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The update with minor version 25.4 for the Dynamics 365 Business Central 2024 release wave 2 is generally available.
Scope of minor version 25.4
Information about the update and the scope of changes included in minor version 25.3 can be found in the documentation: Update 25.4 for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central online 2024 release wave 2 ↗. The list of hotfixes included in the update can be found in the Microsoft support entry (link ↗).
Chat with Copilot from anywhere
With minor version 25.4, Chat with Copilot feature is now available in all countries and regions where BC is available.
In the previous minor version (25.3), Chat with Copilot feature was introduced in several selected countries and regions, but now it is available everywhere.
Chat with Copilot using English
As MS reports, Chat with Copilot is still supported only in English. Although it can be used in other languages, it may not work as expected. The language quality may vary depending on user interaction or system settings, which can affect the accuracy of responses and the overall user experience.
Chat with Copilot is still in the public preview phase, but given its availability in all countries and regions, I think this is a great opportunity to introduce users of updated BC online installations with its capabilities. Therefore, I am leaving a link to the documentation on MS Learn: Chat with Copilot ↗.
Package resources in extensions and access from AL
The functionalities of our extensions often require some data – for example, for init setup or sample demo data. With this minor version, when creating an extension, we NO longer need to hardcode init data or settings for our extension in labels or codeunits. In the manifest file (app.json), we can specify a resource folder where we can store text data values, photos, images, documents, and then reference them from the AL code of our extension (link ↗). This allows the init data values or settings to be separated from the application logic.
Package resources have already been published in the general availability phase and now have their own documentation article: Adding and accessing resources in Business Central extensions ↗.
Hotfixes
As always, it’s also worth reviewing the list of hotfixes that have been made for version 25.4 (link ↗). Among all the bug fixes/patches, I particularly noticed the following because I’ve been dealing with these issues in my current project:
- when trying to post a purchase document with Currencies, Non-Deductible VAT and the VAT Amount modified in the Statistics, ends with an error message The transaction cannot be completed because it will cause inconsistencies in the G/L Entry table. (560355),
- an error The Reservation Entry does not exist. Identification fields and value Entry No=xx, Positive=’Yes’. when the Order Tracking Policy of the Drop Ship Item is set as Tracking Only, and the planning is run to break the reservation records for this item (561210).
PSSST… in terms of item reservation functionality, the minor version 25.4 brings a few more fixes – it’s worth checking out the full list (link ↗).
What’s new and planned for Business Central 25
The scope of planned changes that have been included in the entire 2024 release wave 2 is described in a separate news: What’s new and planned for Dynamics 365 Business Central 25 (2024 release wave 2).
Business Central online
New environments for BC online will now automatically launch on version 25.4. Existing BC online environments will receive an update to minor version 25.4 in accordance with the current and updated in the version major 25 major version and minor version update policy for BC online environments ↗. Notification recipients set in the Business Central admin center under the Notification Recipients section will receive an e-mail informing them when the update will be available for their environment, along with a specified update window (as part of the preview version of the new update policy changes introduced in the 2024 release wave 2, the update window will be 5 months for Microsoft localized versions; the transition from preview to general availability is currently planned for March 2025 – until then, the update window for Partner localized versions should stay 60 days).
Business Central on-premises
For on-premises environments, minor version 25.4 is now available for download from the Microsoft Support site (link ↗) as a DVD image for all localization versions released by Microsoft. However, the download link for minor version 25.4 from the Microsoft Download Center is not yet available.
Different installation path since version 25.2
For on-premises deployments, remember the new installation path since minor version 25.2, which can be important for updates, etc.
Artifacts for BC Docker containers
Related posts
Minor version 25.4 artifacts for BC Docker containers of the Sandbox and OnPrem types have been published and are available by selecting the latest version using the -select Latest parameter in the Get-BcArtifactUrl command of the BcContainerHelper module.
Take BC 25.4 for a spin
You can now try, check, and test the new version of Business Central on your own! I wrote about different ways to create environments, e.g. for your own testing purposes, in the article Ways to create a BC test environment.
Dzięki! 🙌
