Dynamics Gp Partner Newsflash: Automatic Great Plains Installation and Update

Traditionally Great Plains consultants were installing Microsoft Dynamics GP directly from CD on each workstation, including Terminal or Citrix server. In large organization IT department has a tendency to control software installation for each user, including ERP and Accounting system centrally. In Dynamics GP 10.0 and 9.0 you have Installation Package functionality, which allows you to exercise this control. In this small publication we would like to give you guidelines and ideas on where to get more info:\

1. To create installation package, please insert Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 CD1 (or GP 9.0 CD1, if you are on version 9.0 respectively). Click on Create Installation Package. You will be prompted to select Package folder – we recommend you to use UNC path, which is open to each Great Plains user in your organization, then follow simple decision making steps, we would like to dedicate special paragraph to the decisions

2. Reports file location. On the Dictionary Location screen you can either choose local path for Reports.Dic or switch to network folder. Let us stop here for the few

seconds. If you have only couple of Dynamics GP users, then it is not a big deal to copy Reports.dic version, when reports have been modified (normally SOP Blank Invoice form, where you place your company logo, payment remittance information, etc). In large company, where you have maybe hundred Great Plains users, there is good idea to have all the users to share the same Reports.dic with approved modified reports

3. Forms. If you are familiar with Modifier with VBA, you know that you can modify existing GP forms in Modifier by taking off some fields, placing new fields and attaching VBA script to them. Modifier with VBA allows you to create very simple customization without appealing to your Great Plains reseller to program it for you

4. OLE Notes. As you probably already know, OLE notes allow you to attach OLE compliant objects (Excel, Word documents, Pictures, for example). In order for all the users to be able to open OLE notes, attached by one of the users, you should place OLE notes to the network folder

5. Letters. Typical example would be collection letters. The same idea, consider placing them on the network to share for all the users

6. Distributing GP Installation. After you are done with the Installation Package creation, in the installation folder you should see two files: Setup.exe and GreatPlains.msi. The link to Setup.exe could be emailed to your users, who is chosen for Great Plains installation, and MSI file could be placed into user profile policy or group policy for automatic deployment

7. Automatic Updates. Installation Package is created off the original manufactured Great Plains CD1 and 2. In reality, you have to apply GP Service Packs on the regular base, plus if you are using GP add-ons – you distribute them in the form of Chink files with CNK extension. Service packs typically include all the earlier SPs and patches. To publish update for you GP users, you have to first install it on your GP server and then enable for the users in Tools->Setup->System->Manage Automatic Client Updates window. Update is placed in Syupdate table. Control is pretty tight – if user doesn’t agree to the update – Great Plains closes and doesn’t allow the user to keep working