Microsoft Dynamics 365 2022 Release Wave 1Missed These Features?

5 Top New Features From Business Central 2022 Release Wave 1

One of the many benefits of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central being a true cloud accounting system, is the automated updates that happen twice annually. Each year, in April and October, Microsoft roll out their major updates. They are continuous, touchless updates that provide new features and functionality and eliminate the need to do expensive upgrades every few years.

Administrators can set a maintenance window for each environment that determines when Microsoft is allowed to update that environment too, so you have greater control of when they happen unlike many other systems.

Here’s five of our favourite updates that you might have missed from Dynamics 365 Business Central from 2022 Release Wave 1.

1. Check Documents and Journals in Real-Time, While You Work
   To alert you about issues with data in documents and journals that can prevent you from posting, Microsoft have introduced validations that identify issues right away. Early, unobtrusive visual indications of a problem can help improve productivity and save time.



2. Use Excel to Design Layouts For Reports
   It’s no secret that finance teams use and love Microsoft Excel. It’s familiar and when used correctly, a really powerful tool. The bonus of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is that its powerful integration capabilities mean you can take Excel one step further and start using it more effectively. In the latest release, you can use Excel to design layouts for reports.

   Excel layouts work the same way as Word and RDLC layouts in that they can be edited and saved back again into Business Central.

   With Excel layouts for Business Central reports, users can now create and edit report layouts simply by using the full palette of capabilities in Excel such as sliders, diagrams, charts, and pivot tables.

   To create an Excel layout from scratch, open the report request page, and then run the report with the option Excel document (data only). The report generates an Excel file with sample data and the fields that are available in the report definition. Then you add your layout to additional tabs in the Excel file. To test the layout, simply import it as a custom layout in Business Central. After the system has validated that the layout is valid for use, you can now go to the request page and run the report with your new layout.

3. Set User Email Policies to Control Who Can Read Emails Sent From Business Central
   It’s not uncommon that multiple people or teams work on single transaction. Usually one prepares draft emails and others complete and send emails to customers or vendors you work with. Administrators now have more control over who gets to see which emails by setting email view policies. On the User Email Policies page, you can choose from the following options: view all emails, view own emails, view if access to all related records or view if access to any related records.



4. Enhancements to Microsoft Teams Integration
   Teams perform better when they have access to insights and actions within their flow of work. The Business Central app for Teams allows users to access business data and act on it directly from Microsoft Teams. You can benefit from reduced context-switching and collaboration efficacy when they can do more inside Microsoft Teams.

   Easier app acquisition

   When pasting a link to Business Central in the message compose area in Teams, a banner is now automatically displayed that suggests installing the Business Central app, so that a preview of the link can be shared as a compact and elegant card. This makes it easy for users to get the app with fewer steps.

   

   More workspace

   When a card is shared to a Teams channel, meeting, or group chat, the card includes a Details button that displays the details window inside Teams.

   This window now occupies more space on the screen, showing more fields and actions at once for greater efficiency.
   From the Details window, you can now open the full Business Central experience in the browser.
   To simplify the experience and allow a clear progression from card to details to separate window, the Popout button on cards has now been removed.

5. Country/Regional Expansion
   The latest update includes a number of additional countries in the country/regional expansions. What does that mean? If you operate in more than one country, or you have key customers who operate outside of the country you work in, you can now extend capabilities to take into account local currencies and legislation from other countries in your production environments.

   For example, if you operate in the UK, but you have a key customer that you trade with who operates in Germany, you can set up a new production environment so that your Business Central system knows which currencies and legislation to follow. You don’t need any additional licences, it uses the same user and login as normal.