bar | Switches between the three main pages |
| Unmanaged roles only toggle | When enabled, hides managed (solution-deployed) roles across all pages and shows only custom (unmanaged) roles |
Switching between pages
The tool has three pages, each accessible via the tab bar in the header:
| Tab | Page | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Edit security roles | Privilege Explorer | View and edit table-level privileges for any security role |
| Assign security roles | Assignment Manager | Assign or remove roles for users and teams |
| Security dashboard | Dashboard | High-level metrics and charts about roles, users, and teams |
Click any tab button to switch pages instantly. Your filters and unsaved changes on the current page are preserved while navigating between tabs.
Tip: If you navigate away from the Edit security roles tab while you have pending changes, those changes are still there when you return — you do not lose your work.
Unmanaged roles only
The Unmanaged roles only toggle in the header applies globally to all three pages. When switched on:
- Managed roles (roles that are part of a solution, such as Dynamics 365 built-in roles) are hidden from all dropdowns and tables.
- Only roles you have created directly in the environment (custom / unmanaged) remain visible.
This is useful when you only want to manage your own custom roles and do not want the built-in roles cluttering the lists.
Loading and performance
On first open, the tool loads security roles, tables, and user data from Dataverse. In larger environments this can take 10–30 seconds. A loading indicator is shown while data is being fetched.
Once the data is loaded it is cached for the session. Switching tabs does not re-fetch data. To reload fresh data from the server, click the Refresh button on the Edit security roles page.
Next steps
- Edit Security Roles — Learn how to view and change table privileges.
- Assign Security Roles — Assign or remove roles for users and teams.
- Security Dashboard — Review access statistics for your environment.