The Future of Microsoft Dynamics GP

Microsoft Dynamics GPI worked with Microsoft Dynamics GP for a long time, 19 years in fact, before I decided to make the switch to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.

The future of Dynamics GP has been a hot topic since 2008 and the ill-fated Project Green which was a project to look at the feasibility of merging the various Microsoft ERP into one product; despite this project completing fairly quickly with the conclusion that it wasn’t feasible, Project Green kept being mentioned for years afterwards by competitors as meaning the end of Dynamics GP.

Rumours have kept cropping up over the years, sometimes with no basis (such as in 2018 by a Dynamics NAV MVP who said GP had been put into maintenance mode), and sometimes by the words of senior people within Microsoft.

One of the most recent of these were from Mike Morton who, at the Summit NA 2022 conference in October said “There will be no more new releases, and no more new features, for Dynamics GP”. Well, as I’m sure you can imagine, this created quite a ruckus from the partners at the conference, leading to an emergency session between them and Microsoft and leading to a statement from Morton the next day to “clarify” his meaning.

Continue reading “The Future of Microsoft Dynamics GP”

New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1: Automation Center to Monitor and Manage All Your Automations and Related Assets

Power AutomateThis post is part of the New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1 series in which I am taking a look at the new functionality introduced in Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1.

The 16th of the new functionality in the Desktop Flows section is automation center to monitor and manage all your automations and related assets.

The automation center provides comprehensive automation monitoring experiences across Power Automate flows, infused with the power of AI and Copilot.

Enabled for: Admins, makers, marketers, or analysts, automatically
Public Preview: May 2024
Early Access: –
General Availability: Sep 2024

Feature Details

The automation center offers a comprehensive automation monitoring experience that is infused with the power of AI. It provides in-depth monitoring and troubleshooting capabilities for both experienced makers and citizen developers, as well as members of Center of Excellence (CoE).

With top-level automation monitoring, you can gain an end-to-end view of your automation status. The dedicated work queue monitoring area allow you to closely track SLA attainment, average processing time, and work queue throughput.

Click to show/hide the New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1 Series Index

New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1
Use Generative AI to Achieve a Process in AI Flows
Receive Intelligent License Recommendations for Admins
Be More Productive with Power Automate and Excel Desktop
View a Power Automate Visual in a Power BI Report
Monitor Performance for Cloud and Desktop Flow Activities
Connect to Other Environments from the Microsoft Dataverse Connector
Push Cloud Flow Execution Data into Application Insights
Use Your Own Encryption Key for Encrypting Data At-Rest for Existing Environments
Create Power Automate Flows in Excel
View Two Action Properties Panes Simultaneously
Use Undo and Redo While You Build Cloud Flows in the Designer
Use Copy-Paste for Container Actions Like Scope, Condition, and Apply to Each
Use a Simplified OData Editor in Actions like Get Items and Get Files
Manage Unpublished Solution-Aware Cloud Flows Using Admin APIs
Cancel all Flow Runs for a Version of a Flow
Create a Flow on a File in Teams
Cloud Flows are Automatically Defined in Dataverse Solutions
Use Workflows on Calendar Events in Teams and Outlook
Create AI Flows in Power Automate
Use Copilot with French Language
Recommendations to Reassign Orphaned Cloud Flows
Generate Descriptions for Cloud Flows using AI
Use Flows with Connections from Users in Copilot Studio
Use Process Mining Microsoft 365 Personal Recommendations
Create and Edit Expressions with Copilot
Get Quick Insights and Recommendations in Copilot for Process Mining
Troubleshoot with Copilot for Cloud Flows Execution
Automate With Ease Using the AI Recorder
Enter into a Conversation-first Copilot Experience to Build Flows
Transform Scripting Using AI-driven Natural Language
Maximize Your Productivity with Generative Answers
Streamline Workflow Creation with the Next Best Action
Generate Flow Description Using AI
Use Natural Language to Create a Flow in Teams
Leverage Desktop Automation with the Power Automate Plugin for Windows Copilot
Set Up Fallback UI Automation Mechanism
Power Fx Integration with Power Automate for Desktop
Use Power Platform Connectors in Power Automate for Desktop Actions
Use CyberArk Credentials in Desktop Flow Connections
Use Azure Key Vault Credentials in Flow Connections
Connect Your Own Virtual Network with Hosted Machine Group
View Attended Desktop Flow Runs Using Picture-in-Picture Execution Mode
Self-heal UI and Browser Automation Actions at Execution with AI
Use the Run Power Fx Expression
Use Python v3 in Power Automate for Desktop
Use Machine to Credential Mapping in Desktop Flow Connections
Create a Reusable Collection of UI Elements
Use Customer-managed Encryption Key for Hosted RPA
Automation Center to Monitor and Manage All Your Automations and Related Assets
Trigger Attended Desktop Flows in Picture-in-Picture
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Cloud Flow Runs
Trigger Attended Desktop Flows in Picture-in-Picture Mode Through the Power Automate Console
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Desktop Flow Runs
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Work Queue Data
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Ask Power Automate Product Questions
Use New Data Table Actions
Use New Excel Actions in Power Automate for Desktop
Use the New Desktop Flow Running Timeout Property
Ingest Process Data from Customers' Data Lake
Scale Faster with Power Automate Process Mining Thin Client App

New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1: Use Customer-managed Encryption Key for Hosted RPA

Power AutomateThis post is part of the New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1 series in which I am taking a look at the new functionality introduced in Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1.

The 15th of the new functionality in the Desktop Flows section is use customer-managed encryption key for Hosted RPA.

This feature provides greater data privacy and data protection when using Power Automate.

Enabled for: Users by admins, makers, or analysts
Public Preview: Jun 2024
Early Access: –
General Availability: –

Feature Details

Customers can use their own encryption keys, which gives them full and transparent control and management of their encryption keys that reside in their Azure Key Vault, for use to provide storage-level encryption for virtual machines that are part of Power Automate Hosted RPA offering.

Click to show/hide the New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1 Series Index

New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1
Use Generative AI to Achieve a Process in AI Flows
Receive Intelligent License Recommendations for Admins
Be More Productive with Power Automate and Excel Desktop
View a Power Automate Visual in a Power BI Report
Monitor Performance for Cloud and Desktop Flow Activities
Connect to Other Environments from the Microsoft Dataverse Connector
Push Cloud Flow Execution Data into Application Insights
Use Your Own Encryption Key for Encrypting Data At-Rest for Existing Environments
Create Power Automate Flows in Excel
View Two Action Properties Panes Simultaneously
Use Undo and Redo While You Build Cloud Flows in the Designer
Use Copy-Paste for Container Actions Like Scope, Condition, and Apply to Each
Use a Simplified OData Editor in Actions like Get Items and Get Files
Manage Unpublished Solution-Aware Cloud Flows Using Admin APIs
Cancel all Flow Runs for a Version of a Flow
Create a Flow on a File in Teams
Cloud Flows are Automatically Defined in Dataverse Solutions
Use Workflows on Calendar Events in Teams and Outlook
Create AI Flows in Power Automate
Use Copilot with French Language
Recommendations to Reassign Orphaned Cloud Flows
Generate Descriptions for Cloud Flows using AI
Use Flows with Connections from Users in Copilot Studio
Use Process Mining Microsoft 365 Personal Recommendations
Create and Edit Expressions with Copilot
Get Quick Insights and Recommendations in Copilot for Process Mining
Troubleshoot with Copilot for Cloud Flows Execution
Automate With Ease Using the AI Recorder
Enter into a Conversation-first Copilot Experience to Build Flows
Transform Scripting Using AI-driven Natural Language
Maximize Your Productivity with Generative Answers
Streamline Workflow Creation with the Next Best Action
Generate Flow Description Using AI
Use Natural Language to Create a Flow in Teams
Leverage Desktop Automation with the Power Automate Plugin for Windows Copilot
Set Up Fallback UI Automation Mechanism
Power Fx Integration with Power Automate for Desktop
Use Power Platform Connectors in Power Automate for Desktop Actions
Use CyberArk Credentials in Desktop Flow Connections
Use Azure Key Vault Credentials in Flow Connections
Connect Your Own Virtual Network with Hosted Machine Group
View Attended Desktop Flow Runs Using Picture-in-Picture Execution Mode
Self-heal UI and Browser Automation Actions at Execution with AI
Use the Run Power Fx Expression
Use Python v3 in Power Automate for Desktop
Use Machine to Credential Mapping in Desktop Flow Connections
Create a Reusable Collection of UI Elements
Use Customer-managed Encryption Key for Hosted RPA
Automation Center to Monitor and Manage All Your Automations and Related Assets
Trigger Attended Desktop Flows in Picture-in-Picture
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Cloud Flow Runs
Trigger Attended Desktop Flows in Picture-in-Picture Mode Through the Power Automate Console
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Desktop Flow Runs
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Work Queue Data
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Ask Power Automate Product Questions
Use New Data Table Actions
Use New Excel Actions in Power Automate for Desktop
Use the New Desktop Flow Running Timeout Property
Ingest Process Data from Customers' Data Lake
Scale Faster with Power Automate Process Mining Thin Client App

New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1: Create a Reusable Collection of UI Elements

Power AutomateThis post is part of the New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1 series in which I am taking a look at the new functionality introduced in Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1.

The 14th of the new functionality in the Desktop Flows section is create a reusable collection of UI elements.

UI elements are now designed for central maintenance and can be distributed among various desktop flows, as well as among different users or teams. This centralization of UI element collections enhances management, allows for greater reusability, and ensures the dependability of UI elements tailored to specific applications within desktop flows.

Enabled for: Admins, makers, marketers, or analysts, automatically
Public Preview: Apr 2024
Early Access: –
General Availability: Jul 2024

Feature Details

Previously, UI elements were isolated to individual desktop flows. This may have required you to duplicate the same UI element for multiple flows. Now, collections of UI elements empower creators and administrators with centralized oversight and control. These collections of UI elements can be shared among numerous users and integrated into various desktop flows as reusable modules. Consequently, should an application undergo an update, a one-time adjustment to the UI elements collection is all that’s required. This single update ensures all desktop flows linked to this collection within the same environment will automatically reflect the changes.

Click to show/hide the New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1 Series Index

New Functionality In Microsoft Power Automate 2024 Wave 1
Use Generative AI to Achieve a Process in AI Flows
Receive Intelligent License Recommendations for Admins
Be More Productive with Power Automate and Excel Desktop
View a Power Automate Visual in a Power BI Report
Monitor Performance for Cloud and Desktop Flow Activities
Connect to Other Environments from the Microsoft Dataverse Connector
Push Cloud Flow Execution Data into Application Insights
Use Your Own Encryption Key for Encrypting Data At-Rest for Existing Environments
Create Power Automate Flows in Excel
View Two Action Properties Panes Simultaneously
Use Undo and Redo While You Build Cloud Flows in the Designer
Use Copy-Paste for Container Actions Like Scope, Condition, and Apply to Each
Use a Simplified OData Editor in Actions like Get Items and Get Files
Manage Unpublished Solution-Aware Cloud Flows Using Admin APIs
Cancel all Flow Runs for a Version of a Flow
Create a Flow on a File in Teams
Cloud Flows are Automatically Defined in Dataverse Solutions
Use Workflows on Calendar Events in Teams and Outlook
Create AI Flows in Power Automate
Use Copilot with French Language
Recommendations to Reassign Orphaned Cloud Flows
Generate Descriptions for Cloud Flows using AI
Use Flows with Connections from Users in Copilot Studio
Use Process Mining Microsoft 365 Personal Recommendations
Create and Edit Expressions with Copilot
Get Quick Insights and Recommendations in Copilot for Process Mining
Troubleshoot with Copilot for Cloud Flows Execution
Automate With Ease Using the AI Recorder
Enter into a Conversation-first Copilot Experience to Build Flows
Transform Scripting Using AI-driven Natural Language
Maximize Your Productivity with Generative Answers
Streamline Workflow Creation with the Next Best Action
Generate Flow Description Using AI
Use Natural Language to Create a Flow in Teams
Leverage Desktop Automation with the Power Automate Plugin for Windows Copilot
Set Up Fallback UI Automation Mechanism
Power Fx Integration with Power Automate for Desktop
Use Power Platform Connectors in Power Automate for Desktop Actions
Use CyberArk Credentials in Desktop Flow Connections
Use Azure Key Vault Credentials in Flow Connections
Connect Your Own Virtual Network with Hosted Machine Group
View Attended Desktop Flow Runs Using Picture-in-Picture Execution Mode
Self-heal UI and Browser Automation Actions at Execution with AI
Use the Run Power Fx Expression
Use Python v3 in Power Automate for Desktop
Use Machine to Credential Mapping in Desktop Flow Connections
Create a Reusable Collection of UI Elements
Use Customer-managed Encryption Key for Hosted RPA
Automation Center to Monitor and Manage All Your Automations and Related Assets
Trigger Attended Desktop Flows in Picture-in-Picture
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Cloud Flow Runs
Trigger Attended Desktop Flows in Picture-in-Picture Mode Through the Power Automate Console
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Desktop Flow Runs
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Analyze Work Queue Data
Use Copilot in Automation Center to Ask Power Automate Product Questions
Use New Data Table Actions
Use New Excel Actions in Power Automate for Desktop
Use the New Desktop Flow Running Timeout Property
Ingest Process Data from Customers' Data Lake
Scale Faster with Power Automate Process Mining Thin Client App