D365 Business Central Availability

Everyday Dynamics 365 Business Central #D365BC is opening up to new countries. Business Central general availability is in 19 countries now and if you are already onboard to Microsoft Ready-to-Go program, the Developer Preview images are available for 23 countries. Here is the list of countries details in one single place –

Updated 24th August ’18: On August 22nd, Daily build of Business Central Developer Preview is added for 7 more countries. You can have more details of the same if you are on-boarded on Microsoft Ready-To-Go program.

To know more, do write to me at

info@dynaexperts.com
snehanshu@dynaexperts.com

https://dynaexperts.com/dynamics-365-business-central-availability/

Documents got posted by mistake? Generate them back [from posted document]

How much time it will take to recreate an Unposted Purchase invoice from a Posted invoice keeping all information intact?

Well, that’s a no brainer! You can simply use ‘copy document‘ function in Purchase Invoice window. Keep ‘Include Header‘ ticked & ‘Recalculate Lines‘ not ticked [this will retain same vendor for header & same information from lines]

But what about if you need to do the same 400 times?

Let me give you the background from where I am coming from. Right now I am helping a company in Bracknell, UK [the silicon valley of UK] with lot of enhancements. And they seems pretty excited [first time it’s realised that they can do so much more from their almost obsolete system (they are using NAV 2009 classic)]

I am not going to talk about what kind enhancements / automation I did for them in this post rather will speak about what happened today morning when their CFO rushed to me and informed me that the purchase lady by mistake posted all the unposted invoices pending in the system instead of posting invoices pertaining to only a particular vendor [She executed ‘Post batch‘ and forgot to mention the ‘Buy-from Vendor No.‘ filter in the request form.

CFO: Can you do something about it? I will take necessary steps to reverse the financial impacts of those invoices but can you help me in recreating those unposted purchase invoices?

I said ‘Yes‘ and here what I did:

A. Study the ‘Copy Purchase Document’ function:

I have used this function plenty of times and understand technically what exactly it is doing. But hardly ever I had gone into the details or checked the code written there [Report 492]. So basically what it does –

Copy Document Flow

This works for one document. Question is ‘How to automate it for multiple documents [in this case 400]?

B. Gather the information:

Post study, i concentrated on gathering information about documents wrongly posted [I need to recreate new unposted purchase invoices copying info from these documents only].

CFO promptly shared me a list of wrongly posted invoices in excel. Though he shared me lot of additional info for this process I needed only the posted invoice nos. So I decided to put this info in a Dynamics NAV table and created it with following structure –

1. Invoice No. [Code 20]- This will hold the posted invoice nos.

2. Recreated [Boolean] – This will be marked ‘true’  if an unposted purchase order gets created successfully.

3. PO Created [Code 20] – to store the corresponding unposted purchase invoice created by the report (don’t bother about the naming convention).

 

Created a dataport and imported the list in this table [How to create a dataport and import these info into a table is out of scope of this post]

C. Build the Automation :

Now I have all the information and it’s time to automate a process which will read through these invoices and call the ‘Copy Document’ again and again for each posted invoice.

To build this, I could use a codeunit, a form or a report. And I choose a report [probably I felt it’s simpler to manage].

So I created a ‘ProcessingOnly‘ report with the DataItem = the table I created above in step B. Below is the DataItem properties, Report Properties, Global variables defined and the Code written in the report

  • DataItem Properties
  • Report Properties
  • Global Variables
  • Code written

Below is the explanation of the code:

D. Run the Report:

Run the report and at the end of it, it will display you ‘how many invoices are regenerated’. This will also update your custom table with ‘Recreated’ tag true and corresponding Invoice No generated –

 

 

 

 

Report is successfully run and the records are updated.

 

Voila, all invoices which was posted wrongly are recreated. Check them up. Remember there will be an additional line [first line] in all newly created unposted Purchase Invoices mentioning the posted invoice no [source document] from where it is recreated [see below screenshot]

Hope this helps if you come across a similar situation. You can download the zipped objects created by me here or from my Downloads section. You can actually modify them to suit your requirements or even for other module to manage similar situation.

In case of any confusion / queries, do write to me [snehanshu@dynaexperts.com] or put your comments below.

Cheers!

Incorporating GST [CU17] in NAV 2016

With Microsoft releasing GST -Indian localization for Dynamics NAV, Dynamics community is all excited and jumped to work on it and so did I. Of course, the first step was to upgrade the database with GST objects. This also lead me to think about what approach to follow such that it  be simple and  effective for all the different customers those looking for upgrading to GST. Some of the customers are in latest version of NAV, while there are customers who are also on older versions for which it is highly unlikely that Microsoft is going to release an update for GST.

Those who are starting with a fresh implementation, can directly download of CU 17 (build 48067) setup and install and are ready to go. For those who are way ahead in their implementation phase with an older version of NAV or have already gone Live, will have to go through an upgrade process with GST.

Upgrading GST means to merging the changes done to objects for GST to the existing objects. Changes to GST will impact most of the areas of the product for e.g. Masters, Business logic, Screens etc and in all these area there will also be custom codes that will make the merging a little challenging. The intention of this post was to cover how to approach merging of objects in Dynamics NAV. Below approaches can be taken up for upgrading to GST.

  • Merging all the custom code to GST changes
  • Merging all the GST changes to Custom implementation
  • Mix of approach 1 and 2

While deciding upon the approach, some of considerations that will influence decisions are the effort involved, availability of Resources, time required etc. For e.g. bringing all the customer changes to GST would mean to have different upgrade strategy to each customer, while bring the GST changes to different implementation will mean having a uniform approach for upgrading process. For making these decision points that needs to considered are

  • Type of Import option i.e. Merging feature supported by Dynamics NAV
  • Objects that have been impacted by GST changes

Type of Import options (Merging features available in Dynamics NAV)

While importing the objects to Dynamics NAV, following options are available:

  1. Create: The new object will be added to the database. This option is only valid if no such object already exists.
  2. Replace: The existing object will be replaced by the new object.
  3. Merge: Existing<-New: Only valid for tables. All fields in the existing table will remain and any additional fields from the new object will be added.
  4. Merge: New<-Existing: Only valid for tables. All fields in the new table will be imported and any additional fields in the existing table will be added to the new table.
  5. There are two more “Skip” and “Delete”

Steps involved in merging objects are –

Step 1: Import the GST objects to the existing Database, which will appear as a list in Import worksheet. All new tables will have “Create” option set in field “Action” as shown in below image –

Step 2: Patch also has changes to existing standard tables and in the Import worksheet they will appear with option “Replace” in field “Action”. All those standard tables that are not modified or customized can straight away be set to “Replace” as shown in below image

Step 3: Those standard Tables that are customized, set the “Action” field with option “Merge: Existing<-New”. For e.g. in case Vendor table is customized. Go to the Vendor table line in Import worksheet and in Action field, select option “Merge: Existing<-New” as shown in below image –

Merging using Action “Merge:Existing<-New”

While merging with option “Merge:Existing<-New”, system considered are Global variables, Local C/AL function including local variables and Table properties. Similarly from New table items considered are New fields, Field properties that are different and Trigger level code on field level including local variables.

Fields are merged based on the field number. The following scenarios are possible:

  1. The field is located in the old object, but not in the new. The field will remain as it was.
  2. The field is located in the new object, but not in the old. The field will be added.
  3. The field is located in both objects. If the properties are different in the new object, these new properties will be used.

Sample Walk-through of Vendor table Merge

Below are List of new fields added as part of GST changes to Vendor table.

Field No. Field Name
16600 GST Registration No.
16609 GST Vendor Type
16610 Associated Enterprises

Changes to Existing Field

Field No. Field Name
13717 State Code

‘State Code’ field has new C/AL included in Trigger as shown in below image –

Below are steps to import GST changes to Vendor Table –

Step 1: Create a .FOB of Table 23 GST changes and Import. On importing .FOB, an error may popup as shown in below image. This is due of code existing in Triggers of New fields as well as existing fields. To resolve the error, one of the approach would be to open the object in GST Build (48067) and comment all the C/AL code existing in Trigger related to GST changes and save and compile another .FOB

Step 2: Import .FOB with Option “Merge: Existing<-New”. Merging will create all the new fields and also the triggers in the new fields. It may not bring the C/AL trigger for field “State Code” and this will have to be manually merged.

Step 3: Uncomment all the GST changes and recompile the object.

Step 4: After the Merge, it is always better to do a text compare and check what is missing and change it manually.

Objects Impacted by GST changes

Below is list of new table that are part of GST patch

Type No. Name
Table 1531 Workflow Step Argument Archive
Table 16400 GST Registration Nos.
Table 16401 GST Accounting Period
Table 16402 GST Accounting Sub Period
Table 16403 GST Claim Setoff
Table 16404 GST Group
Table 16405 GST Component
Table 16406 GST Posting Setup
Table 16407 GST Configuration
Table 16408 GST Setup
Table 16411 HSN/SAC
Table 16412 Detailed GST Entry Buffer
Table 16418 GST Ledger Entry
Table 16419 Detailed GST Ledger Entry
Table 16420 GST Posting Buffer
Table 16421 GST Calculation Buffer
Table 16422 Adv. GST Calculation Buffer
Table 16423 GST Application Buffer
Table 16424 GST Liability Line
Table 16425 Posted GST Liability Line
Table 16426 e-Commerce Merchant Id
Table 16429 GST Recon. Mapping
Table 16430 GST Reconciliation Lines
Table 16431 Periodic GSTR-2A Data
Table 16432 Posted GST Reconciliation
Table 16433 GST Reconciliation
Table 16434 GST Credit Adjustment Journal
Table 16435 Invoice Adjustment Journal
Table 16436 GST Payment Buffer

A Sample list of existing standard Tables that are modified as part of GST –

Type No. Name
Table 3 Payment Terms
Table 4 Currency
Table 5 Finance Charge Terms
Table 6 Customer Price Group
Table 8 Language
Table 9 Country/Region
Table 13 Salesperson/Purchaser
Table 14 Location
Table 15 G/L Account
Table 17 G/L Entry
Table 18 Customer
Table 21 Cust. Ledger Entry
Table 23 Vendor
Table 25 Vendor Ledger Entry
Table 27 Item
Table 32 Item Ledger Entry
Table 36 Sales Header

There is no fixed way or right way of merging objects from new releases, intention is to provide an overview of what is possible so that upgrades become very smooth affair. This is very critical as GST in India has to be implemented to most of the customers and within a given time frame. I believe this post will bridge that gap.

NAV 2016 (Corfu)

Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2016 (Corfu) is on its way. Till now whatever communications we got from Microsoft, NAV 2016 (Corfu) will be released in 4th quarter of this year (Between October – December 2015). If you remember, NAV 2015 was released in October 2014. Here is a short video on what to expect from NAV 2016  (Corfu) as per the current communication from Microsoft) –

If you are unable to view the video, you can download a pdl version of the same from here – Roadmap_MicrosoftDynmamicsNAV

What I understand, major concentration is on –

  • Power BI
  • A new client on Mobile
  • Native integration with CRM Online
  • Electronic Invoice exchange
  • Third Party data source for certain associated masters (Like Currency exchange Rates)
  • More elaborate Workflow
  • Posting Preview (not sure at this moment what exactly it will be)

Let me get a copy of NAV 2016 (Corfu) soon and I will start writing about my experiences regarding the individual topics.

You can send your specific questions on NAV 2016 (Corfu) to my mail id.

Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2015 Windows 8.1 App

There are a lot of speculation about New Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2015 release date and it seems that Microsoft has announced in WPC 2014 (happened last weekend) that NAV 2015 (or CRETE) will be launched on October 1, 2014. Surprisingly Microsoft already have released an app on Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2015 for windows 8.1 and the same is available to be downloaded from Microsoft App Store. You can find out more about this app in the below link –

http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/dynamics-nav/d8a4908d-61f2-4740-b4fc-b559fbdd2e51

This App will work in both in Windows 8.1 Laptop as well as Tablet. Here is few screen shots of the app for your ready reference –

  • Role Center
  • Overdue Sales Invoices
  • Customer Card
  • Sales Invoice
  • Sales Invoice Report
NAV 2015 APP SNAP 1 
NAV 2015 APP SNAP 2 
NAV 2015 APP SNAP 3 
NAV 2015 APP SNAP 4 
NAV 2015 APP SNAP 5 

It’s available in English (United States) and 24 other languages. Below is more details from Microsoft App Store about this app –

NAV 2015 APP InfoDescription

With Microsoft Dynamics NAV for modern Windows, you get the familiar Dynamics NAV experience in a fresh and modern interface designed for touch.Dynamics NAV is a business solution from Microsoft that is quick to implement and easy to use, with the power to support your growth ambitions. Dynamics NAV helps businesses manage their financials, supply chain, and people and to create experiences that delight their customers.
Make smart decisions based on the latest business data and get real work done after hours, at home or on the go with Microsoft Dynamics NAV for modern Windows. This is the perfect companion for service engineers, sales field organizations, executives and decision-makers, or anyone in your organization who wants access to Dynamics NAV from a touch enabled mobile device. Get visibility into every angle of your business using the Role Center. Tap to drill into details about your customers, vendors, inventory, or any other data from Dynamics NAV. Quickly create invoices and quotes, and email them with just a few taps.Requires access to Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2015.
Your experience will vary depending on the Dynamics NAV server that you are connected to.

Show more

Features

  • Get an overview of your business in the Role Center.
  • Tap and swipe to get to your data and drill down into details.
  • Search across all columns in a list.
  • Send lists to Microsoft Excel or Office 365.
  • Shoot pictures using the camera on your mobile device and upload them to Dynamics NAV.
  • Rotate your device to get an overview of your data or focus on content.
  • Use two apps side by side and see, for example, customer details while you talk via Skype or Lync.

I am eagerly waiting to put my hand on the new Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2015 and start experimenting with features mentioned in the Microsoft Readiness portal and apply them in some real life scenarios 🙂

Interactive Reports in NAV 2013 R2–Drill Down

In continuation to my earlier post ‘Interactive Reports in NAV 2013 R2 – Dynamics Sorting’, in this session we will see how we can drill down from the report preview to more detailed data

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You can refer to my earlier post describing interactive sorting in NAV 203 R2 in the following link –

Interactive Reports in NAV 2013 R2

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We will use our existing report designed in my last post [Interactive Reports in NAV 2013 R2] and will incorporate a drill down facility from the ‘Inventory’ column in the report to the Item Ledger Entry corresponding the report’s item No. Probably the design should be as below –

image

Now to achieve this we need to do 3 things –

  • Create a link to ‘Item Ledger entry’ page (Page no 38) and
  • Connect the same link with ‘Inventory’ field in the report and
  • Enable your report to use an external link (URL)

Create a link to ‘Item Ledger entry’ page:

Creating a link to a page in NAV 2013 R2 is simple. Open any Item Card and drill down from the inventory field –

image

This will open the ‘Item Ledger Entry’ page filtered out by the item from whose card you are drilling down –

image

Click on the down arrow key in the upper left corner of the page and go to Page > Copy Link to Page. Open a notepad and paste the link (you need to further edit it)-

image

here is the link URL pasted (This link relates to my NAV server and Company):

dynamicsnav://dss-282:7046/DynamicsNAV71/CRONUS%20India%20Ltd./runpage?page=38&personalization=38& bookmark=12%3BIAAAAACHNAE%3D&$filter=%27Item%20 Ledger%20Entry%27.%27Item%20No.%27%20IS%20%271000%27&mode=View

This link contains a lot of information about the target page and some part of this link can easily be removed to make it more generic. This link has the following information –

Link Text Purpose
dynamicsnav://dss-282:7046/DynamicsNAV71 Target Server Instance and port no
/CRONUS%20India%20Ltd. Target Company
./runpage?page=38&personalization=38& bookmark=12%3BIAAAAACHNAE%3D&$ Target page no 38 and bookmarking
filter=%27Item%20 Ledger%20Entry%27.%27Item%20No.%27%20IS%20%271000%27 Filer information. Here the data is getting filtered by ‘1000’ on ‘Item No.’ field in target data (Item Ledger Entry)
&mode=View Open the page in View mode

So I will remove the ‘Target Server’, ‘Port No’, ‘Target Company’ and the ‘Personalisation’ part to make it usable for any server, any database or company (you can port this object to any other database in any other server and it will work fine). post my changes, the link will look like this –

dynamicsnav://///runpage?page=38&filter=’Item Ledger Entry’.’Item No.’ IS ‘1000’&mode=View

[I have replaced the %20 with space and %27 with a single quote (‘)]

Right now the above link will open the Page 38 filtering the ‘item ledger entries’ with the Item No. ‘1000’. We need to change it further to make it filter data dynamically with the item no. from the report. We will make this change directly in report builder in our next step.

Connect the same link with ‘Inventory’ field in the report:

Open the report in NAV 2013 R2 development environment and go to View > Layout. This will open the report layout in SQL Server Report Builder.

____________________________________________

Note: To learn how to use SQL Server Report Builder 3.0 (instead of Visual Studio 2013) for NAV 2013 R2 report layout designing, you can refer to my earlier post NAV 2013 R2 Report layout design with Report Builder

____________________________________________

image

Right click on the ‘Inventory’ textbox and go to ‘Text Box Properties’.

image

Go to ‘Action’ tab and select the radio button in ‘change action option’ to ‘Go to URL’. After this click on the ‘fx’ (as circled above) button next to ‘Select URL’ text box.

image

Here I have modified the URL with the following changes:

  • Added a ‘=’ sign in front of the URL
  • Included the entire URL inside double quotes
  • Replaced the text ‘1000’ (the item no.) with the text ‘+Fields!No.Value+’. This makes the URL to pick up the Item No. from the value displayed in ‘No.’ field in report.

____________________________________________

Instead of manually typing it, you can actually select the ‘Fields (DataSet_Result) in Category box, Select ‘<All>’ in Item box and then  double-click on ‘No.’ in the Values box.

____________________________________________

Post the above changes, my final URL looks like this –

=”dynamicsnav://///runpage?page=38&$filter=’Item Ledger Entry’.’Item No.’ IS ‘”+Fields!No.Value +”‘&mode=View”

Now the field ‘Inventory’ is perfectly linked to the page 38 (Item Ledger Entry). Next let us complete our 3rd step –

Enable your report to use an external link (URL):

Save the report layout and come back to NAV 2013 R2 development environment (Report designer). Go to a blank line at the bottom of the report and click on View > Properties –

image

Change the property ‘EnableHyperlinks’ to ‘Yes’.

And that’s it. You are ready with your NAV 2013 R2 interactive report from where you can drill down to more detailed data. Let us test the same.

Save the report and run it from the Object designer itself (that’s the good thing you can do in NAV 2013 R2 but not in NAV 2009 Smile).

Once the request page opens, just click on the ‘Preview’ button. This will open the report viewer window. Hover your mouse on the ‘Inventory’ field values and you will see the cursor is getting changed to a ‘hand’ denoting that you can drill down from that value. Click on the value and Item ledger entry page will open up with the entries corresponding to the item no in the report.

image

Try and see if all values are opening it’s corresponding item ledger entries only.

Hope you are able to follow the steps mentioned here in creating your own interactive reports. You can leave your comment here in case you face any difficulty or you can write to me on the same at snehanshu.mandal@gmail.com.

Catch you in my next post / session on NAV 2013 R2. Till then happy reading.