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Great Plains Dynamics upgrade notes – Alba Spectrum

If your organization deploys GP Dynamics or eEnterprise ERP versions 7.5, 7.0, 6.0, 5.5, 5.0 or 4.0 you should consider upgrade scenarios, plus you should also consider reenrollment into Microsoft Business Solutions annual enhancement program to get license keys to newest versions, such as 10.0, 9.0 and 8.0. Let’s review the history of Great Plains Software Dynamics MRP application to give you the idea where Microsoft Dynamics stays nowadays, October 2007:
1. Microsoft Great Plains Business Solutions, when Microsoft purchased Great Plains Software, it is really the history now as it is back to the beginning of 21st Century, it created special subdivision, based in Fargo, ND to support from there new Microsoft ERP marketplace. Former GPS leader Doug Burgum became MBS CEO to lead Microsoft MRP expansion. Later on Microsoft acquired Navision Software, Denmark based ERP development company, and as doing so MS became the owner of Navision, and Axapta. Navision had and as of now has great positions in European ERP market. Axapta as Microsoft Dynamics AX is now promoted for large enterprises
2. Great Plains Dexterity evolution. Microsoft has .Net platform, where such programming languages as C# and VB play substantial role, being tightly integrated with Windows .Net object model. However Great Plains eEnterprise and Dynamics had their own proprietary scripting language and IDE – Great Plains Dexterity: DYNAMICS.DIC, DEX_ROW_ID, Dynamics.set, Dex.ini – these are Dex architecture components
3. Version Update Technology. We should be laconic as article genre dictates. If you are on legacy DB platform, such as Ctree/Faircom or Pervasive SQL/Btrieve you should be prepared to migrate to Microsoft SQL Server DB platform. If you are on GPA (Great Plains Accounting) for DOS or Windows, you should consider migration to GP with some software price to be paid
4. GP version 10.0 upgrade specifics. At this time GP 10.0 upgrade path requires specific service packs for version 9.0 and 8.0 to applied first
5. Customization upgrade. Great Plains Dynamics had Dexterity customizations, where you have to have source code containing DYNAMICS.DIC or EXTRACT.DIC – these dictionaries should be submitted to your GP development partner – Dexterity has Sanscript programming language and old version scripts need to be analyzed and upgraded by GP Dexterity developer
6. Reporting Upgrade: if you have ReportWriter modified reports (more likely SOP Invoice, POP Purchase Order), Crystal Reports, Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SRS) – upgrade analysis is recommended, as you may encounter problems (GP typically alters and extends tables structures to adopt newly added logic)

Andrew Karasev, Alba Spectrum Group: http://www.albaspectrum.com help@albaspectrum.com 1-866-528-0577, 1-630-961-5918, serving Microsoft Dynamics GP Great Plains customers in USA/Canada nationwide. Local service is available in Houston, TX: Richmond, Sugar Land, Katy, Rosenberg, Missouri City, Pearland, Friendswood, Meadows, Mission Bend, Jersey Village; Chicago, IL: Naperville, Aurora, Bolingbrook, Romeoville, Joliet, Wheaton, Lisle, Downers Grove, Schaumburg, Elk Grove, Lombard, Woodridge, Darien, Westmont, Batavia, St. Charles, Elgin, Crystal Lake. Service is also available in Houston and Dallas metros, plus internationally in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Oceania and UK.