Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC) is a robust enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, helping businesses streamline operations, financials, and supply chains. However, a challenge many organizations face is extracting data from Business Central for reporting, analytics, or integrating with external systems. The need to extract data efficiently becomes crucial, especially when dealing with large datasets and complex reporting requirements.
In this post, we’ll explore three common approaches to getting data out of Business Central:
- Using Standard APIs.
- Developing Custom APIs.
- Leveraging the BC2ADLS (Business Central to Azure Data Lake Storage) extension.
Each method has its strengths and limitations, and we’ll break down when each one is most appropriate.
1. Using Standard APIs
Overview:
Dynamics 365 Business Central offers a set of standard APIs that provide easy access to core data entities. These APIs are pre-configured by Microsoft and allow users to pull data from the ERP system to external applications such as Power BI, Excel, or other third-party systems.
How It Works:
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- Business Central’s standard APIs follow RESTful principles and can be accessed over HTTP/HTTPS.
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- Each API endpoint corresponds to a specific data entity, such as Customers, Vendors, Sales Orders, and so on.
Advantages:
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- Quick and Easy Setup: No development work is required to set up the standard APIs. They are pre-built and ready for use.
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- Compatible with Multiple Systems: The standard API is compatible with most modern BI tools and integration platforms.
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- Ideal for Smaller Data: If you only need small to moderate amounts of data, the standard APIs will work without any major issues.
Limitations:
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- Limited Data Access: The biggest drawback is the limited set of data available through standard APIs. If you need access to non-standard fields or tables, this method may not suffice.
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- Not Suitable for Large Tables: Standard APIs are not designed to handle large datasets efficiently. When extracting data from large tables, performance degrades significantly.
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- Rate Limitations: There are throttling and rate limits that restrict the amount of data you can pull at any given time.
When to Use:
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- When dealing with large datasets that cannot be efficiently handled by APIs.
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- Companies needing real-time or near real-time data exports to an Azure environment.
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- Businesses planning to integrate their Business Central data with a broader data warehouse or machine learning solution in Azure.
How to install BC2ADLS
Conclusion
Extracting data from Dynamics 365 Business Central requires careful consideration of your data needs, resources, and infrastructure. While standard APIs provide a quick and easy solution for small datasets, they fall short for larger, more complex reporting requirements. Custom APIs offer greater flexibility but require developer expertise and still struggle with large datasets. For those seeking the most scalable and flexible solution, BC2ADLS is a powerful option, though it comes with higher costs and setup complexity.
Ultimately, the right choice depends on the size of your data, your reporting requirements, and your willingness to invest in infrastructure. At Polaris Insights, we specialize in integrating Business Central with robust BI tools like Power BI and Microsoft Fabric, ensuring that you get the most out of your data extraction process, regardless of the method you choose.
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- When you need access to custom fields, tables, or complex data structures.
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- Situations where the standard APIs do not meet your specific requirements.
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- For controlled and filtered data access in integrations with other systems.