GP to Business Central FAQs

1. Does this mean I won't get GP supported through Armanino?
   1. Absolutely not! We will continue to support our GP clients.
   2. We’ve experienced a higher volume of inquiries around Business Central and believe it’s important to arm our clients with as much information and options as they become available and potentially applicable.
2. Do I have to move off GP?
   1. No, GP remains supported by Microsoft as long as you keep an active enhancement plan.
   2. Of note: after the GP 2018 R2 version, Microsoft changed to a required annual update cycle starting with GP 18.2 if you want to stay on a supported version.
   3. Although less effort than full version upgrades, Microsoft’s requirements will increase the frequency of your updates.
3. Microsoft says the move from GP to Business Central is easy. Is it like an upgrade?
   1. It's NOT an upgrade or a full implementation, but more of a hybrid migration/implementation.
   2. Microsoft developed tools that enable the migration process, speed up the overall project and reduce effort across the board.
4. How does the migration happen? Is there a tool to move my data from GP to Business Central?
   1. We recommend starting the migration process with an analysis of your current GP functionality compared to Business Central.
   2. Yes, there is a migration tool compatible with GP 2015 and above. To learn more, please click on this link https://docs.microsoft.com/en-au/dynamics365/business-central/dev-itpro/administration/migrate-dynamics-gp
   3. The migration tool is specifically built to migrate the following GP data types:
      1. Master Records for AP/AR/Inventory/Financial History (posts chart of account segments to Business Central Dimensions)
      2. Open Transactional Details for AP/AR/Inventory Balances
      3. Historical transactions into Azure Data Lake
5. What are the biggest advantages in moving to Business Central?
   1. SaaS/Remote mobility
   2. Reduces/Limits dependency to on-premise hardware
   3. Dimensional Accounting vs segmented Chart of Accounts
   4. PowerPlatform capable (CDS: PowerAutomate, PowerApps, PowerBI)
6. What functionality does Business Central come with?
   1. GL/AP/AR/FA/BR
   2. Distribution: Inventory, Lot Tracking, SOP, POP
   3. Manufacturing: Discrete, MRP, Shop Floor Plan (Discrete Mfg)
   4. MICR printing is native and doesn’t require MICR add-on
   5. Yodlee Bank Feeds: Data aggregator to link and pull-down bank info with AI
   6. Jobs = Project Accounting Module (resource/capacity management, WBS, etc)
   7. Field Service module — Work Orders
   8. CRM Lite
7. Is there a roadmap for Business Central?
   1. Yes, you can find it here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365-release-plan/2020wave2/smb/dynamics365-business-central/planned-features
8. What will it cost to move to Business Central?
   1. There are two main cost factors in migrating to Business Central. The first is licensing the application, which is based off Named User (vs. Concurrent User). The second factor is the services needed to execute the migration for either an implementation or Proof of Concept (POC).
   2. Licensing costs:
      1. The current Microsoft offer provides dual licenses for Business Central and GP at the same time. The offer runs through renewals due by June 30, 2021. Cost is based on the value of your existing GP Enhancement Plan renewal fee. We can walk you through the calculation during a call.
      2. For clients interested in Business Central, but outside of your GP Enhancement renewal cycle, or you have an expired Enhancement Plan, the price for Named User licenses are $70 for a standard license and $100 for a premium one, per user/per month. We can walk you through the differences and scenarios where users would need one vs. the other. You can find more information here on Microsoft’s website.
   3. Services — Armanino offers 3 levels of services:
      1. Proof of Concept (POC) Evaluation
         1. Migration tool to set-up
         2. Run data through sandbox as a POC
         3. Test
         4. Iterate configuration changes
         5. Decision to take live or stay on GP
      2. POC + Full Implementation Design
         1. POC activities plus
         2. Design for One time cutover
      3. POC Evaluation + Full Implementation Design
         1. POC activities plus
         2. Design
         3. Full Implementation
   4. Managed Services post go-live
      1. Update Support
      2. Break-Fix Support
      3. System Enhancements
      4. Proactive Planning
      5. Strategic Engagement
9. What about my ISV or 3rd party applications in GP?
   1. Some ISVs will cross over, some will not be necessary if the functionality is out of the box with Business Central.
      1. To see which applications transfer, we will leverage the extensive list of ISVs in AppSource to determine if a similar or the same ISV is readily available.
      2. We will also evaluate if functionality exists in Business Central as part of the Proof of Concept (POC) or during the discovery stage of a full implementation.
10. We are audited and use FastPath’s audit tool. Will moving to Business Central remove the need to have FastPath? Is it naturally more auditable than GP?
    1. Business Central does not remove the need for Fast Path Assure, so the solution and others like it would still be needed.
    2. Yes, FastPath Assure is available for Business Central.
11. What about integrations I've built to bring data into GP from other systems?
    1. Integrations built with SmartConnect (eOne Solutions) are compatible with Business Central. However, you would need to upgrade to the "cloud" SaaS version of the tool and recreate your integrations to Business Central from your original data source.
    2. Integration Manager functionality is replaced by Office Integration in Business Central to import files, master records, transactions, etc.
    3. Other integrations using SSIS or other tools will need to be evaluated as that functionality will not port over.
12. I have customizations. Will Business Central have this functionality out of the box? Does this need to be re-done or are there ISVs available?
    1. Customizations written for GP will need to be analyzed and, if needed, recreated for Business Central.
    2. Understanding if customizations are necessary or if specific functionality exists in Business Central, is a key part of the evaluation process.
13. Do I need to invest in a bunch of new servers and extra hardware to move to Business Central?
    1. No, Business Central is a true SaaS solution based on a subscription licensing program.

August 27, 2020