Preparing for your Microsoft Dynamics GP Upgrade

Rob Mitchell & Jon Darling

What’s next for GP?

Why should I upgrade?

• Take advantage of new functionality/enhancements• What’s New In Dynamics GP 2015 & 2016

• Supportability – Microsoft Mainstream Support: • Ended for Dynamics GP 2010 on 10/13/2015

• Ends for Dynamics GP 2013 on 4/10/2018

• Ends for Dynamics GP 2015 on 4/14/2020

• Ends for Dynamics GP 2016 on 7/13/2021

• New licensing model if upgrading from GP 2010• Unlimited MR licenses

• Web client

Are there any other benefits to upgrading to GP 2016?

• HTML5 Web Client• New features in GP 2016 that are not in

GP 2015• Longer mainstream product support• Windows Server 2016 and/or SQL 2016

are supported

Things to keep in mind as you plan:

• Your upgrade resources (IT lead, user testing lead, project sponsor)

• 3rd party products and add-ins for GP

• Custom code that will need brought forward

• Integrations to and from Dynamics GP

• What company databases need upgraded

• Custom Reports that use GP data (Analysis Cubes, SQL Server Reporting Services, etc.)

• Training on new features

• New modules or functionality you want to add

Budget Considerations:

• Consulting services for the upgrade

• Licensing changes

• New hardware (if applicable)

• Migration to the Cloud?

• Desired customizations

• New 3rd party products

• Post-upgrade projects

Server Considerations:

• You will likely be moving your GP databases and services to a new server or servers.

• Do I want this to be on premise or hosted? Virtual or physical hardware? What about the Cloud?

• What version of SQL should I move to?

• Am I going to use a terminal server or published app?

• What about the Web Client? That means a certificate and IIS server.

Dynamics GP Upgrade Paths

What SQL Server Versions are Supported?

What Windows Server OS Versions are Supported?

What Windows Client OS Versions are Supported?

What Microsoft Office Versions are Supported?

What isn’t supported with GP 2016?

• Windows XP & Vista

• Windows Server 2003 all editions

• Microsoft SQL Server 2008 all editions

• Microsoft Office 2010

• Internet Explorer 10.0

• Business Portal

• Adobe Acrobat 9

What happened to Business Portal?

• GP 2013 was the last version to support Business Portal

• PTE, HRMSS, and Requisition Management are now included in the core GP product

• Dynamics GP Web Client and ReQlogic are the suggested path forward for Business Portal clients

• There is no direct migration path, so both options involve a new implementation

What do we need to do just before you start your upgrade?

• Identify which, if any, companies can be removed.

• Before you upgrade, you should post, delete or print all single-use batches.

• We recommend that you post all transactions that can affect your purchase receipts.

• Have IT make at least one complete backup of all your GP databases before upgrading.

• If you are going to run Check Links, take a backup before that process as well. We can also assist with this.

• Print comparison reports. A detailed TB is a good start.

You’ve suggested a test upgrade…what does that do for us?

• We upgrade a copy of your Dynamics GP data on separate servers while leaving production untouched.

• This can be done in your environment or in the Socius Cloud.

• Both the current and new GP environments are available during the testing period for your comparison and testing.

• It gives you a relevant training environment.

• We can identify and resolve any issues before they impact production.

• We will get a benchmark for your production upgrade so we can minimize downtime.

How long will the upgrade process take?

• You are unique…just like everybody else.

• Timing will depend on the complexity of your environment, any coordination with 3rd party vendors and IT.

• Pre-upgrade planning and project preparation: 1-2 weeks

• Test upgrade: 1 week

• User Acceptance Testing: 2-4 weeks

• Production upgrade: 1-2 days depending on complexity

We are on FRx, what needs to happen with it?

• If using FRx, you will need to migrate to Management Reporter

• Cleanup items in FRx:

• Remove unused companies, specification sets, and building blocks (catalogs, rows, columns, and trees)

• Remove demo data

• Delete .F32 in SysData directory

• Run FRx compact process for system and spec set databases

• Verify segment name consistency in GP across all companies

Any thing else we should do? What about Check Links?

• Run Check Links on all companies

• What does the Check Links process do?

• It analyzes the relationships between tables to find data that exists in one table but is missing from other tables. The process makes sure that the appropriate records or links exist in a logical table group. If they do not exist in a logical table group, the process adds them.

• A report is printed after the process is complete, regardless if data is missing. If data is missing and can be replaced, the data is replaced automatically. The report will contain the information about what data was replaced.

What does Socius Do During an Upgrade?

• Backups (initial round and checkpoint)• FRx, Integration Manager, Dynamics GP, Management Reporter, etc• Checkpoint backups throughout upgrade process for fall-back

• Install GP 2016 with latest Service Pack in your test environment

• Copy and upgrade your GP databases

• Install & update 3rd party modules

• Install custom code if any exists

• Update modified forms & reports

• Update integrations

• Update custom reports

• If using FRx, migrate you to the latest version Management Reporter

• If you are already using it, upgrade you to the latest version of Management Reporter

• If moving to new server, re-map shared files, set up database maintenance & backup plans

What do we need to test?

• Test your usual processes. Make sure you can do in GP 2016 what you would normally do in your current version

• Print post-upgrade reports & compare to pre-upgrade reports

• Test custom code to make sure it works in the upgraded version of GP

• Test custom reports for content and formatting

• Test integrations to make sure your other applications can talk to GP 2016

How do we roll GP 2016 out to our users?

• Install GP 2016 on a terminal server or dedicated testing workstation

•Provide What’s New training for users

•Go-Live support for users after the production upgrade

Post Upgrade Projects

•Look for opportunities for increased efficiency

•User Security Audit

• Implement new features like Workflow

•Add new modules

Important Links for GP 2016

Dynamics GP 2016 System Requirementshttps://mbs.microsoft.com/customersource/northamerica/GP/learning/documentation/system-requirements/MDGP2016_System_Requirements

Upgrading to Microsoft GP 2016 Hot Topic pagehttps://mbs.microsoft.com/customersource/northamerica/GP/support/hot-topics/HOT_TOPIC_MDGP2016Upgrade

Upgrade Demo

Any questions?

Thank you for attending!