what's new or changed in ctp1 for microsoft dynamics ax
TRANSCRIPT
Microsoft Dynamics AX
What’s new or
changed in
CTP1 for
Microsoft
Dynamics AX
application
version 7.1 This document describes features that are
either new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft
Dynamics AX application version 7.1.
White paper
August 2016
Send feedback.
www.microsoft.com/dynamics/ax
What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX application
version 7.1
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Contents
Cost accounting 3
Electronic reporting 5
Expense management 7
Financial management 9
Human capital management 10
Localizations 11
Payroll 17
Planning and scheduling 17
Product master data 18
Retail and commerce 19
Advanced warehouse management in a retail store 19
Enable seamless omni-channel commerce 19
Extensibility 20
LCS subscription estimator 21
POS task recorder 21
Store system: Providing a seamless on-premises store experience 21
Universal Windows Platform app for Retail Modern POS 23
Product recommendations at the POS via machine learning 23
Supply chain management 24
Consignment inventory 24
Vendor collaboration 24
Intercompany order processing 25
Minor feature enhancements in Supply chain management 26
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What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX
application version 7.1
This article describes features that are either new or changed in Community Technology Preview 1 (CTP1) for
Microsoft Dynamics AX application version 7.1.
Note: Microsoft Dynamics AX application version 7.1 runs on Dynamics AX platform version 7.2. Dynamics AX
platform version 7.2 was released in August 2016 and has a build number of 7.0.4230.16130. For details about the
latest version of Dynamics AX, see What's new or changed.
Cost accounting What can you do? Why this is important
Define cost element dimensions,
and import cost element
dimension members.
Cost elements are used in Cost accounting as a function to categorize costs and
document the flow of costs.
The primary cost elements are imported by using either an AX connector to get
main accounts directly from Dynamics AX or a generic connector, where you get
main accounts via Microsoft Excel from any other type of source system. After
main accounts are imported into Cost accounting, they are used as cost element
dimension members.
The secondary cost elements are user-defined and are used in allocations to
document the flow of costs.
Map cost element dimensions. If the main accounts across your legal entities can’t be shared because of
statutory accounting requirements, you can map them after import into Cost
accounting to get a holistic view across the organization.
Define cost object dimensions,
and import cost object
dimension members.
Cost objects are any type of object that costs are assigned to. Typical cost objects
include products, projects, resources, departments, cost centers, and geographic
regions.
You can use either an AX connector to get financial dimensions and values from
Dynamics AX or a generic connector, where you can get dimensions and values
via Excel from any other type of source system. For example, if you use the cost
center financial dimension as the object dimension, all cost centers that are
imported will be the dimension members for the cost object.
Define or import statistical
dimensions.
Statistical dimension members are measured in non-monetary units, such as
machine hours, number of employees, and square. They are used in statements,
or as the basis for allocations and distributions.
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What can you do? Why this is important
Create statistical measure
provider templates.
A statistical measure provider template is used to transform Dynamics AX data
into statistical measures. The template is then associated with a given statistical
dimension member. The templates are prefiltered so that they show only tables
that are associated with financial dimensions.
Create cost accounting ledgers. A cost accounting ledger is an agnostic ledger that uses its own calendar and
currency. It plays an important role in processing all cost transactions. For
example, a cost accounting ledger classifies costs based on its own cost elements,
and aggregates costs based on its own object dimensions. You can create as
many cost accounting ledgers as you require in order to do management
reporting from various perspectives.
Create cost control units. Cost control units make up the cost structure and define the flow of costs in a
cost accounting ledger. They must be associated with cost object dimensions to
represent the cost object dimensions in the ledger.
Process General ledger entries. To measure actual performance, you must have data. The data is imported by
using the connectors that you define for the cost accounting ledger. When you
process the General ledger entries, the data is imported incrementally.
Process Budget entries. To measure budgeted performance, you must have data. The data is imported by
using the connectors that you define for the cost accounting ledger. When you
process the budget entries, the data is imported incrementally.
Create and apply cost behavior
policies.
You use a cost behavior policy to classify costs as fixed, variable, or semi-variable.
A policy is rule-based and date-effective. By default, all costs are marked as
unclassified until you apply a cost behavior policy and calculate the effects of the
rule. After the calculation, the costs are classified.
Trace costs. To help you understand the impact of cost policies, Cost accounting lets you
trace costs to the source values and applied rules where they originate. This
functionality provides full traceability about when costs occurred, what types of
costs occurred, and which cost behavior rules were applied.
Define dimension hierarchies. You can create dimension hierarchies for either categorization or classification
purposes. For example, you can define a categorization hierarchy that is based on
a cost element dimension and its members. Alternatively, you can define a
classification hierarchy that is based on a cost object dimension and its members.
The reporting structures are used in the following situations:
● You define allocations, cost rates, and cost rollup rules.
● You view statements by using the workspace.
● You define access to view aggregated data.
● You view data in Excel.
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What can you do? Why this is important
Create statements that can be
viewed in the workspace.
Use the workspace to get a quick overview of actual and budgeted costs, and
also deviations. You can filter the data by period or cost level. The workspace is
designed for managers who are responsible for cost control. It adheres to the
access rules that are defined for the dimension hierarchies.
Create reports by using Excel.
Note: You must run Microsoft
Excel 2016.
You can export Cost accounting data directly to Excel through data entities and
use Microsoft PivotTable to create reports.
Electronic reporting What can you do? Why is this important?
Configure Electronic reporting (ER) reports
to insert data, in several formats, from
Document Management storage into
electronic messages that are generated.
ER reports can insert data into electronic messages that are generated
from the Document Management storage. Therefore, the attachments
of a particular business document can be added to electronic
messages that are generated for the document, in accordance with the
legal requirements. Currently, these attachments can be added in
MIME format to an XML message that is generated and in Base64
format to a binary message that is generated.
Configure ER reports to generate electronic
documents in Microsoft Excel, Microsoft
Word, or PDF format.
One configuration enables ER reports to generate electronic
documents in three different formats: OpenXML worksheet (Excel),
Word, and XML Forms Data Format (XFDF) (PDF). Users can select a
format by adding a format template to an ER report as an Excel, Word,
or PDF document.
Configure ER reports to insert data into
page headers and footers of electronic
documents that are generated in OpenXML
worksheet format, and to control page
breaks.
ER reports can enter business data into page headers and footers, and
also control where page breaks occur. Therefore, the reports can
support static top and bottom sections for pages of the electronic
documents that are generated, and can also support specific paging of
those documents, so that they comply with legal requirements.
Configure the destination of ER reports, so
that the output is sent as email, and so that
business data and ER logic (expressions)
can be used to specify, at run time, the
email address to use.
Previously, when you configured an ER destination, the email address
of the output’s recipient could be defined at design time. You can now
configure an expression in the ER format, and this expression can be
selected in a destination as the source of the email address for each
format configuration and each output component (folder or file)
separately. Therefore, when an ER report is running, each file that is
generated can be mailed to a different recipient, and the email
address can be defined based on ER logic and business data.
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What can you do? Why is this important?
Configure ER reports to use the part of the
electronic document that has already been
generated as a data source for generating
the rest of that document.
You can configure ER reports that create the output in text format to
do the document’s line counting. This information can then be used in
other parts of the document to create lines that include summary
details. The summary information (totals and numbers) can be
computed and printed to the electronic documents that are
generated, without requiring additional transformations of the data.
Therefore, this feature improves the performance of report execution
and helps keep the future maintenance of the configured ER format
easier.
Configure ER reports to specify a particular
file name extension for electronic
documents that are generated in text
format.
You can configure ER reports to create the output in text format, so
that it can be saved as a file that has a particular extension. In addition
to the default .txt extension, you can configure extensions such as .csv
and .prn, in accordance with the format specification.
Create new ER reports that are based on a
specific version of a ER model.
Previously, when you created a new ER format, only the most recent
version of the selected ER model could be used as the format’s data
source location. You can now select any available version of the
selected ER model. This feature lets you maintain ER reports for the
current year and design a new version of the ER model for the next
year in parallel.
Search data sources and formats/models
not only by text but also by selected
artifact in one click.
Proactively resolve rebase conflicts, and
support the resolution of conflicts between
configurations.
Configure ER reports to create multiple
validation messages for errors that are
discovered until report execution is
stopped.
Several user experience (UX) improvements in the ER framework help
users work with ER more efficiently and easily.
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Expense management What can you do? Why this is important
Reassign terminated employee
credit card transactions.
Sometimes, when an employee is terminated, his or her Active Directory Domain
Services (AD DS) account is disabled when active credit card transactions that
must be expensed are imported. In previous releases of Dynamics AX, you can’t
assign a delegate for expense entry or attach the credit card transactions to an
expense report.
You can now use the Credit card transactions page to reassign the employee for
any credit card transaction where the associated employee is terminated. After
you reassign the credit card transaction, the transaction can be selected for an
expense report and paid through the regular process for expense report
reimbursement.
Change the expense credit card
information for pending and
past employees.
You can change Expense management credit card information for pending
workers and past workers. In previous releases, you can change the expense
credit card information only if the worker is an active employee.
Copy an expense report. In the current release of Dynamics AX, you can copy an existing expense when
you create a new expense on the same expense report. You can copy an expense
report and all the associated non–credit card expenses to a new expense report.
You must still perform any required itemizations and attach required receipts,
based on defined expense policies and categories. You can add credit card
transactions to the expense report by selecting to add unreconciled expenses.
Bulk-edit expenses. Some credit card transactions might not be mapped to an expense category, or
they might be incorrectly mapped when they are imported. In this case,
employees must manually change the associated expense category. When you
manage the unreconciled expenses, you can now bulk-edit the expense category
for the selected expenses. Additionally, when you manage selected expenses for
a specific expense report, you can bulk-edit the project and the additional
information.
Change the exchange rate for
credit card transactions.
The actual exchange rate that is used in a credit card transaction might differ
from the exchange rate that is set up in the system. In previous releases of
Dynamics AX, employees can’t change the exchange rate for any credit card
transaction that was imported into Expense management.
You now can set a parameter on the Expense management parameters page to
allow the exchange rate to be changed for credit card transactions.
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What can you do? Why this is important
Set up anticorruption attestation
for expenses.
Some employees for an organization might have business with government
officials, and some expenses that occur as part of that business might be
perceived as bribery. In Dynamics AX Expense management, you can now set up
an anticorruption attestation that is displayed for selected expense categories,
such as meals and gifts. Employees must select whether expenses that are set up
for anticorruption attestation meet the criteria that are defined by your
organization’s policies.
Prevent manual entry of specific
expense category expenses.
An expense category can be set up to represent a credit card transaction where
the category can’t be changed. An example is a fee for late payment of the credit
card. You can now set up an expense category that allows expenses to be created
only through import. This feature prevents employees from manually creating an
expense for the category, and also doesn’t allow the category to be changed for
transactions that have been imported and use this category.
Attach a receipt to multiple
expenses.
A receipt that is uploaded to Expense management might be related to multiple
expenses. In previous releases of Dynamics AX, a receipt that is related to
multiple expenses must be uploaded one time for each expense.
You can now attach a receipt to an expense that has already been uploaded and
attached to another expense on the same expense report. Additionally, if you
upload a receipt to the header of the expense report, you can select one or more
lines to attach the receipt.
Create future-dated expenses. When you copy an expense report, for example, the transaction date for an
expense might have a future date. Previous releases of Dynamics AX don’t allow
for future-dated expenses.
You can now create and save expenses that have a future date. However, you
can’t submit a future-dated expense.
Configure expense taxes for a
state/province.
In some country/regions, expenses that are incurred in different state/province
might be subject to different sales tax rates. You can now set up the expense tax
configurations at the state/province level, not just at the country/region level. If
you leave the State/Province field blank on the Tax configuration page, the
sales tax group applies to all states/provinces for the specified country/region.
Set up expense credit card
types.
In previous releases of Dynamics AX, there is no form where you can create new
credit card types, such as Visa, MasterCard or AMEX, that can be used with
Expense management.
You can now create credit card types to use with Expense management. The page
is located in the Setup area, in the Calculations and codes section.
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Financial management What can you do? Why this is important
Track fixed asset valuations by
using a single “Book” concept.
In previous versions of Dynamics AX, two separate types of valuation are used to
track fixed asset values: value models and depreciation books.
In the current version, these two concepts have been merged into a single
valuation concept that is named Books. Books have all the functionality of both
value models and depreciation books. This functionality includes the ability to
turn off posting to the general ledger. Books that post to the general ledger are
typically used for corporate financial reporting. Books that don’t post to the
general ledger can be used for tax reporting purposes.
Perform the General ledger
year-end close for multiple legal
entities.
To speed up the year-end closing process, you can now run the year-end close
for multiple legal entities from a “shared” year-end close page. Groups of legal
entities can be defined, together with settings that should be retained from one
year to the next. Additional usability enhancements have also been made to the
year-end closing process.
Take advantage of
enhancements to General ledger
foreign currency revaluation
The following enhancements have been made to the General ledger process for
foreign currency revaluation:
● An exchange rate type has been added to the main account. This exchange
rate type is now used to determine the exchange rate during currency
revaluation. If no exchange rate type is defined, the process continues to use
the exchange rate type that is defined on the ledger.
● It’s now easier to select a range of main accounts and currencies to run the
revaluation process for.
● Revaluation can be run for multiple legal entities.
● The system now maintains a history of every revaluation process that was
performed, as it does for the Accounts receivable (AR) and Accounts payable
(AP) revaluation processes.
View transactions for additional
posting layers.
On the Trial balance list page and the Dimension statement report, you can
now select the additional posting layers that have been added to General ledger.
When you select the additional posting layers, the adjustments for those posting
layers are included in the balances on the list page or report.
Attach “how to” documentation
to the Financial period close
template.
In previous releases of Dynamics AX, you can attach documentation after a task is
completed. For example, you can attach a report that was generated.
You can now also attach a “how to” document to the template. This “how to”
document is then copied to every task in the financial period schedule, so that
the task owner can view instructions about how to complete the task.
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What can you do? Why this is important
Define the intercompany
accounting setup from a shared
page.
The Intercompany accounting setup page is now shared, so that an
organization can define all the pairs of legal entity that can transact with each
other. Additionally, you can now enter a transaction in the originating legal entity
but not from the destination legal entity. If either legal entity can initiate an
intercompany transaction, the reciprocal pair must be defined. Therefore, the
destination legal entity is also set up as an originating legal entity.
Submit justification documents
for budget plans.
You can create a justification template as supplemental documentation for any
requested budget amounts. Users can fill in the details of the template and attach
the template to the budget plan, so that it can be used during the approval
process.
Enable advanced rules for
budget register entries.
If advanced rules are configured in General ledger, those rules can be used for
new entries and transfers in the budget register.
Human capital management What can you do? Why this is important
Create a performance journal. Before you complete your review, you often gather information about activities or
events that contributed to your success as an employee during the review period.
You can add an entry to your performance journal to document those activities
and events. You can also connect those activities and events to a goal or a
performance review to provide more information to the reviewer.
Create more detailed goals. You have more control over the content of the goals that you set. You can create
measurements for the goals, link performance journal entries to the
measurements, and attach and view documents. You can also add detailed goal
topics that you and your manager can post comments about. Goals can be stored
as templates and reused for quick setup.
Create more detailed
performance reviews.
Performance reviews, which are formally known as discussions, are now flexible
enough to support both continuous feedback and more formal reviews. You can
pull in active goals and post comments about them, add sections for review of
your competencies, and rate your competencies. Additional sections are
provided, where you can add or view measurements, performance journal entries,
attachments, ratings, and signoffs that are related to the review. Reviews can be
stored as templates and reused for quick setup.
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What can you do? Why this is important
Associate additional position
hierarchies to workflows.
You can associate a workflow with a position hierarchy. You can also modify the
workflow steps to optimize the approval process so that it fits your business
requirements. Therefore, you can define an effective approval structure that fits
the various reporting relationships that your organization uses.
Workflow support for personal
identification number (PIN)
entry in Employee self-service.
Workflow capability for Human resources (HR) has been expanded and now
includes support for PINs. Employees can add/edit their PIN to improve
efficiency. However, HR workers can review this information for accuracy and
completeness before they add it to the employee’s record.
Localizations What can you do? Why this is important
Japan – Group fixed assets when you print the form
26 and its appended tables.
The form 26 must be submitted to each city where the
corporation operates. To save you effort when you print the
form 26, fixed assets can be automatically grouped and sorted
by location.
Japan – See the amounts for accelerated and
additional depreciation on the profile.
The profile can provide an accurate estimate of the amounts
for accelerated and additional depreciation.
Japan – Calculate withholding tax progressively. The Japanese government requires that you calculate
withholding tax progressively, according to the payment
amount.
Japan – Import the postal code file for specific large
enterprise buildings.
The postal code file for specific large enterprise buildings from
the authority can be imported into system. The address can
then be derived from the postal code.
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What can you do? Why this is important
Localizations for 18 additional countries/regions
are available. Localization for the following
countries/regions is completed:
● China
● Saudi Arabia
● Thailand
We haven’t completed the localization of all
features for the following countries/regions:
● Austria
● Belgium
● Brazil
● Czech Republic
● Estonia
● Finland
● Hungary
● Italy
● Latvia
● Lithuania
● Norway
● Poland
● Spain
● Sweden
● Switzerland
The following countries/regions require the Retail
localization. The Retail localization for these
countries/regions hasn’t been completed but is
planned for the future:
● Brazil
● Czech Republic
● Estonia
● Hungary
● Latvia
● Lithuania
● Malaysia
● Poland
● Sweden
Dynamics AX is available in an additional 18 countries/regions.
An Electronic reporting (ER) feature was introduced in the
February 2016 release.
As part of our effort to make localization easier and more
configurable, more regulatory electronic reports are now
available as ER configurations. Additionally, some regulatory
Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) reports are
also available as ER configurations that have Microsoft Excel
templates. These converted reports are listed later in this
table.
To use ER configurations, import them from the Dynamics AX
resources repository that you can access from the Electronic
reporting workspace. For more details, see Electronic
reporting overview.
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What can you do? Why this is important
Europe localization – updates The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Fixed asset acquisitions
● Fixed asset movements
France localization – updates The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Fixed asset note for France
Austria localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU Sales list XML format for Austria
● Intrastat format for Austria
● ISO20022 Credit transfer Austrian format
Belgium localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● BLWI format for Belgium
● EU Sales list XML format for Belgium
● Intervat format for Belgium
● Intrastat format for Belgium
● Invoice turnover report for Belgium
● Ledger transaction export format for Belgium
● SWIFT vendor payment format for Belgium
The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Fixed assets report for Belgium
Czech Republic localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU Sales list XML format for Czech Republic
● Intrastat format for Czech Republic
Estonia localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU Sales list XML format for Estonia
● Intrastat format for Estonia
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What can you do? Why this is important
Finland localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU Sales list TXT format for Finland
● Intrastat format for Finland
Hungary localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU Sales list XML format for Hungary
● Intrastat format for Hungary
● Intrastat simplified format for Hungary
The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Fixed asset note for Hungary
Italy localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● Intrastat format for Italy
● Project e-invoice
● Sales e-invoice
● ISO20022 Credit transfer Italian format
● ISO20022 Direct debit Italian format
The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Fixed asset book report for Italy
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What can you do? Why this is important
Latvia localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU sales list XML format for Latvia
● Intrastat (A) format for Latvia
● Intrastat (B) format for Latvia
The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Cash receipts usage report (LV)
● Fixed asset category tax depreciation calculation for Latvia
● Depreciation summary report for Latvia
● Fixed asset disposals report for Latvia
● Fully depreciated report for Latvia
● Fixed asset internal transfers for Latvia
● Fixed asset note for Latvia
● Asset record (LV)
● Fixed asset tax depreciation calculation for Latvia
New features:
● EU Sales list corrections XML format for Latvia
Lithuania localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU Sales list XML format for Lithuania
● Intrastat format for Lithuania
Norway localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● Collection letter NO
Poland localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● Intrastat format for Poland
The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Fixed asset table for Poland
● Fixed asset transactions for Poland
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What can you do? Why this is important
Spain localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● EU Sales list TXT format for Spain
● Intrastat format for Spain
● Project e-invoice
● Sales e-invoice
● ISO20022 Credit transfer Spanish format
● ISO20022 Direct debit Spanish format
Sweden localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● Intrastat format for Sweden
● Bankgirot Autogiro customer payment format for Sweden
● Bankgirot vendor payments format for Sweden
● Postgirot vendor payment format for Sweden
● Postgirot Utland vendor payment format for Sweden
● SWIFT vendor payment format for Sweden
Switzerland localization – not completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● LSV direct debit Swiss format
China localization – completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● GBT24589 Accounting data exchanging
The following SSRS reports have been converted to ER/Excel
configurations:
● Customer balance Report
● Customer balance by sales groups
● Customer balance by customer groups
● Customer balance by profiles
● Customer balance by dimension
● Customer balance
● Customer aging
● Due amount analysis (AR)
● Aging analysis of receivable payment
● Vendor balance report
● Vendor balance by vendor group
● Vendor balance by profiles
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What can you do? Why this is important
Saudi Arabia localization – completed The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● Imported letter of credit specific for Saudi Arabia
Malaysia localization – updates The following electronic report formats are available as ER
configurations:
● GST - generating GAF file in xml
Payroll What can you do? Why this is important
Configure pay records and
process payroll by using
functionality that is equivalent
to the functionality of the
Payroll module in Microsoft
Dynamics AX 2012 R3.
You can now configure and process US payroll by using a feature set that is
equivalent to the feature set in AX 2012 R3. One exception involves the ability to
generate payroll positive pay files. However, this functionality should be included
in a future CTP update.
You can configure pay cycles and pay periods, work cycles and work periods,
earning codes and earning code groups, schedules, leave types, and benefit
accrual plans.
You can also set up mandatory deductions, both for benefits and taxes, and
record payroll information for positions and workers for reporting and analysis
purposes.
You can also set up and manage deductions for garnishments and tax levies, and
any associated administrative fees.
Planning and scheduling What can you do? Why this is important
Set default order settings for
sales and purchases, based on
any active product dimension
on the product master.
Therefore, you can define
default order settings for the
stock keeping unit (SKU) or a
partial SKU.
You can specify default order settings that apply to a product dimension or a
combination of product dimensions.
Example
You sell a product that is named Polo T-shirt. This product is available in two
colors: Green and Blue. It’s also available in two sizes: Small and Medium. Color
and Size are active product dimensions for Polo T-shirt. You can block purchases
of all green Polo T-shirts, regardless of their size.
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Product master data What can you do? Why this is important
Set up all default order settings
and site-specific order settings
at the same time from one
page.
This feature provides a better overview of item settings.
Create a nomenclature for
product variant numbers.
You can include elements such as product dimensions, attributes, and characters
in your product variant numbers. When you create a sales order or a purchase
order, you can quickly find the specific product variant.
Search for products and product
variants in sales and purchase
scenarios.
When you create a sales line or a purchase line, you can search for products by
using product dimensions and any product numbers except Global Trade Item
Numbers (GTINs) and barcodes. This search is a full-text search that replaces the
existing “Begins with” search that is used in the sales and purchase lookup list.
This feature lets you find groups of products that have similar properties or a
single product that has unique characteristics. To turn on this feature, select the
Enable lookup for product search parameter on the Search parameters page.
Specify the product variant
directly when you create a sales
or purchase transaction.
Alternatively, you can select
from a list of valid dimension
combinations.
This feature is a productivity enhancement.
Example
You sell a product that is named Polo T-shirt. This product is available in two
colors: Green and Blue. It’s also available in two sizes: Small and Medium. Color
and Size are active product dimensions for Polo T-shirt. When you enter a sales
line for Polo T-shirt that has color Green and size Small, you don’t have to enter
data in the Item number, Color, and Size fields. You can create the line by
following one of these steps:
● In the Item number field, enter the product variant number, the value of a
color, or the size. In the lookup, find the specific variant that you want to sell,
and create the sales line.
● In the Item number field, enter the item number. Go to any product
dimension field. In the Product dimension lookup, you will see all the
released dimension combinations that apply to Polo T-shirt. You can select the
product variant that you want to sell in one step.
Choose whether product
numbers should be shown on
transactional pages.
The transactional pages, such as sales orders and purchase orders, show only the
Item number and Product name fields. If you want to see the Product number
field, select the Show product numbers on forms parameter under Product
information management parameters.
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Retail and commerce
Advanced warehouse management in a retail store
Retailers can use the Advanced warehouse management (WHS) solution in their stores and make the required
updates to the current point of sale (POS) features to support it.
The processes of the handheld solution should work in a store as they do in any other warehouse. All current retail
store inventory processes, and any POS processes that create or update inventory transactions, are updated so that
they use the specific requirements for WHS-enabled warehouses.
What can you do? Why this is important
Use the POS to look up available
inventory in WHS-enabled
stores.
When you look up inventory, the process should work the same as it worked
before. The lookup should show the available quantities at the warehouse level,
and should not consider the Location, Inventory status, or License plate
dimensions.
Use the POS to process a
product receipt for a transfer
order in a WHS-enabled store.
You can receive transfer orders at the POS for a WHS-enabled store and items.
The user should be able to select the locations to receive into, and should be able
to enter license plate IDs to automatically populate the receiving lines.
Use the POS to process a
product receipt for a purchase
order in a WHS-enabled store.
You can receive purchase orders at the POS for a WHS-enabled store and items.
The user should be able to select the locations to receive into, and should be able
to enter license plate IDs to automatically populate the receiving lines.
Use the POS to process a
shipment of products from a
WHS-enabled store.
You can register transfers from the POS for a WHS-enabled store and items. The
user should be able to select the locations to ship from, the inventory status
should be automatically generated, and license plates should be ignored.
Enable seamless omni-channel commerce
Seamless omni-channel commerce refers to management and order processing across brick and mortar stores,
online storefronts, call centers, and mobile commerce experiences. For this release, the following investments have
been made in this area:
● Improvements to publishing for E-commerce storefronts
● A new consumer-facing mobile app to enable product discovery, account management, and online shopping
What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX application
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What can you do? Why this is important
Consumer: The CTP1 release of
the consumer-facing app
enables the product search,
category browsing, social sign-
in, and order history/details
features. Retailers can also apply
their company's branding to the
app and then package it for the
Android and iOS app stores.
This app provides an easy way for the retailers to create a consumer-facing app
that lets their customers browse and search products, sign in and view their order
history, and so on, from their mobile devices. Eventually, the app will also enable
the product buying functionality, so that retailers can connect to and sell to their
customers through an additional channel.
Customer wish lists for
E-commerce online storefronts.
Independent software vendors (ISVs) can use the wish list control to let users
create and manage multiple lists in their online storefront and view/use those
lists in the POS and mobile shopping apps.
Asynchronous customer
creation via E-commerce online
storefronts.
ISVs can now take advantage customer account creation when Commerce Data
Exchange: Real-time Service is unavailable.
Publish channel products from
Retail Server to third-party
storefronts.
Retail Server now supports service-to-service authentication.
ISVs can take advantage of channel product publishing from Retail Server to
third-party storefronts.
Extensibility
● Zero-impact servicing by Microsoft Dynamics Service Engineers (DSEs) and ISVs
● No inline code/schema changes for the POS, commerce runtime (CRT), channel database, proxy, and clients
● Easier deployment and servicing through componentized Microsoft component packages and ISV packages for
the POS, Retail Server, databases, and Hardware stations
● Code separation by services
● Backward compatibility from Microsoft Dynamics AX 7.0 onward
What can you do? Why this is important
POS: Retailers or ISVs can
extend the POS without making
inline code changes.
To extend the POS without making inline code changes, retailers or ISVs can write
the customization in the extension file for both the UI and the business logic. For
CTP1, the injection engine will be ready. For subsequent releases, we will do it for
all the core scenarios.
CRT/Retail Server: Retailers or
ISVs can extend the CRT or
Retail Server without making
inline code changes.
To extend the CRT or Retail Server without making inline code changes, retailers
or ISVs can write the customization in the extension file for both the UI and the
business logic. For CTP1, we will complete the design and try to complete the
code separation, at least for the Sales transaction service.
What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX application
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LCS subscription estimator
What can you do? Why this is important
Identify the main factors for
infrastructure sizing. Consider
transaction volume together
with aggregation, posting, and
many other important factors.
To estimate the infrastructure sizing for Retail, the subscription estimator
currently uses the transaction volume, without considering aggregation, posting,
or any other important factors. For this release, we will identify the main factors
for sizing.
POS task recorder
What can you do? Why this is important
Retailers can use POS task
recorder to produce training
materials, Business process
modeler (BPM) diagrams, and
Help content to enhance
productivity and do better
analysis and design of
applications.
POS task recorder has been rebuilt from the ground up, and the focus has been
on high responsiveness, a flexible extensibility application programming interface
(API), and seamless integration with consumers of business process recordings.
Store system: Providing a seamless on-premises store experience
Store system is a deployment choice for retailers that helps drive a set of store operations, whether in an on-
premises store, Microsoft public cloud, or the customer’s own private cloud. For Dynamics AX application version 7.1,
the scope is for in-store only.
To better support environments that have slow and unreliable network connectivity, we must provide an option for
retailers to deploy the channel database and Retail Server in the store. In that way, they can continue to run their
core business scenarios even when there is no connectivity to HQ.
Based on the various data points, which included engineering team discussions, customer survey results, and
competitor analysis, we have identified the following solution scope as the ideal fit for our target customers:
● A self-service package is available for Store system.
● The default installation is a one-box deployment, but custom deployment is allowed.
● Enable easy deployment/self-servicing.
● Retail Server and the store database are in the store, together with the Async Client service.
● Retail Server in the store communicates directly with Application Object Server (AOS) in HQ for Store system.
● Support cross-terminal scenarios without HQ connectivity.
● Retail Modern POS and Cloud POS always communicate with Retail Server in the store.
● Support Retail Modern POS and Cloud POS without HQ connectivity.
What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX application
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● Support a Retail Modern POS–specific offline database (isolated to each Retail Modern POS instance) without HQ
connectivity.
● Authentication is based on Service-to-service only for Store system.
● Real-time Service calls aren’t supported without Internet connectivity.
● Direct database connectivity of Retail Modern POS to the channel database isn’t supported.
● Enable telemetry/monitoring.
What can you do? Why this is important
A retailer downloads the Store
system self-service installer from
the channel database page in
Dynamics AX HQ and
downloads the configuration
file.
The retailer can seamlessly download the self-service package.
A retailer installs Store system
by using the self-service
installer.
The retailer can install Store system by using the self-service package.
IT manager configures Store
system in Dynamics AX (channel
database, channel profile, store,
and deployable package).
The IT manager can configure Store system easily and efficiently.
A retailer operates Retail
Modern POS in the on-premises
store and can do real time
operations, such as issue gift
cards, when there is
connectivity.
The retailer can perform real-time actions from Store system when there is
connectivity.
A retailer can sync data from the
on-premises Store system to HQ
whenever there is connectivity.
The retailer can sync to and from Store system when there is connectivity.
A retailer can have secure
communication between the
on-premises Store system and
HQ.
The retailer can communicate from Store system securely when there is
connectivity.
The IT manager and Microsoft
Operations can monitor and
report for the on-premises Store
system (diagnostics and
reporting changes).
The IT manager and Microsoft Operations can monitor Store system securely and
troubleshoot efficiently.
What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX application
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Universal Windows Platform app for Retail Modern POS
Currently, Retail Modern POS is available only as a Windows 8.1 application for desktop computers and tablets, and
as Cloud POS for desktop or tablet browsers. In this release, Retail Moderns POS is being converted to a Universal
Windows Platform (UWP) app. This change will enable Retail Modern POS to run on any Windows 10 device
(desktop, tablet, or phone) and even switch between views for Continuum-enabled devices.
What can you do? Why this is important
Enable important POS
functionality for small form
factor devices.
Retail POS functionality is available for phones and other small form factor
devices that run Windows 10.
Product recommendations at the POS via machine learning
You can improve customer engagement by surfacing product recommendations that are based on the purchase
history of items that are bought together across all channels.
What can you do? Why this is important
Enable product
recommendations that use
machine learning on a product
details page, customer details
page, and also a transaction
screen at the POS.
Product recommendations should no longer be statically defined as related
products in Dynamics AX. By taking advantage of power of the machine learning,
it learns about customer buying patterns and dynamically updates the product
recommendations for a given product. This functionality helps store associates be
aware of customer buying patterns and improves the chances of upselling
additional products.
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Supply chain management
Consignment inventory
What can you do? Why this is important
As a vendor, you can store raw
materials at the customer’s
warehouse.
As a customer, you can
postpone the actual purchase
until the raw materials are
actually required for production.
Keeping an inventory of raw materials can be a serious cost. By using
consignment inventory, a vendor can store raw materials at the customer’s
warehouse. The customer can then postpone the actual purchase until the raw
materials are actually required for production.
Raw materials are ordered and received by using a consignment replenishment
order that records physical transactions, but that doesn’t affect the general
ledger. To distinguish between customer-owned inventory items and vendor-
owned inventory items, you can use the Owner inventory dimension.
The change of ownership for inventory is handled by a journal process that
handles the transfer of ownership for raw materials from the vendor-owned
inventory to the customer-owned inventory. This process triggers creation of a
purchase order and a product receipt.
Note: This feature is limited to inbound consignment of raw materials for
production. It isn’t integrated with Warehouse management (WHS) and
Transportation management (TMS).
The vendor gets information
about the amount of consigned
inventory that is transferred to
the customer.
To bill a customer, the vendor requires information about the raw materials that
were purchased from the consignment inventory, and the date of purchase.
Vendor collaboration
What can you do? Why this is important
Enable vendors to respond to
each purchase order line and
suggest changes.
In some cases, vendors want to accept some purchase order lines but reject
others. Vendors can now manage purchase order lines individually. Each line can
be rejected, accepted, or accepted with changes. For example, vendors can
change the delivery date, split the delivery and quantity, or suggest an alternative
item.
Enable vendors to manage
contact person information.
Vendors can maintain contact person information for their company. This
information includes names, email addresses, and phone numbers. Access to this
feature is granted through a dedicated security role.
What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX application
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What can you do? Why this is important
Share documents that are
related to purchase orders with
vendors.
When you must share a document with a vendor, such as a document about
requirements, it’s convenient to link the document to the relevant purchase
order. The vendor can then share notes and attachments with the customer by
linking the document to his or her response to the purchase order. Document
management is the underlying supporting framework, where only notes and
attachments that are classified as “external” can be shared with vendors.
Intercompany order processing
What can you do? Why this is important
Define, directly on sales order
lines, where and the demand
should be sourced from, and
how it should be sourced.
Example
Create a sales order line, and
specify direct delivery as the
delivery type. The primary
vendor is added to the sales
order line as the sourcing
point.
The flow for order taking has been improved significantly. You can now define,
directly on sales order lines, where the demand should be sourced from, and how
it should be sourced. You no longer have to wait until all lines have been added to
the sales order.
New options on sales order lines let you specify the delivery type when you specify
a vendor. When you associate a vendor with sales order lines, order chains are
created for delivery from the vendor.
● The vendor can be an intercompany vendor that uses an internal purchase and
sales order, or it can be an external vendor that uses an external purchase
order.
● The delivery type can be Direct delivery or Stock. The Stock delivery type
indicates that the vendor should supply to the local inventory before it ships to
the customer.
Create an order promise
directly from sales order lines.
Example
Create a sales order line that I
sourced from an intercompany
vendor. Leave the line. Delivery
dates are calculated according
to availability in the sourcing
company.
When you create sales order lines that use the new sourcing information, delivery
dates are calculated according to the Delivery date control. For example, if an
intercompany vendor is selected, the availability in the sourcing company is
calculated. In this way, order chains are automatically created together with sales
order lines. This functionality helps guarantee that delivery dates become visible in
the sourcing company, so that the available-to-promise (ATP) profiles can handle
the anticipated demands directly as sales orders are created.
Review product availability
across all sourcing locations,
and select the best sourcing
option.
The Delivery alternatives page has been redesigned, and now provides valuable
information about all approved internal and external vendors. This information
includes sourcing options for vendor procurement. When you select a delivery
mode, the system calculates feasible delivery dates. You can seamlessly select the
best option for the customer and apply this option to every sales order line.
What’s new or changed in CTP1 for Microsoft Dynamics AX application
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Minor feature enhancements in Supply chain management
What can you do? Why this is important
Use new data entities to import
and export data.
You can import and export data by using these data entities:
● Freight invoice
● Aggregate on-hand by warehouse and inventory status
● Inventory charges
● Quotation
Use the enhanced Gantt control
to develop interactive
scheduling scenarios.
The enhanced Gantt control lets you develop new interactive scheduling
scenarios and deliver enhanced APIs that can be used to customize the
appearance of activities. Here are some of the new APIs:
● Vertical drag-and-drop of activities
● Add/remove activities
● Preview booked periods in summary bar
● Change color and style of activity borders
● Change color, style, and background of text in grid
Better handle material and
resource planning.
A few enhancements have been made to material and resource planning:
● The issue margin is now handled when an item is on-hand.
● Overwrite the delivery date when you firm planned orders.
● Prioritize fulfillment of orders over safety stock.
● Prevent scheduling of planned orders in the past.
Report actual consumption for
production, and view inventory
status.
You can view actual consumption for production. Additionally, a new Display
inventory status check box that has been added to Movement on the Work
creation menu item lets you view inventory status.
Calculate volumetric weight, if
the rates for your shipping
carrier are based on volumetric
weight.
A new TMS rate engine that is based on volumetric weight has been added, so
that you can calculate volumetric weight.
Send feedback.
Microsoft Dynamics is a line of integrated, adaptable business
management solutions that enables you and your people to make
business decisions with greater confidence. Microsoft Dynamics works
like and with familiar Microsoft software, automating and streamlining
financial, customer relationship, and supply chain processes in a way
that helps you drive business success.
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