Options for Dynamics GP Customers
Dynamics GP customers like you have options as you navigate your technology growth.
If you decide to stay on Dynamics GP, Encore’s GP team will support you and help you take any needed upgrades to newer versions of GP. If you’re looking at transitioning to Dynamics 365 Business Central, we can start the planning process, and our Dynamics 365 Business Central team will support you.
The one thing every Dynamics GP customer needs to do is evaluate which option is best suited for their business. That’s why we’ve created informational resources like the ones on this page, to help you design the future of your business.
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Table of Contents
- The Status of Dynamics GP
- Fixed vs Modern Lifecycle
- Is My Dynamics GP Version Still Supported by Microsoft?
- Stay on GP or Move to Business Central: How to Decide Which Is Best for You
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Further Resources
The Status of Dynamics GP
- Microsoft Dynamics GP remains a much-used and well-loved ERP system.
- Encore has hundreds of customers on GP, and we are committed to assisting and advising them all.
- Microsoft remains committed to supporting the current version of GP, which is governed by the Modern Lifecycle Policy.
- However, some of the older versions of GP governed by the Fixed Lifecycle Policy have now reached the end of extended support. (See details below.)
- GP is fundamentally an on-premise solution. It can technically be hosted in the cloud, but that doesn’t provide all the same cost savings and productivity benefits of a true cloud solution like Dynamics 365 Business Central.
- GP can work with Microsoft’s other business technologies, like Microsoft 365/Office 365 and Power BI. However, Business Central offers deeper and more seamless integrations with Microsoft 365/Office 365, Power BI, and the rest of the Microsoft business stack, partly because of their cloud architecture.
- Microsoft is focusing its future development efforts on cloud-based applications like Dynamics 365 Business Central, and seamless integrations between them.
Different GP customers will make different choices about upgrading GP and moving to Dynamics 365, and that is appropriate. Each customer’s technical and business situation is unique, and there’s no one best approach for them all.
Encore will help you evaluate the pros and cons of the different options as they apply to your business needs.
Fixed vs Modern Lifecycle
Under the Fixed Lifecycle Policy, which applies to GP 2018 R2 and earlier versions, Microsoft offers 10 years of support and service – 5 years of mainstream support and 5 years of extended support. Under the Modern Lifecycle Policy, the product will be supported as long as you stay current, and Microsoft will give at least 12 months warning before ending product support.
With the October 2019 release, Dynamics GP follows the Modern Lifecycle Policy. Customers stay current by taking at least one of the three yearly planned GP releases which are typically released in June, October, and December each year.
To learn more about support for particular versions of Dynamics GP, read our Top Questions about Dynamics GP versions article.
Is My Dynamics GP Version Still Supported by Microsoft?
Your support situation is one important factor in your planning.
GP 2013 R2 and earlier versions are already or will soon be out of extended support as of early 2023. GP versions 2015 through to GP 2018 R2 are still covered under extended support.
Dynamics GP versions released after October 2019 are governed by the Modern Lifecycle policy. This refers to Dynamics GP versions such as 18.2, 18.3, 18.4, and 18.5. The following image from Microsoft shows which Dynamics GP Versions are governed by the Fixed and Modern Lifecycle.
If you choose to stay on Dynamics GP, Encore is here to support you. We recommend that you stay current with GP to ensure you receive application updates through Microsoft’s Modern Lifecycle Policy.
Stay on GP or Move to Business Central: How to Decide Which Is Best for You
The main factors you should consider in your decision are:
- Your Dynamics GP version’s Microsoft support situation. If your GP versions’ end of support has arrived or is coming soon, that suggests a faster timeline for upgrading GP or moving to Business Central in the near future.
- Your server costs needed to continue running GP.
- The effort required, which will be different for each company. Encore can help you evaluate the effort either approach would take for you.
- Comparing the functionality you currently have in GP to the functionality available in Dynamics 365 Business Central, and how those differences relate to your business processes and future needs.
- Watch our video below for functionality similarities and differences between Dynamics GP and Dynamics 365 Business Central.
- The benefits of a cloud ERP like Dynamics 365 Business Central for the productivity of your remote and mobile workers.
- For a detailed comparison of the two ERP systems, read Dynamics GP vs Dynamics 365 Business Central.
- The benefits of a cloud ERP like Dynamics 365 Business Central for security.
Note that you can stay on GP for a time and then later transition to Business Central.
Encore can help you evaluate the options, and we will support you regardless of which approach you select. Choose the approach you want to learn more about:
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is the Difference in Total Cost of Ownership Between Dynamics GP and Dynamics 365 Business Central?
If you are considering a move to Dynamics 365 Business Central, we have a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) Excel spreadsheet that can help. One of the difficult things to think through is that you are essentially reallocating resources from your Dynamics GP servers and other infrastructure to a cloud ERP where the server costs are entirely handled by Microsoft.
Our TCO spreadsheet lets you input details from your business to compare the costs of GP licensing, upgrades, and server maintenance to the costs of Business Central licensing and support. We find that there are usually significant overall savings within 3 to 5 years.
Below is one example of the Total Cost of Ownership from a recent presentation.
In the following video clip from that presentation, Encore’s Tracey Santos explains the reallocation of resources for GP customers thinking about moving to Business Central and the difference in Total Cost of Ownership between GP and Business Central.
Contact us to help work through the TCO spreadsheet for your own business. We’d be happy to help you. For further details on user licensing pricing, read our Dynamics 365 Business Central Licensing and Pricing Answers article.
What Are the Risks of Not Upgrading GP?
If you stay on GP, it’s important to keep it up to date, because of:
- The security risks of not keeping up with modern office technologies, like multi-factor authentication and Microsoft security updates.
- Potential problems for outdated GP versions when working together with other technologies like Office and Windows.
- Regulatory compliance challenges, as with annual payroll tax updates.
How Secure Will My Data Be in the Microsoft Azure Cloud?
Dynamics 365 Business Central is a SaaS solution hosted in Microsoft’s Azure Cloud. For almost all companies, your data is safer in the Microsoft Azure Cloud than in your own server room.
Security threats to business data are an unfortunate fact of life today. In a 2023 Encore webinar, a Microsoft business applications expert discussed security and shared that there has been a 74% increase in cyberattacks, now coming to a total of $6 trillion in annual costs due to cybercrime. There are 579 password attacks per second, and 1 successful ransomware attack every 195 seconds.
The good news they shared is that you can protect your business data with the Microsoft Azure Cloud.
Microsoft is probably the biggest security vendor you haven’t heard about. Microsoft spends $4 billion annually on security, and its revenue from the security side of its business alone is over $20 billion a year, with over 785,000 clients.
If you move to Dynamics 365 Business Central, your ERP sits on the Microsoft Azure Cloud and is protected by that ongoing Microsoft investment.
Further Resources
- Top Questions About Dynamics GP Versions
- Dynamics GP vs Dynamics 365 Business Central Comparison
- GP to D365 BC Infographic
- Microsoft Bridge To The Cloud Promotion for On Premises ERP Users
- Dynamics 365 Business Central Licensing and Pricing Answers
Videos
Three Reasons Microsoft Dynamics GP Users Are Moving to Dynamics 365 Business Central
In this 2-minute video, we discuss three reasons Dynamics GP users are moving to Dynamics 365 Business Central.
Dynamics GP vs Dynamics 365 Business Central – Functionality Similarities and Differences
In this 35-minute video, we discuss functionality similarities and differences between GP and Business Central. Not all functionalities are discussed, but we cover the items we get asked about the most and that affect users’ daily tasks.
Similarities discussed with examples:
- SmartLists (GP) and List Pages (D365 BC)
- Sales Order Processing (GP) and Sales Documents (D365 BC)
- Purchase Documents (GP) and Purchasing Documents (D365 BC)
- Fixed Assets
- Financial Reports
- Fiscal Period Control
Differences discussed with examples:
- Chart of Accounts
- Journal Entries
- Batch Posting (GP) and Posting (D365 BC)
How Are Upgrades Different in the Cloud? Dynamics 365 Business Central and Dynamics 365 F&O
Dynamics GP users are familiar with how upgrades happen with their on-premise solution. For a cloud solution like Dynamics 365 Business Central, the benefit of a Software as a Service (SaaS) model means that there are no more upgrades! Solution enhancements, bug-fixes, and updates are automatically pushed out.
Watch this 25-minute video above to learn more about:
- How updates work in the cloud
- How these updates are different from the upgrades you’re used to in GP
- Why these updates help eliminate surprise upgrade costs
- What Microsoft’s update cycle is
Contact Us
Contact us by email or the form below if you have questions about your options.
Table of Contents
- The Status of Dynamics GP
- Fixed vs Modern Lifecycle
- Is My Dynamics GP Version Still Supported by Microsoft?
- Stay on GP or Move to Business Central: How to Decide Which Is Best for You
- Frequently Asked Questions
Further Resources
- Top Questions About Dynamics GP Versions
- Dynamics GP vs Dynamics 365 Business Central Comparison
- GP to D365 BC Infographic
- Microsoft Bridge To The Cloud Promotion for On Premises ERP Users
- Dynamics 365 Business Central Licensing and Pricing Answers