WHY GP TEAMS RE-EVALUATE
When Does Moving from GP to Business Central Actually Make Sense?
Dynamics GP has earned its loyalty. Many teams have used it for a decade or more, invested heavily in training, reporting, and custom processes, and built real confidence around how it works.
But most GP customers don’t start this conversation because they want a new ERP. They start it because something changes:
- Server refresh cycles force a financial comparison between on-prem infrastructure and cloud ERP Growth, acquisitions, or new entities strain GP’s scalability
- Leadership or personnel changes occur — new CFOs, Controllers, or long-time GP experts preparing to retire
- Growth or acquisitions make GP increasingly complex and costly to manage
- End-of-support timelines force long-term planning
When that happens, the real question isn’t “What’s the flashiest system?”
It’s “What’s the lowest-regret next step?”
Microsoft has announced that support for Dynamics GP will end on December 31, 2029. While many organizations still run GP successfully today, the approaching end-of-support date is causing finance and operations teams to evaluate long-term options. For many organizations, Dynamics 365 Business Central has become Microsoft’s recommended path forward.
WHAT TO EXPECT
What Carries Forward and What’s Different in Business Central
What Carries Forward from GP
Core Accounting Concepts
Your core accounting structure remains familiar. Business Central follows the same foundational accounting principles GP users know.
Chart of Accounts & Financial Data
Chart of accounts and financial history typically transfer cleanly when GP data is well maintained and reconciled.
What's New In Business Central
Reporting & Management Reporter
Business Central approaches reporting differently. GP users relying heavily on Management Reporter usually evaluate add-ons or alternative reporting tools.
Navigation, SmartLists & Workflow
Menu-driven navigation and SmartLists don’t translate directly. Business Central uses role-based navigation, search, and lists that work differently day to day.
Where BC Adds value
What Actually Improves in Business Central
While some workflows feel different at first, many GP customers see meaningful operational improvements once they’re live on Dynamics 365 Business Central:
- Accessibility: Cloud access without VPNs or on-prem servers
- Integration: Native Microsoft platform connections instead of heavy middleware
- Scalability: Easier multi-entity management as organizations grow or acquire
- Updates: Regular enhancements without disruptive upgrade projects
- Modern workflows: API-driven integrations, automation, and mobile access
These aren’t abstract benefits. They’re the reasons many teams ultimately feel relief once they’ve made the transition.
Business Central isn’t GP in the cloud and that’s exactly why it works better for many teams.
AN HONEST FIT CHECK
When Business Central May Not Be the Right Next Step
Business Central is the most common next step for GP customers — but it isn’t automatic.
Teams often pause for deeper evaluation when:
- Financial reporting requirements are highly specialized
- The organization operates in finance-first or nonprofit models with complex structures
- GP has been heavily customized to support nonstandard workflows
In these cases, Business Central may still be the right choice, but only with clear expectations, careful scoping, and open conversations up front. For some teams, staying on Dynamics GP, with the right support, remains an option.
WHY TIMING MATTERS
Why Many GP Customers Wish They’d Started Earlier
Teams rarely regret taking time to evaluate their options. What they often regret is waiting until the decision is forced.
Delays can lead to:
- Higher implementation costs than expected
- Fewer partners with immediate availability
- Less flexibility when infrastructure, staffing, or ownership changes accelerate timelines
Starting the conversation earlier doesn’t mean committing. It simply gives you more control over timing, scope, and outcomes.
WHY GP EXPERIENCE MATTERS
How BCS’ GP Background Changes the Business Central Conversation
Deep GP Experience
The BCS team has worked with GP long before Business Central existed and understands how GP environments are typically configured and used.
Clear Scoping Before Anything Else
BCS documents what’s in GP, what lives outside it, and what truly matters before implementation begins.
Advice, Not Just Execution
BCS advises on smarter, more standard ways of working — not simply recreating GP inside Business Central.
Built for Real Teams
ROOTED IN MICROSOFT
Trust BCS for GP to Business Central Expertise
GP to Business Central Expertise
BCS helps organizations move forward with clarity — whether that means migrating to Business Central or confirming a different path. Experience across GP, Business Central, and the broader Microsoft ecosystem allows BCS to guide decisions that hold up long after go-live.
Migration Considerations
Common Dynamics GP Migration Questions We Help Answer
- How much Dynamics GP data should be migrated versus archived?
- What happens to customizations and third-party ISV solutions?
- How will reporting change in Business Central?
- What training will users need?
- How long will the migration take?
- What can be done before Microsoft Dynamics GP support ends in 2029?
HOW THE MIGRATION ACTUALLY WORKS
The Dynamics GP Cloud Migration Tool, Step by Step
If you are evaluating Dynamics GP to Business Central migration, the practical question is how the data moves. Here is what the process actually involves.
Two approaches to moving from GP to Business Central
There are two main ways to move from GP to Business Central:
- Reimplementation – Create a Business Central instance from scratch and manually migrate data from GP
- Use the Cloud Migration Tool – Link Business Central to Dynamics GP and import the data programmatically
Based on the above description, it seems like the better approach to just automatically import all your data from Dynamics GP, but there are some things to first consider before deciding on an approach.
How does the GP Cloud Migration Tool Work
What data is migrated with the Cloud Migration Tool?
If you’re not planning on making any changes to your data structure during your move to Dynamics 365 Business Central, then the Cloud Migration Tool might be for you.
The following data will be migrated by the tool:
- General ledger (including, but not limited to)
- Main G/L Account Segment and Other Account Segments*
- Summarized transactional data
- Fiscal Periods
- Open Years
- Checkbook Master
- Sales / Accounts receivable (including, but not limited to)
- Salespeople
- Customers and Addresses
- Open A/R (remaining amounts only)
- Purchasing / Accounts payable (including, but not limited to)
- Vendors and Addresses
- Open A/P (remaining amounts only)
- Open Purchase Orders (remaining quantities only)
- Inventory (including, but not limited to)
- Item Master
- Quantity on Hand (blank location)
- Locations
- Serial/Lot Information
- Other items (not exhaustive)
- Payment Terms
- Shipping Method ID
- Additional Customer and Vendor Ship To and Order Addresses
- Vendor EFTs and
- “Vendor Remit” as Main Address.
*Although all account segments will be imported the main segment will be imported directly into Business Central’s Chart of Accounts, while the other account segments will be imported as Dimensions.
What data ISN’T migrated with the Cloud Migration Tool?
The following items are not included when using the Cloud Migration Tool:
- Inventory Bill of Materials
- Project Accounting Data
- Manufacturing Data
- Field Service Data
- Payroll Data
- Detailed GL history (only summarized historical tranasctions are migrated)
Cloud Migration Tool prerequisites
- GP 2015 and later versions
- SQL Server 2016 and later versions
- Individual database size less than 80 GB
This doesn’t mean that a company that conflicts with any of the above items can’t use the Cloud Migration Tool for the remainder of their data, it just means that some additional manual effort will be required. We at Bond Consulting Services have done a lot of these more complex GP to Business Central migrations; you can reach out to us if you need some help.
Where can you review the data from the Cloud Migration Tool?
The Cloud Migration Tool imports the data into separate extension tables. These data are kept separate from the data that’s created in Business Central, but they’ll be visible from the same forms. The following data is migrated into extension tables:
- Receivables Transactions
- Sales Transactions (Quotes, Orders, Invoices, Returns)
- Sales Line Items
- Payables Transactions
- Purchasing Transactions
- Receiving Line Items and
- Inventory Transactions.
To see the data, navigate to the appropriate list page and select one of the new GP data views (as seen below).
Once you navigate to one of those pages, you’ll see the transactions are loaded, but there is no drill down available, and the source transactions cannot be reprinted.
Best Practices for Migrating from GP to Business Central
Here’s a list of things that we like to consider best practices when migrating from GP to Business Central:
- Perform a full system design to make sure that you are taking advantage of all of Business Central’s functionality.
- Use GP’s Professional Services Tools Library (PSTL) or Corporate Renaissance’s Changer to make all master record changes, including account segments, before you move to Business Central. All changes will be rolled into historical transactions.
- Rename your Account Segment descriptions to alphanumeric Dimensions to assist with data entry. For example, rename Segment 1 to “Division”.
- Within Business Central, there are two Global Dimensions and six Shortcut Dimensions. Determine which two segments of the chart of accounts best represents your business processes and make those to be the two Global Dimensions.
- Run all applicable Check Links and reconciles, prior to migration.
- Run a query against customer telephone number fields, to verify that there are no non-numeric characters in the telephone number. Correct any errors that are found.
- Even if Multicurrency is not being used in your GP installation, configure multicurrency access for each currency by navigating in GP to Administration –> System –> Multicurrency access.
- Also, configure Functional Currency in Financial –> Setup –> Multicurrency setup
- Run Check Links against the Multicurrency Setup and Period Setup series of tables.
- Maintain access to your on-premise GP server for a reasonable amount of time in case you ever need to refer to source documents.
Related Insights
More on GP, Business Central, and Making the Right Call
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
GP to BC - FAQ
Is Dynamics 365 Business Central really the replacement for Dynamics GP?
In most cases, yes — but fit depends on industry, reporting needs, and how GP is used today.
How disruptive is a GP to Business Central migration?
With proper scoping and testing, most teams find the transition manageable and less disruptive than expected.
Is Business Central too complex for long-time GP users?
There’s a learning curve, but most users adapt quickly once they understand the different navigation and workflows.
What happens after GP end of support?
After end of support, Microsoft no longer provides fixes or updates, making long-term planning essential. If you’re evaluating your options, read our article on Dynamics GP to Business Central migration considerations.
Can we stay on Dynamics GP instead of moving?
Yes. Many organizations continue running GP successfully with the right support, especially when timelines, budgets, or business priorities don’t yet justify a move. We provide GP support if you’re not ready to make the move. Contact us today.
