What it does

Extends unified routing to Dataverse records, cases, email activities, phone calls, faxes, letters, and appointments. Routes records to queues and assigns reps using the same engine as conversation routing, with a few key behavioural differences.

Key facts

• Supported record types: Cases, Email, Phone Call, Fax, Letter, Appointment; custom record types can be enabled
• Assignment cycles for record queues: 5-minute periodic timer plus event triggers (not purely event-driven like conversation routing)
• Capacity is not released automatically for records/activities: must deactivate the queue item or clear the Worked By field
• Intake rules determine which workstream handles an incoming record (required for record routing; sets workstream selection before classification)
• Rep must have Dataverse security permissions to the routed record type: missing permissions silently stop assignment and close the work item
• Notifications for record routing only appear in Copilot Service workspace: not in Customer Service Hub
• Work distribution mode: Push or Pick (unlike voice, which is Push only)
• Enabling unified routing in a production org runs a solution import: do this during off-peak hours

When to use / skip

Use for any deployment where cases or email activities need intelligent routing (not just FIFO). Almost always in scope for Customer Service implementations.

Configuration decisions

• Intake rules design: which workstream handles which record types and sub-types; multiple workstreams can exist for the same record type
• Push vs Pick: Pick mode is appropriate for back-office agents who manage their own queue; Push is the default for contact centre-style workflows
• Whether the 5-minute assignment cycle is acceptable for urgent records: if not, consider a Power Automate trigger for immediate assignment on priority cases

Gotchas

• Capacity doesn't release automatically for records. Train reps and supervisors explicitly. "Closing a case" doesn't release capacity unless done correctly (resolve/cancel and clear queue item).
• 5-minute assignment cycle surprises clients. Clients used to real-time conversation routing expect cases to be assigned instantly. For P1 escalations, discuss whether 5 minutes is acceptable.
• Rep security permissions must be audited before go-live. A custom Omnichannel role without Case Read access silently fails and closes the work item with no useful error.
• Enable unified routing in dev/staging first. The solution import can impact SQL load. Never enable in production without testing staging first.

Consultant notes

• Security permissions audit before go-live is one I'd block the go-live on if it hasn't been done. Silent work item failure with no useful error message is a genuinely bad production issue to diagnose. Confirm Case Read (and any other routed record type) is in the agent security role before UAT starts.
• The 5-minute assignment cycle needs to be raised in requirements, not at go-live. If the client has P1 escalation SLAs measured in minutes, the cycle time is a problem that needs a Power Automate trigger workaround: and that's a design conversation, not a config one.
• Enable unified routing on staging first and run the solution import during off-peak hours. It's the kind of step that's easy to rush at the end of a project and regret if SQL load spikes on a shared production environment.

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Source last updated: 2025-09-16 | Review when: New record types supported or assignment cycle timing changes