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Service organizations require a front-to-back application in which finance, inventory, and procurement are tightly coupled with service delivery. They generate financial data with every transaction. Every work order represents cost and revenue, and every resource generates profit and loss. Customer interactions add entries on the general ledger. The integration between Business Central and Field Service streamlines the end-to-end process of managing service operations and ensures a smooth flow of information between the two systems.
You can easily create and manage work orders in Field Service, track the progress of service tasks, assign resources, and capture consumption details. When you complete a work order in Field Service, the integration enables the smooth transfer of data to Business Central for further processing.
The integration also facilitates the invoicing and fulfillment of work orders in Business Central. You can generate accurate invoices based on the service activities and the consumption recorded in Field Service.
By integrating Business Central with Field Service, you don't have to enter data manually or duplicate efforts. Integration also provides a comprehensive view of service operations and finances, enabling better decision-making and operational efficiency.
Prerequisites
Because Field Service is built on top of Dynamics 365 Sales, you must set up a connection to Dataverse and enable integration to Dynamics 365 Sales.
You must download the following apps from AppSource, and install them in your Business Central environment:
Note
The Business Central Virtual Table app is optional. You only need it if you want to view information about item availability from Business Central in Field Service. To learn more, go to View item availability in Business Central from Field Service.
Permissions and security roles for user accounts
When you install the Integration Solution, permissions for the integration user account are configured. If those permissions change, you might need to reset them. To do that, reinstall the Integration Solution from the Dynamics 365 Connection Setup page by choosing Redeploy Integration Solution. The following sections list the permissions and security roles that the solution deploys for each app.
Sales
- Dynamics 365 Business Central Integration Administrator
- Dynamics 365 Business Central Integration User
- Dynamics 365 Business Central Product Availability User
Business Central
Users who post project journals must have the following permission set:
- Dynamics 365 Sales Integration
Field Service
To use the integrated data, users must have the following security role:
- Business Central Field Service Integration
For example, users must have this role to connect work orders to Business Central for processing.
Note
Ensure that users are assigned to the standard security roles and profiles in Field Service.
To learn more about column security profiles in Field Service, go to Field Service security roles.
Administrators must add one of the appropriate column security profiles to users in Power Platform. To learn more, go to Add teams or users to a column security profile to control access.
Note
To use the Open in Business Central action in Sales, you must have the following privileges for the following tables:
- You must have Read permissions for the Dynamics 365 Business Central Connection (nav_connection) table.
- You must have Read, Write, and Delete permissions for the Default Dynamics 365 Business Central Connection (nav_defaultconnection) table.
Other settings in Field Service
On the Field Service Setting page, make the following changes:
- On the Purchase tab, clear the Use of Products Out of Stock field. Otherwise, you might get an "out of stock" warning when you choose a product that's out of stock in Field Service, but is in stock in Business Central.
- On the Work Order / Booking tab, turn off the Calculate Price and Calculate Cost toggles. In the Work Order Invoice Creation field, choose Never.
Note
Setting up a connection to Field Service removes the coupling between resources and products. To make Business Central items available in Field Service, update the Field Service Product Type field to match the Type field on the items in Business Central. To learn more, go to Create a product or service.
Set up the integration in Business Central
After you have a connection to Dataverse and Sales, you can set up your integration to Field Service.
- Download and install the Field Service Integration app from AppSource. Afterward, on the Extension Management page, find the Field Service Integration app, and choose the Set up action to run the assisted setup guide.
- On the Assisted Setup page in Business Central, choose Set up integration to Dynamics 365 Field Service to run the assisted setup guide.
This section describes the key settings in the guide.
Optionally, if you want to enable technicians to view information about item availability from work orders, choose the Install Business Central Virtual Table app link.
To let people post consumption of items and services in Field Service work orders, specify the Project Journal Template and Project Journal Batch to use to post consumption of products and services.
Because services are expressed in duration in Field Service, specify the Hours Unit of Measure to use to convert durations to quantities in Business Central.
You can also specify when work order products and service lines synchronize to Business Central. For example, they might synchronize when work order lines are used, or when someone completes a work order. Choose the appropriate option in the Synchronize work order products/services field.
After work order products and services synchronize to project journals in Business Central, you can choose whether to post the project journals manually. Choose the appropriate option in the Automatically post project journals lines field:
- When a work order is complete
- When work order products or services are used
After you finish the setup, run a full synchronization from the Dynamics 365 Field Service Integration Setup page. This action synchronizes table mappings for things like:
- Project tasks for projects with the Apply Usage Link set. This synchronization makes Business Central projects available for selection in Field Service.
- Resources that aren't blocked, don't have Use Time Sheet selected, and do have Hours specified as the unit of measure on the Dynamics 365 Field Service Integration Setup page.
- Service items (requires that you're using the Premium experience in Business Central).
Integration table mappings for synchronization
The basis of synchronizing data is mapping the tables and fields in Business Central with tables and columns in Dataverse, so they can exchange the data. Mapping happens through integration tables. To learn more about table mappings, go to Mapping the Tables and Fields to Synchronize.
The following integration table mappings install if you choose the Project (default) integration type.
| Integration table mapping | Data the mapping synchronizes |
|---|---|
| PJLINE-WORDERPRODUCT | Maps work order products in Field Service to project journal lines in Business Central. |
| PJLINE-WORDERSERVICE | Maps work order services in Field Service to project journal lines in Business Central. |
| PROJECTTASK | Maps projects and project tasks in Business Central to products in external projects in Field Service. |
| RESOURCE-BOOKABLERSC | Maps resources in Business Central to bookable resources in Field Service. |
| SVCITEM-CUSTASSET | (Premium Experience only) Maps service items in Business Central to customer assets in Field Service. |
| LOCATIONS | Maps locations in Business Central to warehouses in Field Service. Note: The LOCATIONS integration table mapping is available only if you turn on the Location Mandatory toggle on the Inventory Setup page. |
In addition to those, the following integration table mappings install if you choose the Project and Service integration type.
| Integration table mapping | Data the mapping synchronizes |
|---|---|
| SRVORDER | Maps service orders in Business Central to work orders in Field Service, including the status of the orders. |
| SRVORDERITEMLINE | Maps service item lines in Business Central to work order incidents in Field Service. |
| SRVORDERLINE-ITEM | Maps items on service order lines in Business Central with work order products in Field Service. |
| SRVORDERLINE-RESOURCE | Maps resources on service order lines in Business Central with bookable resource booking in Field Service. |
| SRVORDERLINE-SERVICE | Maps service lines in Business Central with work order services in Field Service. |
| SRVORDERTYPE | Maps service order types in Business Central to work order types in Field Service. |
| SVCITEM-CUSTASSET | Maps service items in Business Central with customer assets in Field Service. |
Note
The integration also maps fields that show item availability information in Business Central on work orders and products in Field Service. However, the mapping happens through a virtual table, and not an integration table. Some setup is required. To learn more about virtual tables and viewing item availability, go to View item availability in Business Central from Field Service.
Synchronize location and warehouse data
You can integrate Field Service warehouses with locations in Business Central. The integration gives technicians information about the availability of a product or item at a specific location.
The data synchronizes through a unidirectional (from Business Central) integration table mapping between locations in Business Central and warehouses in Field Service. To use the integration table mapping, you must turn on the Location Mandatory toggle on the Inventory Setup page in Business Central .
Business Central synchronizes locations with the following settings on the Location Card page:
- The Use as In-Transit toggle is turned off.
- Project Consump. Whse. Handling is different from Warehouse Pick (mandatory)
- Assm. Consump. Whse. Handling is different from Warehouse Pick (mandatory)
In Business Central, on the Locations and Location Card page, you can use the Warehouse action to open a coupled location in Field Service, synchronize it, set up and delete couplings, and view synchronization logs.
View item availability in Business Central from Field Service
When technicians prepare work orders, it's helpful that they can be sure that the items they need to do the work are available. This section describes how to let people view item availability information from Business Central in Field Service.
The first thing to do is to install the Business Central Virtual Table app from AppSource.
Afterward, on the Dynamics 365 Field Service Integration Setup or Set up integration to Dynamics 365 Field Service pages in Business Central, turn on the Enable Inventory Availability by Location toggle. When you enable inventory availability by location, a dyn365bc_availabilitybylocation_v2_0 virtual table becomes available. You must create a synthetic relation between the following tables:
- The native Product and Work Order Product tables in Field Service and the Item Availability virtual table that shows item availability.
There's an assisted setup guide to help you create the synthetic relation.
To create the synthetic relation, follow these steps:
- In Business Central, on the Dataverse Connection Setup page, use the Synthetic Relations action
- On the Synthetic Relations page, choose the New action to start the New Synthetic Relation assisted setup guide.
- In the Native Dataverse Table field, choose the
button, and then choose CRM Product. - In the Virtual Dataverse Table field, choose the
button, and then choose Inventory Availability by Location.
- On the Synthetic Relations page, choose the New action to start the New Synthetic Relation assisted setup guide again.
- In the Native Dataverse Table field, choose the
button, and then choose FS Work Order Product.
- In the Virtual Dataverse Table field, choose the
button, and then choose Inventory Availability by Location.
- Choose Next.
- In the Field in the FS Work Order Product table field, choose Product Id.
- In the Field in the Item Availability by Location table field, choose itemNo.
- Choose Finish to complete the guide.
- To make your setup available in Field Service, in the Power Apps admin center, choose the view, and then choose the Save and Publish action.
Note
It can take a few moments to create the synthetic relations.
To learn more about virtual tables and synthetic relationships, go to Use virtual tables to get more data.
The next thing to do is to create and customize the associated view that people use in Field Service to check the inventory of products.
To create the view, follow these steps:
In Power Apps admin center, on the navigation pane, choose Tables.
Choose the Item Availability by Location table.
In the Data experiences part, choose Views.
Choose the View column action, and then choose the columns you want the view to include. The following columns are typical choices:
- Location Code shows where the product is available.
- Item No. confirms you're looking at the correct product.
- Item Description provides information about the product.
- Unit of Measure Code gives you an idea of the space you need.
- Remaining Quantity shows how much of the product is available at each location.
Integrate service management features
Integrating Business Central with Field Service lets you manage service tasks, consumption, and financial transactions to benefit service technicians, service managers, and finance teams. It's a powerful solution for managing work orders and consumption in Field Service and efficiently invoicing and fulfilling them in Business Central. The integration is bi-directional, meaning that when you enter or change data in either app, the data updates in the other.
Note
When you enable the integration with service management features, you also enable the integration with projects. You can't enable only the service management integration.
Set up the integration with service management features
You must have a Premium license. When you do, on the Company Information page in Business Central, set the User Experience field to Premium.
You can enable the integration in the Integration Type field by selecting Project and Service in the following places:
- In the Set up integration to Dynamics 365 Field Service assisted setup guide.
- On the Dynamics 365 Field Service Integration Setup page.
When the Integration Type field is set to Project and Service, the following things happen when you enable the integration:
- Creates a solution in Power Apps named Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Field Service Integration (service).
- Adds integration table mappings for service order types, service documents, service lines, and service item lines. To learn more about the table mappings, go to Integration table mappings for synchronization.
- Fields in the headers on service orders and work orders transfer information, such as the Service Account, Billing Account, and Work Order Type.
- Service Item Lines and Work Order Incidents in Field Service transfer information about the customer assets being repaired.
- Service Line fields and Work Order Products and Work Order Services fields, such as Qty. to Ship, Qty. to Invoice, and Qty. to Consume.
In Business Central, make the following settings on the Service Management Setup page:
- Turn on the Service Order Type Mandatory toggle. This setting is required because Field Service requires a work order type.
- Make sure that the number series you use for service orders is set up to allow manual numbering. On the No. Series page, select the Manual Nos. checkbox for the number series. Manual numbering lets you create work orders in Field Service and synchronize them with service orders. Business Central uses the order number from Field Service.
- Turn off the One Service Item Line/Order toggle. This setting lets you have more than one work item line.
- Turn on the Archive Orders toggle.
- Make the Service Order Type field on service orders mandatory because the Work Order Type is mandatory on Field Service work orders.
If you choose Enable Inventory Availability by Location when you set up the integration, you can view the allocated product quantity from work orders in Field Service as part of the gross requirements in Business Central's inventory availability calculation. Demand generated by orders in Field Service automatically becomes input for planning through synchronized service orders.
As service or work orders progress toward completion, their status changes. The following table shows how the statues align in both apps.
| Business Central status | Field Service status | Alignment |
|---|---|---|
| Pending | Unscheduled | Bidirectional per mapping to account for item demand. |
| Pending | Scheduled | Field Service to Business Central. Synchronizes the quantity to ship and the quantity to invoice. |
| In process | In progress | Field Service to Business Central. Synchronizes the quantity to ship and the quantity to invoice. |
| Finished | Completed | Field Service to Business Central. Ready for posting in Business Central. |
| Finished | Posted | Field Service to Business Central. When fully invoiced or deleted after partial invoicing in Business Central. |
| N/A | Canceled | Not synchronized. Manual alignment is needed for canceled work orders. |
Upgrade your integration to include service management features
If you set up the integration to only include projects, but decide to add service management features later, that's easy to do in just a few steps. Remember that you must have a Premium license though.
- On the Dynamics 365 Field Service Integration Setup page, turn off the Enabled toggle.
- In the Integration Type field, choose Project and Service.
- Turn on the Enabled toggle.
Use data in both applications
The following sections describe the features where you can use the data that comes from Business Central and Field Service.
Field Service
You can create work orders using the Service Account and Billing Account from Business Central. On work orders, you must select the Business Central Project Task in the External Project field. Selecting a project lets you synchronize work order products and services to the appropriate project task in Business Central.
You can add inventory and noninventory items as Work Order Products on work orders and get the quantity on hand and costs and prices from Business Central. To learn more, go to Create a work order from the work order form and record list.
You can add items of the type service as Work Order Services, and get costs and prices from Business Central. To learn more, go to Products and services tab.
Note
When a product or service's status on a work order changes from Estimated to Used in Field Service, they synchronize to project journal lines in Business Central.
You can book a resource and relate the Bookings to work order services using a Bookable Resource from Business Central.
You can use the Open in Business Central action in Field Service to open a location that's coupled to a warehouse.
Use the Open in Business Central action to open a location that's coupled to a warehouse. On the Products page, technicians can check how much of particular product is available at a warehouse they specify.
From the Work Order and Product pages, you can view where, and how much, of an item is available. On the Related menu, choose Items Availability by Location.
When you mark a work order product or service as Used on a work order with a specific work order type, the lines synchronize to a service order. Consumption is also posted, based on settings on the Dynamics 365 Field Service Integration Setup page.
During consumption and invoice posting in Business Central, the quantities are updated on the original work order product and work order service lines in Field Service.
Business Central
Depending on your settings on the Field Service Integration Setup page, when work orders include products and services, consumption information is transferred and posted using a Project Journal in Business Central.
The Quantity To Bill and Duration To Bill values are copied to the Qty- to Transfer to Invoice field. Based on those values, you can create and post sales invoices in Business Central to invoice the customer. After the invoice is posted and synchronized to the Dynamics 365 Sales environment, or consumption is processed in Business Central, the quantity invoiced and quantity consumed display on the Business Central tab on the Work Order Product and Work Order Service pages.
Use the Project Planning Lines page to track posting and invoicing of consumption on work orders. From the Project Planning Lines page, you can create and post sales invoices in Business Central. Afterward, you can synchronize them with Field Service and keep track of the status of the invoices.
Note
Work order services with a booking that uses a bookable resource that's coupled to a Business Central resource synchronize to two project journal lines:
- One line of type Budget for the coupled resource
- One line of type Billable for the item being serviced
The product that's chosen on the work order service must be coupled to an item of the type Service in Business Central. Also, the base unit of measure for the item must be set to the Hours Unit of Measure that's chosen on the Dynamics 365 Field Service Integration Setup page.
You can create an invoice for an item of the type Service from the billable project planning line, and use the budget project planning line to register cost with the resource.
Use the Locations in Field Service action on the Locations and Location Card pages to open a coupled location in Field Service, synchronize it, set up and delete couplings, and view synchronization logs. You can view the allocated product quantity from work orders in Field Service as part of the gross requirements in Business Central's inventory availability calculation. Demand generated by orders in Field Service automatically become an input for planning.
Related information
Integrate with Microsoft Dataverse via data sync
Mapping the Tables and Fields to Synchronize