Dynamics 365 Business Central

With the help of the ERP solution Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (formerly Dynamics NAV/Navision), medium-sized companies can manage, automate and optimize their business processes.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (formerly Dynamics NAV/Navision) is an ERP system from Microsoft.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (formerly Dynamics NAV/Navision) is aimed at small and medium-sized companies. The standard ERP solution can be used universally in a wide range of industries (e.g., retail, production, consulting) and can be tailored to your company using apps and individual adaptations.

Microsoft releases major updates twice a year and minor updates every month. Most new functions are made available in the major updates, while bug fixes and more urgent changes are published in the minor updates. If you use the Cloud, you will receive all updates automatically from Microsoft. If you use the On-Premises solution, the ongoing maintenance contract also entitles you to the latest version of the software if required. However, these updates must be installed manually.

If requirements cannot already be covered by the system standard, the system can easily be expanded or customized using apps.

You can find more information in our overview of popular apps. In our success stories, we also describe a number of individual customizations.

You can set up any number of interfaces from Dynamics 365 Business Central to other systems. There are already numerous predefined interfaces such as the SNC DATEV interface.

Take a look at an overview of selected options on our Add-On page or contact us directly.

The costs depend on the following criteria:

• Deployment option (Cloud, On-Premises)
• Licensing (Essentials, Premium, Team Members)
• Number of users

You can find an overview on our Prices page.

The standard contract duration with us is twelve (12) months with monthly prepayment. If you do not cancel the subscription thirty (30) days before it expires, the term will automatically extend for another twelve (12) months.

However, you also have the option to subscribe for one month for maximum flexibility or for three years. During the contract period, you will have price stability. This means that even if prices are increased by Microsoft, it will not affect you. You can learn more about licensing in our blog article “New Commerce Experience: Das ändert sich 2022 an der Lizenzierung” (German article).

The Essentials license is suitable for companies that do not have their own production facilities (exception: assembly) and whose focus is not on offering services. The Essentials version contains the following functions:

• Customer-Relationship-Management
• Finance Management
• Human Resources
• Supply Chain
• Projects
• Assembly

The Premium license is suitable for companies that produce themselves or mainly offer services. The Premium version contains the following functions:

• Customer-Relationship-Management
• Finance Management
• Human Resources
• Supply Chain
• Projects
• Assembly
• Production (only included in Premium)
• Service (only included in Premium)

If, in addition to the full users, additional users are required who are not directly assigned to a functional area and need to be able to access basic processes, it is possible to purchase Team Members licenses. This license for Team Members is designed for users who are not tied to a specific function but require basic functions. To use Team Members licenses, at least one other user must be licensed with Essentials or Premium.

This license covers selected tasks within a client:

• Reading data/entries
• Updating data/entries
• Approving and rejecting tasks
• Creating, editing, or deleting a quote
• Creating, editing, or deleting personal information
• Entering a timesheet
• Using Power Apps and Power Automate
• Customizing the Team Members application module with a maximum of 15 additional entities

You cannot mix the Essentials and Premium full user license types in your company. You can license either Essentials Users or Premium Users. Of course, you can also book optional Team Members licenses.

You can change the license type at any time. If you change to a more extensive license form during the year when paying annually, we will charge the difference between the advance payment already made and the changed price until the end of the annual term. A change to a lower license form is only possible after the contract term has expired.

No, you purchase a complete solution and choose the functionality you need in your company (either Essentials or Premium). The price covers all resource planning functions. Of course, you are free to decide which functional areas (e.g., finance) you actually use in your day-to-day operations – but the payment is not based on this.

Among the prices, the following deployment options are distinguished:

• Subscription in the Microsoft Cloud
• Purchase solution (On-Premises) in your own company

Subscription solution in the Microsoft Cloud
With the subscription in the Microsoft Cloud, you pay monthly fees and manage your data in the secure Microsoft Cloud.

Purchase solution (On-Premises) in your own company
With the purchase solution (On-Premises) in your own company, you pay a one-time purchase price for the licenses and operate the system in your company/data center.

Dynamics 365 Business Central Cloud and On-Premises differ in several areas such as costs, integration with other applications, or update execution.

You can find all the differences in our blog article: “Dynamics 365 Business Central – Cloud oder On-Premises?” (German article)

Yes, you have the option to use both environments (Cloud and On-Premises) simultaneously. This is useful, for example, to operate the development environment in an On-Premises instance and production in the Cloud environment.

You benefit from what are known as Dual-Use Rights. These rights enable you to use the ERP solution:

• either online in the Microsoft Cloud
• or in a local environment or on local servers (On-Premises)
• or in a Cloud provided by Microsoft partner companies.

No licenses are required for On-Premises usage – they are included.
For more information on this offering, please see our blog article “Dual-Use Rechte: Cloud-Lizenzen auch lokal nutzen” (German article).

Still skeptical about the Cloud? Then feel free to check out our blog article “Cloud Computing – Die 7 größsten Mythen rund um die Cloud” (German article).

Regarding On-Premises licensing, we have compiled all the information in our blog article “So funktioniert die Lizenzierung für Business Central On-Premises” (German article).

No, our products run on almost all devices and do not require any special hardware.

The purchase solution (On-Premises) only requires servers that meet Microsoft’s minimum technical requirements, while the rental solution (Cloud) requires a web browser and an internet connection.

When deploying through the Cloud, your data is stored in a German data center by Microsoft. This means that the software is provided from German data centers. Your data is absolutely secure there and enjoys the highest priority.

After all, the data centers are certified by EU data protection standards. Additionally, the data protection policies, procedures, and technologies of implementation are completely transparent.

Yes, you can test the ERP system for 30 days and switch back and forth between Essentials and Premium.

The condition is: For up to 25 users and with a term of up to one month. Please contact us without obligation if you are interested in a test license. In this case, we will also take care of the timely termination so that you do not have to enter into any obligation. Otherwise, these trial licenses will automatically be converted into annual subscriptions at the expiration date.

If you decide to purchase licenses, the data you have added to the trial version will be retained.

The setup duration of Dynamics 365 Business Central varies from company to company. Several factors come into play, such as size and the proportion of individual requirements. Additionally, a distinction can be made between Cloud and On-Premises deployments.

The setup of the online solution takes only a few minutes. The setup duration of your On-Premises solution is longer due to the setup of the On-Premises (local) components, including the necessary server systems (database, application, etc.).

Furthermore, the following points are relevant:

• Possibly, assistance with the system implementation (highly individual)
• Possibly, setting up the Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) environment: creating new user accounts or migrating/synchronizing local Active Directory accounts for easier management (highly individual)
• Possibly, migrating extensions (highly individual)

To a limited extent, you can customize the interface according to your preferences (e.g., show/hide fields, design reports as Word layouts, etc.). You have the option to customize the ERP system through pre-built apps or individual developments. With the appropriate skills, you can implement this yourself. Alternatively, our experts are available to assist you and implement the desired requirements or provide training to you and your employees as part of a workshop on the modern development environment. If you have development skills yourself, you can of course do this yourself.

The Cloud solution runs online, meaning no PC installation is required and can be accessed on any of the supported browsers (Edge, Chrome, Firefox, and Safari). Apps for iOS and Android are also available.

You can find the system requirements for the on-premises version in our blog article “So funktioniert die Lizenzierung für  Business Central On-Premises” (German article).