Differences and data exchange between AX 3.0 & AX 4.0
1. New general features
1. Common functionality
l Global search
In 4.0, you can search for data anywhere in AX 4.0 by using the global search feature. Press CTRL+F to open the global search pane and enter your search string.
l Extended data fields
The default length of fields for names, descriptions, and number sequences increased from 30 characters to 60 characters.
l Embedded filter in forms
In 4.0, you get a new way of filtering the data in forms. When you press CTRL+G in a form, an extra line appears in the top of the form grid. Enter your filtering criteria, in one or more columns, select a filtering option, such as contains, and the filter is applied.
l Ad hoc reporting
Ad hoc reporting enables business decision makers and technical end users to develop and run reports dynamically.
l Unicode
In 4.0, AX adds support for Far East and Eastern European regions. A single AX 4.0 installation can support data in many languages. It can support for multilingual regions in the X++ platform also.
l Removal of 2-tier, 3-T Thick, and Web Deployment
In 4.0, AX has removed the 2-tier, 3-tier Thick, and Web Deployment for enhanced security, performance and ease installation. Security enforcement can better implemented by the AOS instead of the clients. The numbers of computers that will access the AOD files will be limited to just the AOS computers.
l Windows Server 2003 supported & windows Authentication logon
In 4.0, AX is integration with Active Directory enhances security and administration, so users only have to log on to their computers to access AX 4.0 (Microsoft Windows logon). Active Directory integration provides aid in administration of users.
2. Alerts
Alerts enable you to track changes or monitor occurrences of dates throughout AX 4.0
3. Service management
It includes Service and Service subscriptions.
l Service
With the Service functionality, you can service complex machines and equipment periodically or based on individual service calls.
l Service subscriptions
With the Service subscriptions functionality you can create and maintain service subscriptions and control the periodic revenue that the company receives from subscription customers.
4. Enterprise Portal
AX 4.0 provides a set of built-in web applications called enterprise portal. Built on Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services (WSS), Enterprise Portal provides Web-enabled access to data stored in AX 4.0. Use SharePoint announcements, surveys, and discussion lists to collaborate with customers, business partners, and other employees.
2. Enhanced and new features in existing application modules
1. Accounts payable
l Footer text on purchase orders and documents
You can specify the text to print in the footer of the original copy of a purchase document and other text to print on a copy of the document.
l Vendor balance form
Balance in the Vendors form can view vendor balance information about credit limits, credit limits remaining, amounts ordered, and amounts on packing slips.
l Aging buckets
Aging buckets can view the open vendor balance in aging buckets in the company currency. The time buckets show the current open balance distribution over time considering either due date, document date, or transaction date.
l Default vendor account setup
You can set up default ledger posting accounts on vendor groups to enable fast and efficient entry of vendor transactions in journals and purchase orders.
l Payment proposal
The payment proposal enables you to sort and post several incoming payments in one operation.
l Distribute payments to vendors among various bank accounts
In the Payment distribution form, you can distribute payments to vendors among various bank accounts, depending on current balances in the bank accounts.
l Cash discounts
You can overrule the ledger account that normally used for posting cash discount by selecting an alternative ledger account in the Open transaction editing form.
l Vendor payment reports
You can use the Vendor payment journal and the Vendor posted payment journal report to view account and payment details for individual vendors. This feature is available if the United States and Canada configuration key selected.
l Reverse a transaction
This new functionality enables you to reverse a transaction. All related transactions that created when the original transaction posted also reversed.
l Revoke a reserved transaction
This new functionality enables you to revoke a reversed transaction.
l Exchange adjustment of open vendor transactions
To update the value of your accounts payable, and to conform to the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), run the exchange adjustment periodic job.
2. Accounts receivable
l Footer text on purchase orders and documents
Specify the text that you want to printed in the footer of the original copy of a sales document and other text on a copy of the document.
l Customer balance form
Balance in the Customers form can view customer balance information about credit limits, credit limits remaining, amounts ordered, and amounts on packing slips.
l Aging buckets
Aging buckets can view the open customer balance in aging buckets in the company currency.
l Customer account statement
You can inform a customer about transactions that are due within a period that you define and about installments that are due on payment schedules.
l Payment proposal
The payment proposal enables you to sort and post several incoming payments in one operation.
l Cash discounts
You can overrule the ledger account that normally used for posting cash discounts by selecting an alternative ledger account in the Open transaction editing form.
l Refund a customer by check
You can now select a method of payment by check for a customer. The check generated in the payment journal.
l Customer payment report
Use the Customer payment journal report and the Customer posted payment journal report to view account and payment details for individual customers
l Reverse a transaction
With this new functionality, you can reverse a transaction. All related transactions created when the original transaction posted also reversed. You cannot reverse a transaction in a previous fiscal year.
l Revoke a reversed transaction
This new functionality enables you to revoke a reversed transaction.
l Exchange adjustment of open customer transactions
To update the value of your accounts receivable and to comply with the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), you run the exchange adjustment periodic job.
l Advanced Intercompany Functionality
Trade between companies within the same enterprise (intercompany trade) involves double-order entry, manual work, and no intercompany process control. This is supported in AX4.0
l Enhanced delivery date control on sales orders
AX 4.0 now distinguishes between the selling company’s possible ship date and the buying company’s receipt date.
l Release order picking
AX 4.0 introduces a new process-oriented overview form to handle the picking procedure across all sales and transfer orders, including back orders.
l Direct delivery
To optimize customer service and delivery time, it is now possible to create a purchase order as a direct delivery (drop shipment) from the vendor to the customer. This delivery type reduces the costs of labor, inventory, and transportation.
l Enhanced credit-limit check for sales orders
Historically, complex credit limit checking for sales orders may have slowed the system or otherwise adversely affected system performance. In AX 4.0, we have improved processes to eliminate this problem
l Multiple delivery addresses
AX 4.0 introduces order line-specific delivery and receipt addresses. This feature enables multiple delivery addresses for a single purchase order or sales order.
l Improved Intrastat support
When buying and selling within the European Union (EU), it is mandatory to record and inform authorities about foreign trade, which is referred to as Intrastat. This applies to all goods sold. In AX 4.0, the existing foreign trade functionality enhanced so that you can generate Intrastat transactions from the Free Text invoice form.
3. Balanced Scorecard
We have realigned the terminology that used throughout the module with traditional balanced scorecard concepts. We have also structured scorecards so that you can manage multiple scorecards for each employee, organization unit, or the company generally. You can more quickly view real-time performance results in a single, customizable, and easy-to-understand overview. Finally, you can now create scorecards, strategic objectives, measurements, and graphical indicators by copying settings from existing items of each type.
4. Bank
l Electronic funds transfer
By using United States and Canada configuration keys, Companies that want to send payments or requests for withdrawals electronically can use the standard NACHA file formats for consumer, corporate, or other types of applications. The following record types supported for both consumer and vendor payments:
5. Bill of materials (BOM)
l Quantity-dependent BOM and route
In AX 4.0, BOM and route version selection can be controlled by both quantity and date.
l Enhanced BOM calculation
AX 4.0 provides enhanced functionality for BOM costing. The calculation performed in one-step that runs through the BOM from top to bottom, taking into account the actual quantities on higher-level BOMs and applying these to the required sub-BOM quantities. This ensures that correct item quantities and accurate prices calculated during posting.
l BOM flushing principle
In AX 4.0, the flushing principle, which enables automatic consumption, is set to start by default. The option of registering item consumption when you update a production order to both the start and finish phases removed.
6. Fixed assets
You can use depreciation books to manage groups of assets with similar depreciation characteristics. Depreciation books do not affect General ledger, and the depreciation book information used only for tax or other non-financial purposes. You also can create derived depreciation books that work as derived value models do.
The Straight-line depreciation convention changed to Straight-line service life, and the following depreciation conventions added.
a) Reducing balance
b) 150% reducing balance
c) 175% reducing balance
d) 200% reducing balance
e) Straight line life remaining
You can set up fixed asset calendars for depreciation books, rather than using general ledger periods.
7. General ledger
New features including (more information can get from further document):
a) Dimension sets, hierarchy and rules
b) A new financial statement
c) Exchange rate adjustment as per considered date
d) Transaction reversal on customer, vendor and ledger accounts
e) New payment attributes on payment proposals
f) New consolidation to comply with the FASB 52 regulation
g) New elements on invoices to comply with EU directive 115
h) Accrual schemes to divide the expense or income over time
i) Aging buckets to analyze the timely distribution of accounts receivable and accounts payable balances
j) Depreciation books, conventions and bonus
k) Check refund to customers
l) Default accounts for vendors
8. Human Resources
You can focus on each resource that you are interested in because we removed the recruitment project lines removed from recruitment projects. To broaden the reach of each project, you can now create and publish job advertisements from recruitment projects to the Enterprise Portal. Applicants can submit employment applications from the job advertisement. You can use the application basket to screen unwanted submissions. By using a new parameter, you can designate the recruitment project to use for general, unsolicited employment applications.
By using mass-hire projects, you can reduce administration time and resource costs when you hire many employees or contractors at the same time. This is especially useful for hiring people on a short-term, temporary, or contract basis.
By using the improved absence registration, you can request approval of future absences.
9. Inventory management
l Transfer order
Handling of transfer orders greatly enhanced in AX 4.0. With the introduction of the transit warehouse and the concept of transit time, employees are better equipped to coordinate the logistics for outbound and inbound items, and therefore more tightly control supply. These enhancements integrated with the master planning schedule.
l Radio frequency identification (RFID)
By using radio frequency identification (RFID), companies can:
a) Improve the visibility in their supply chain.
b) Help suppliers fulfill the needs of their trading partners quickly.
l Enhanced status reporting of reserved inventory
The order processor and purchasing agent currently lack information about the status of the entire sales/purchase order. In AX 4.0, additional user-interface items been added to show inventory transaction status of Reserved Physical, Reserved on-order, and On-order. Quantity on the purchase-order line will display status of Registered, Arrived, or Ordered.
l Inventory closing
The inventory closing procedure been improved with the introduction of two reports:
a) To check the open quantities to check the cost price of receipts. You can then find incorrect receipt cost amounts that financially updated.
b) To check the cost price of receipts. You can then find incorrect receipt cost amounts that are financially updated.
l Italian Fiscal LIFO
A new inventory reporting system required by Italian tax authorities been added to this release
10.Master planning
l Enhanced planning parameters
AX 4.0 provides enhanced functionality in the master schedule calculation. Dynamic negative days, a new parameter, takes into account the remaining item lead time, which improves accuracy in determining whether to fulfill a requirement by using an existing planned order or by generating a new planned order.
11.Product Builder
New features including (more information can get from further document):
a) Create product models using the wizard
b) Create validation rules
c) Set up graphics for a configurable item
d) Set up and use multiple compilation of product models
e) Set up automatic and mandatory configuration
f) Set up hiding of some dialog boxes
g) Configure item on the quotation lines and in the item requirements
h) Use other Product Builder innovations
12.Production
l Enhanced subcontracting functionality
AX 4.0 provides enhanced functionality for subcontracting. Shipping documents for raw materials and work descriptions (that specify the operation and route) for the subcontractor attached to the purchase order, transfer order, or production order.
l Enhanced costing functionality
AX 4.0 provides enhanced functionality for production order costing. To reflect realized item consumption and time consumption, the price calculation always updated when a production journal posted.
13.Project
l New project types
Three new project types been implemented. Previously, the internal project type applied to handle many different kinds of tasks. In AX 4.0, some internal projects can now handled with the three new project types.
a) Time projects
b) Cost projects
c) Investment projects
l Enhanced invoicing feature facilitates the creation of credit notes
In Project, when an amount included on an invoice has a negative amount, the invoice classified as a credit note. Previously, to print a credit note for a customer you had to register and post the credit amount as a negative amount. Therefore, an extra set of transactions created to reverse the transactions originally registered.
l Enhanced estimate system
The estimate system within the Estimate form been enhanced with three new tabs: Profit and loss, WIP, and Consumption. Each of these tabs contains new fields. The new fields provide an improved overview of the status of the estimate.
l New check boxes in Post costs form
In the Post costs form, two new check boxes enable you to choose between internal projects and time-and-material projects.
l New name for Accrue turnover
The periodic job previously named "Accrue turnover" in Periodic > Time and material has been renamed to Accrue revenue.
l New tabs, fields, and options in Post costs and Accrue revenue forms
l Report updates and new reports
New Category reports: Four new reports have been added under Reports > Category. The new reports provide an overview of what earned, consumed, or assessed on balance accounts for each category. The report output can be limited on project types or transaction types.
l Statistics
A new statistics feature replaces the statistics feature in earlier versions. The new feature displays realized numbers.
14.Sales and marketing
l Sales Quotations
Quotations fully integrated with the sales order process and CRM sales pipeline reporting. This enables users to register winning, losing, or canceled quotations. Users can also register alternative quotations and note the winning quotation and reason for winning.
l Sales Management Statistics
This improved and now includes:
a) Improved adaptability based on full user access to underlying queries.
b) Improved design of data-capturing functionality, allowing users a greater degree of control over the values returned.
l Microsoft Office Outlook Integration
The integration with Microsoft Office Outlook redesigned, including enhanced tasks and activities synchronization, and Contact person synchronization with rights management and rule-based synchronization.
l General Enhancements to CRM
a) Automatic activity generation
b) Table redesign
c) Target distribution
15.Shop floor control
Update Shop Floor Control to Microsoft Dynamics™ AX 4.0, including (more information can get from further document):
a) Configure registration forms
b) Create Special days
c) Create On call activities
d) Set up new parameters
e) Create messages on Notice board
f) Change picking list posting on production jobs
g) Set up machines in the employee table
h) Create profile selections using the Work planner
i) Clean up registrations
3. Data Exchange
For the two dependent installations, if we want data exchange between AX3 and AX4.0, we should choose some special methods to conquer the differences motioned before.
1. Interface by customization
By development tools, such as Morphx, develop customize interface both in AX 3 and AX 4.0. We can choose all the data that we needed freely.
2. Excel exchange by standard function
Using Excel import-export tools both in AX 3 and AX 4.0, building the same excel template for data exchange, but the new features or data in AX 4.0 cannot imported into AX 3.0. In the same time, it should be setup default values when export these data from AX 3.0.
3. AIF & BizTalk
In this way, not using interface developed by ourselves, we choose the mature production.