NAV to Business Central
If you are running Dynamics NAV, you are running on a platform that Microsoft is no longer developing. Business Central is the modern cloud successor to NAV, built on the same foundation but delivered as a cloud-first SaaS platform with continuous updates, modern integrations and a dramatically improved user experience.
NAV is legacy. Business Central is the future.
Microsoft Dynamics NAV served businesses well for decades, but it is now a legacy product. Mainstream support for NAV 2018, the final NAV release, ended in January 2023. Extended support continues until January 2028, but no new features, no new integrations and no new capabilities will be added to NAV.
Business Central is not merely an upgrade of NAV. It is a reimagining of the platform for the cloud era. The familiar NAV functionality is all present, but it is wrapped in a modern interface, delivered as a cloud service with automatic updates and enriched with integrations that NAV never had. The native Shopify connector, Power BI integration, Power Automate workflows and Microsoft 365 connectivity are all standard features of Business Central.
For NAV users, the transition is smoother than you might expect. The underlying data model is familiar, the business logic is the same and the concepts are identical. What changes is the delivery model, the user interface and the breadth of capability.
What Migrates
- Chart of accounts and financial setup
- Customer and vendor master data
- Item master data and inventory
- Open transactions and balances
- Historical transaction data
- BOMs, routings and production data
What Changes
- C/AL customisations replaced with AL extensions
- On-premise hosting replaced with cloud SaaS
- Manual updates replaced with automatic releases
- Classic client replaced with modern web interface
Three approaches to moving forward
There is no single approach that suits every NAV environment. We offer three distinct options depending on your NAV version, the extent of your customisations and your appetite for change.
NAV to BC Upgrade
A technical upgrade path that migrates your existing NAV database to Business Central. This preserves your customisations and data in place. Best suited to organisations on newer NAV versions (2016+) with relatively standard configurations.
NAV to BC Transition
A hybrid approach where we migrate your data from NAV but reconfigure Business Central to take advantage of modern features and standard functionality. Custom C/AL code is analysed and only the customisations you still need are rebuilt as AL extensions. This is the most common approach.
BC Reimplementation
A fresh Business Central implementation with data migration from NAV. This is the right choice when your NAV system has accumulated years of workarounds and your business processes have changed significantly since NAV was first installed. It gives you the opportunity to start clean.
Migration Timeline
Assessment
Review NAV configuration, customisations and data. Determine scope and approach.
BC Configuration
Configure Business Central to match your business requirements, informed by NAV analysis.
Data Migration
Trial migration, validation, correction and final migration of all master and transaction data.
Go-Live
Supported go-live with hypercare period for immediate issue resolution.
Ready to Move from NAV to Business Central?
We have migrated organisations from every version of NAV. Speak with a consultant who understands NAV and can show you what the transition involves.