Microsoft Dynamics GP Roadmap 2018-2020

Microsoft Dynamics GPAt the GP Tech Conference this week, a new road map for Microsoft Dynamics GP was released which runs through to 2020:

Microsoft Dynamics GP Roadmap 2018-2020

As announced, earlier this week, the next version of Microsoft Dynamics GP is 2018 R2 and is scheduled for release on the 1st October 2018.

As you can see, on the roadmap, Intelligent Edge will be playing more of a role in future releases, but there will also be features requested by customers and the wider community. It is this latter section which is a large part of the new features in the upcoming release.

Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: Search Using SmartFill

Rockton SoftwareThis post is part of a series of posts on Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill.

With SmartFill now installed, the search windows are available to use. There are many SmartFill search windows available, which all work in the same way, but, for this example, I am using Vendor search.

Open the Vendor Maintenance window (Purchasing area page » Cards » Vendor). Type OFFICE in the Vendor ID field and hit tab:

Continue reading “Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: Search Using SmartFill”

Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Upgrade Blog Series Schedule

Microsoft Dynamics GPAftre the announcement at GP TechConf2018 that the next version of Microsoft Dynamics GP would be 2018 R2, Derek Albaugh, on the Dynamics GP Support and Services Blog announce the schedule for the Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Upgrade Blog Series.

The Microsoft Upgrade Blog Series for Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update will give you the information needed for a successful upgrade and answer questions about planning, known issues, troubleshooting, table and column changes in the new version and more. Here is the upcoming schedule:

Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Upgrade Series Schedule
Sept. 4th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update: Lifecycle and Upgrade Services
Sept. 5th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update Upgrade Planning – Let’s Get Started
Sept. 6th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update – Known Upgrade Issues
Sept. 11th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update – Version Checks & Upgrades
Sept. 12th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update – The Database Upgrade
Sept. 13th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update – Modified Dictionary Upgrade
Sept. 18th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update — Upgrade Troubleshooting
Sept. 19th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update is upgraded – What’s Next?
Sept. 20th: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update – Upgrading Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 Web Client
Sept. 25th: Table and Column Changes in Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Year-End Update
Sept. 26th: New Security Roles and Tasks are missing when upgrading to Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2

The Dynamics GP Support and Services Blog will be updated with links to the posts as they are posted, so make sure you check back on that page regularly once the series starts.

News from GP Tech Conference: Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 is the Next Version

Microsoft Dynamics GPUnfortunately, I’ve not been able to attend the GP tech Confernece this week and am having to watch it vicariously on Twitter using the #GPTechConf hashtag. There’s been some interesting updates on Microsoft Dynamics GP 2018 R2 (yep, 2018 R2 and not 2019). The first bit of news is confirmation of the rumour that it would be released on 1st October instead of December. This is apparently to bring it more in line with other Dynamics applications.

MVP Jen Kuntz has been tweeting about some of the new features coming in Dynamics GP 2018 R2:

MVP Steve Endow also tweeted bout another new feature: Sales Transaction Approval workflow. I do like to see new workflows introduced, and this is one I’ve been asked about a few times.

The way Jen presented the series of posts I covered above, these are not the only new features, but ones she picked out as being the good ones. As everyone uses Dynamics GP somewhat differently, due to the needs of their business, it will be interesting to see the full list when released.

Jen also did a round-up blog post on day one of the conference where she points out that the above features are not confirmed for inclusion in 2018 R2 as they are still in QA. This is the same message given other years and the vast majority of the features shown have been included when the software was released.

Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: Registration

Rockton SoftwareThis post is part of a series of posts on Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill.

While SmartFill will work without a licence in the Fabrikam sample company, to use it in any other company, you need to register the module. Your partner can purchase the keys for you; once the order is compelte, the registration can be updated in Microsoft Dynamics GP.

To do this, open the Rockton Software Registration Issues (Microsoft Dynamics GP menu » Tools » Setup » SmartFill » Registration) window. Ensure SmartFill is marked in the Product Name column and click the Get Keys button:

Rockton Software Registration Issues

Once the keys have been retrived, the Message column will show Registered. Click to see details. SmartFill is now available to use in all companies.

Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: Client Installation

Rockton SoftwareThis post is part of a series of posts on Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill.

The second step in implementing SmartFill is to install the remaining clients.

Using the previously downloaded installer, extract the downloaded file and run the SmartFillSetup.exe as Administrator by right-clicking:

SmartFillSetup.exe

Continue reading “Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: Client Installation”

Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: First Client Installation

Rockton SoftwareThis post is part of a series of posts on Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill.

The first step in implementing SmartFill is to install the first client; it’s in this installation where we will deploy the database objects.

To install the first client, the first step is to download SmartFill; navigate to the Rockton Software downloads page. In the Product field, select SmartFill and in the Versions field select Microsoft Dynamics GP Version 2018.

Mark the checkbox next to the Product and hit the Download Selected button:

Rockton Software downloads page

Continue reading “Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: First Client Installation”

Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: What Is SmartFill

Rockton SoftwareThis post is part of a series of posts on Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill.

Before starting the installation, I thought it might be useful to do a post, covering what functionality SmartFill contains.

Simply put, SmartFill allows you to perform a more flexible lookup than the standard ones in Microsoft Dynamics GP. For example, you can type only a few characters of an Item Number or Item Description and a list of data matching will be returned; the search performed is a begins with or contains (depending on configuration) which makes it easy to find the required data.

By default SmartFill ships with a large number of default searches, but can be customised to add more or change the default ones; and can also be configured to to be available to 3rd party modules.

Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill: Series Index

Rockton SoftwareI periodically take a look at different offering from ISVs, of which there are many. One that I’ve looked at recently is SmartFill from Rockton Software.

I figured a small series on implementing it might be useful as I step through the process myself. Over the new few posts, I’ll be installing and configuring SmartFill.

Implementing Rockton’s SmartFill
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: What Is SmartFill
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: First Client Installation
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: Client Installation
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: Registration
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: Search Using SmartFill
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: Configuring Security
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: Customising Search Options
Implementing Rockton's SmartFill: Review

PowerShell to Stop Server Manager Loading

WindowsOne of the things that annoys me about Windows Server 2012 and later, is that the Server Manager launches automatically whenever you log in. This wouldn’t be a problem, if it didn’t take so long to fully launch.

Well, I did some exploring and investigation, and it turns out that the Server Manager is being launched at user log on by a Scheduled Task:

Scheduled Task to Auto Launch of Server Manager

Continue reading “PowerShell to Stop Server Manager Loading”