Upgrade Project for Microsoft Dynamics GP

The Client

The client, is a not-for-profit association representing more than 86,500 U.S. veterinarians working in private and corporate practice, government, industry, academia, and uniformed services. They provide information resources, continuing education opportunities, publications, and discounts on personal and professional products, programs, and services.

The Opportunity

The client has been using Dynamics Great Plains for more than a decade. They utilize the Financial, Purchasing, Sales, and Inventory modules to perform their day-to-day tasks. Additionally, the client uses third-party applications, which are Management Reporter (a financial report generator from Microsoft), GreenShades (a payroll tax filing solution that is fully integrated with GP), and Collections Management (an accounts receivable management solution that is fully integrated with GP).

Given that their version of GP was from 2010 (version R2), the company wanted to upgrade the software to the most recent version, which is 2016. This also includes upgrading Management Reporter, GreenShades, and Collection Management.

The Solution

In order to address this upgrade, Logan meets with key employees from the company to discuss the current state of the Dynamics GP environment and any open issues that exist. Then, we discuss the necessary server requirements with the IT department, including any software needed, settings that need to be implemented, and more.

After the meeting, Logan prepares the new server, installs necessary software, and begins the test upgrade. During this time, a practice upgrade is performed to move from GP 2010 to GP 2016. After the upgrade is successful, users have GP installed on their local machines and participate in training sessions about what is new with GP 2016.

Once users have been trained on the new functions in GP, they are ready to test the upgrade previously performed. They perform their daily tasks to make sure everything functions properly. Issues are reported to Logan, fixed, and noted for the live upgrade.

After all issues have been reported and fixed, the live upgrade can occur. A time is set for all users to be logged out of GP. Then, the live upgrade is performed, and if everything runs smoothly, users can log into GP. Again, users will test functions in GP to make sure they function properly. Any issues are reported, tracked, and resolved timely.

The Results

  • A new server with a newer versions of Dynamics GP and all third party applications.
  • Improved performance and efficiency with Dynamics GP and all third party applications.