Migration to Business Central from Dynamics NAV, Dynamics GP, 1C and Other ERPs

Which migration path applies to your current system?

The source system decides the route, so the first question in any migration to Dynamics 365 Business Central is not when but how. Microsoft documents two cloud migration paths, and they work differently. Dynamics NAV customers upgrade to Business Central on-premises first and then switch to Business Central online with the cloud migration tool. Business Central on-premises version 25 or later migrates directly; versions 15 to 24 upgrade to version 25 first. Dynamics GP data from GP 2015 and later can be migrated to Business Central online with the built-in cloud migration tool, and a historical GP snapshot can be migrated as well.

For 1C and other ERPs, Solzet runs the migration as a project of its own: we extract the data from the source, map it to Business Central structures (chart of accounts, dimensions, customers, vendors, items, open documents and balances), clean it, and load it through repeatable scripts we can run as many times as the trial migrations need. The table below summarises the starting point for each source.

What deadlines should drive the timing of your migration?

Two Microsoft lifecycle dates set the calendar for most of the companies we talk to. Dynamics NAV 2018 mainstream support ended on 10 January 2023 and extended support ends on 11 January 2028. Microsoft ends Dynamics GP support for enhancements, tax updates and technical support on 31 December 2029, with security updates until 30 April 2031.

The useful way to read those dates is backwards. A migration needs time for the assessment, the rebuild of the customisations that survive, several trial migrations and a cutover that avoids month-end and year-end. It also needs your finance team, who have a day job. Working back from the deadline, and away from your busiest periods, usually shows that the start date is closer than the end date suggests. For the step-by-step view, read our NAV to Business Central migration checklist and our guide to what Dynamics GP customers should do before support ends.

How does Solzet run a migration to Business Central?

In phases, each with a deliverable you can review before the next one starts. The assessment comes first and is a fixed-scope piece of work: we look at the source system version, the customisations and add-ons, the data volumes and quality, the integrations, and the reports the business depends on, and we produce a migration plan with the path, the decisions to be made and an estimate built from those findings rather than from a template.

Design follows: the Business Central setup, the chart of accounts and dimension mapping, which history moves and in what form, and the fate of each customisation. Build covers configuration, the AL extensions that replace customisations, the integrations and, for 1C and other sources, the extraction and load scripts. Then trial migrations, at least two and usually more, each reconciled against the source: trial balance, open customer and vendor items, inventory quantities and value. Cutover is rehearsed in a trial first, with a go and no-go checklist and a rollback point. After go-live there is a period of close support through the first month-end close, because that is when a migration either proves itself or does not.

• Migration assessment: source inventory, customisation and add-on review, data quality findings, chosen path and an estimate with stated assumptions.
• Mapping workbook: chart of accounts, dimensions, posting groups, master data and open documents, signed off by finance.
• Customisation decisions: retire, rebuild as an AL extension, or drop, for every modification and add-on.
• Repeatable migration runs, with a reconciliation report for every trial and for the final load.
• Cutover runbook with timings, owners, a go and no-go checklist and a rollback point.
• Training for key users, and close support through the first month-end close on Business Central.

What happens to your NAV customisations and GP add-ons?

They are the part of a migration that decides its cost, so they are classified before any budget is set. Dynamics NAV solutions were often customised by changing the standard application code; on Business Central online that logic lives in AL extensions that attach to standard events. GP solutions tend to carry add-ons and integrations around the core instead. In both cases every item goes into one of three groups: the standard Business Central application now covers it, so it is retired; it is still needed and only code can deliver it, so it is rebuilt as an extension; or nobody can name a current need, so it is confirmed with the business owner and dropped.

The retire and drop groups are usually larger than people expect, and every item in them is one less thing to build, test and maintain on every Business Central update. The rebuild group is handled by our AL development service: a specification, source code in your repository, automated tests and a versioned app, scheduled so the extensions are ready at the point in the migration sequence where the data needs them.

What data moves to Business Central, and what stays behind?

Master data and open positions always move: the chart of accounts, dimensions, customers, vendors, items, bank accounts, fixed assets where you use them, open customer and vendor entries, open sales and purchase documents, inventory on hand and opening balances. History is a decision, not a default. On the NAV route your existing database is upgraded, so its history comes with it; for GP a historical snapshot can be migrated alongside the live data; and many companies choose a cut-off and keep older detail in a read-only archive that auditors can still reach. For 1C and other sources, history usually moves as summarised balances per period, with transaction-level detail archived.

Before anything is loaded, data quality gets fixed at the source: duplicate customers and vendors merged, inactive items retired, open entries that should have been closed years ago cleared with the finance team. A migration that moves dirty data into a clean system has moved the problem and added a licence. Each trial migration ends with a reconciliation report that the finance owner signs, so the final load holds no surprises.

How does a 1C to Business Central migration work?

1C is a migration source for Solzet: we move companies from 1C to Business Central, and the new system, its configuration and its extensions are built on Business Central. The work is extraction and mapping. 1C configurations differ widely between companies, so we start by reading the actual configuration and data structures in use, then map them to Business Central: the 1C chart of accounts to a Business Central chart of accounts and dimensions, counterparties to customers and vendors, nomenclature to items, and open settlements and balances to open entries. The load runs through repeatable scripts, reconciled against 1C trial balances after every run.

For companies in Armenia the target is Business Central online on the international (W1) version, which is available in Armenia, with the Business Central Armenian localization that Solzet delivers: AMD as the local currency, Armenian tax and statutory reporting, an Armenian chart of accounts, Armenian-language documents, and e-invoicing integration with the State Revenue Committee where applicable. The localization and the migration are designed together, so the chart of accounts you migrate into is the one your statutory reporting needs. The detailed walkthrough is in our guide to moving from 1C to Business Central.

Should you move to Business Central or to Finance and Operations?

Most companies on Dynamics NAV, Dynamics GP or 1C belong on Business Central, which is built for small and mid-sized organizations and covers finance, sales, purchasing, inventory, projects, fixed assets, planning, assembly, manufacturing, warehouse management and service management in one system. A minority have grown past it: several legal entities across countries, deep production or warehouse requirements, or retail operations that need Commerce. For them the right destination is Finance and Operations, and the migration is a different project. The assessment answers this question first, before any mapping work starts.

Who is this for, and who is it not for?

This service is for companies on Dynamics NAV, Dynamics GP, 1C or another ERP that have decided, or are deciding, to move to Business Central online, and want the path, the customisations and the data handled as one plan. It suits finance leaders who need the migrated ledgers to reconcile to the old ones, IT leads who have a support deadline to plan around, and companies in Armenia moving from 1C who need the Armenian localization in place on day one. If you also run Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement, the migration is the right time to design the Business Central side of that integration; see our Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement work.

It is the wrong page in a few cases. If your organization has outgrown Business Central, start with Finance and Operations, as described above. If you are already live on Business Central and the problem is how the system was set up, ask us for an assessment and a stabilisation plan for the existing project instead of a migration. And if you want your current 1C, SAP, Oracle or Odoo system extended or reimplemented, that is a different job: Solzet implements Microsoft ERP, and our role with those systems is to move you from them to Business Central or Finance and Operations.