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Feature Comparison

Three major frameworks exist for unit testing Dataverse / Dynamics 365 applications without requiring a live environment: Fake4Dataverse, FakeXrmEasy, and XrmMockup. Each takes a different approach to simulating Dataverse service interfaces (IOrganizationService / IOrganizationServiceAsync2), with trade-offs in fidelity, licensing, and developer experience.

This guide provides a fair, comprehensive comparison to help you choose the right tool for your project.

Overview

Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy (v2+ / v3) XrmMockup
License MIT RPL-1.5 / Commercial MIT
Approach In-memory fake, handler registry In-memory fake, middleware pipeline In-memory fake, reads real metadata from CRM
.NET Targets net462 + net10.0 v2: net462 + netcoreapp3.1; v3: netcoreapp3.1+ net462+
GitHub nicknow/Fake4Dataverse DynamicsValue/fake-xrm-easy delegateas/XrmMockup
NuGet Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy.* (split packages) XrmMockup365
Min Setup new FakeDataverseEnvironment() + env.CreateOrganizationService() XrmFakedContext + middleware builder Metadata XML files + XrmMockup365 instance

Feature Matrix

✅ = full support   ⚠️ = partial / limited   ❌ = not supported

Core Operations

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Basic CRUD ✅ ✅ ✅
Upsert ✅ ✅ ✅
Assign ✅ ✅ ✅
SetState ✅ ✅ ✅
ExecuteMultiple ✅ ✅ ✅
ExecuteTransaction ✅ ❌ ✅
100+ Request Handlers ✅ ✅ ✅
Custom APIs ✅ RegisterCustomApi ✅ (v2+) ✅
WhoAmI ✅ ✅ ✅

Querying

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
QueryExpression ✅ 40+ operators ✅ ✅
FetchXml ✅ Full + aggregates ✅ Full ✅ Full
FetchXml Aggregates ✅ Count/Sum/Avg/Min/Max ✅ ✅
LinkEntity Joins ✅ Multi-level + semi-joins ✅ ✅
Paging ✅ Cookie-based ✅ ✅
Alternate Keys ✅ Full ⚠️ Limited ✅
Attribute Indexing ✅ Equality indexes ❌ ⚠️ Implicit

Pipeline & Plugins

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Plugin Pipeline ✅ Pre-val / Pre-op / Post-op ✅ Plugin simulation ✅ Auto-executes plugins
Real IPlugin Testing ✅ Full IServiceProvider ✅ ✅
Workflow / Code Activities ❌ ✅ ✅
SPKL Integration ✅ Auto-register from attributes ❌ ❌
Impersonation ⚠️ CallerId / InitiatingUserId ❌ ✅ In plugins

Security

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Security Roles ✅ Full role + depth model ⚠️ Limited ✅ Full
Record Sharing ✅ Grant / Modify / Revoke ⚠️ Limited ✅
Team Security ✅ ⚠️ Limited ✅
State Transitions ✅ Validation ⚠️ ✅

Metadata & Field Logic

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Metadata Validation ✅ Optional (Strict mode) ⚠️ Optional ✅ From real metadata
Calculated Fields ✅ Lambda formulas ✅ ✅
Rollup Fields ✅ 5 aggregate types ✅ ✅
PowerFx Fields ❌ ❌ ✅ Experimental
Currency / Exchange Rates ✅ Auto base-currency ✅ ✅
Formatted Values ✅ Auto-populated ✅ ✅
Cascade Operations ✅ Delete + Assign ✅ ✅
Early-Bound Support ✅ Assembly scanning ✅ CrmSvcUtil / PAC ✅ DLC + generator
Metadata Generator Tool ❌ ❌ ✅ .NET tool

Binary & File Operations

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Binary / File Columns ✅ Block-based upload / download ✅ ✅

Test Infrastructure

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Thread Safety ✅ ReaderWriterLockSlim ⚠️ Limited ✅
Deep Cloning ✅ Always ✅ ✅
Snapshot / Restore ✅ TakeSnapshot / RestoreSnapshot ❌ ✅ File-based
Scope (Auto-Rollback) ✅ env.Scope() ❌ ❌
Time Control ✅ FakeClock + AdvanceTime ⚠️ Optional ✅
Operation Log ✅ Built-in ❌ ❌
Fluent Assertions ✅ Built-in + 3 adapters ❌ ❌
Mocking Adapters ✅ Moq + FakeItEasy ⚠️ DI patterns ❌
Seeding (JSON / CSV) ✅ Built-in ✅ ⚠️ Live data
Live Data Loading ❌ ❌ ✅

Architecture & Extensibility

Feature Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Async IOrganizationService ✅ IOrganizationServiceAsync2 ✅ IOrganizationServiceAsync2 ✅
DI / Middleware ❌ ✅ ASP.NET Core style ❌

Licensing

Fake4Dataverse FakeXrmEasy XrmMockup
Open Source ✅ MIT ⚠️ v1 MIT; v2+ RPL-1.5 ✅ MIT
Free for Commercial Use ✅ ⚠️ v2+ requires commercial license for ISVs / SaaS ✅
Commercial Support ❌ ✅ ❌

FakeXrmEasy v1 remains MIT-licensed but targets .NET Framework only and is no longer maintained. Starting with v2, the license changed to RPL-1.5, which requires a paid commercial license for proprietary / SaaS use.

When to Choose Each

Choose Fake4Dataverse when:

  • You want a modern, MIT-licensed solution with no commercial restrictions.
  • Test isolation matters — Scope() for automatic rollback and TakeSnapshot() / RestoreSnapshot() for save-points.
  • You need rich assertion support via built-in extensions plus adapters for AwesomeAssertions, FluentAssertions, and Shouldly.
  • You value an environment + session model: new FakeDataverseEnvironment() + env.CreateOrganizationService() for multi-user testing out of the box.
  • You want deterministic time with FakeClock and AdvanceTime.
  • You need an operation log for verifying what service calls were made.
  • You need sync + async service interface parity (IOrganizationService and IOrganizationServiceAsync2).
  • Thread safety is required for parallel test execution.

Choose FakeXrmEasy when:

  • You need workflow / code activity testing.
  • Your team already uses FakeXrmEasy v1 and wants an upgrade path.
  • You need commercial support with SLAs.
  • You want middleware-style extensibility (ASP.NET Core–inspired pipeline).
  • You prefer a DI-oriented architecture.

Choose XrmMockup when:

  • You want the most production-realistic testing — it reads actual metadata exported from your environment.
  • You need PowerFx formula field evaluation (experimental).
  • You want a metadata generator tool to keep test metadata in sync with your org.
  • You need live data loading for reproducing production scenarios locally.
  • Plugin impersonation in the pipeline is critical to your tests.

Migration

If you're migrating from FakeXrmEasy to Fake4Dataverse, see the Migration Guide for a step-by-step walkthrough including API mapping and pattern equivalents.