Dynamics AX 2012 RTM and AX 2012 R2 are now out of mainstream support. In this article we explain what this means and what the options are for your organisation going forward.
With the rate of change in the technology world, 6 years is a fairly long time and in a world of fast change can your business rely on a system that will now be standing still?
For Dynamics AX 2012 RTM and AX 2012 R2 users what does this mean?
The end of mainstream support means that Microsoft has now stopped updating and working on the Dynamics AX 2012 RTM and 2012 R2 product. Mainstream support for Dynamics AX 2012 R3 will remain until 2021.
Many people assume that Dynamics AX 2012 works for them now, so this is no big deal. This can be a dangerous assumption, when you think about the number of significant releases this cycle of improvements is now no longer going to be available. This can present two significant challenges for companies using Dynamics AX 2012.
Security
In terms of security, there will be no more bug fixes or security updates after October. This presents a huge challenge to organisations – with factors such as GDPR coming into effect, can you justify the risk of having one of your critical business systems running with potentially known security issues? Whilst Microsoft will have closed most of the security gaps, the risk still exists and is a hard one to justify accepting.
Dealing with change
Change is inevitable and changes affecting your organisation become harder to deal with. Think of recent changes to tax rules such as ‘Making Tax Digital’ – electronic trading and banking protocols are constantly evolving and governments are continually pushing companies towards electronic filing and reporting. Plus, the eternal pressure to drive efficiencies and reduce costs.
All of these changes of regulations, functionality and needs have a direct impact on your business-critical software products. Continued operation of AX 2012 will make it very difficult, if not impossible, to adhere to these external changes and untimely this may result in businesses breaching rules and disrupting operations.
What are your options?
You have two options ahead of you – upgrade or stay. If you decide to continue using the system, then the key here is to have a support partner that can give you the confidence you need to continue using the system. One that can deliver the changes and fixes you need to keep your system running, this will become more challenging over time but should extend the lifecycle of your ERP, but this will depend on how much change you expect your business to go through.
Dynamics AX is no longer available to new customers since Microsoft removed it from their price lists back in 2017 but there is still one version that is still in mainstream support – Dynamics AX 2012 R3. You could consider upgrading to the latest version which would buy you another 3 years of support and would be fairly simple upgrade.
If you are looking at upgrading, Microsoft now offers two newer ERP solutions. One is the direct descendant of Dynamics AX – Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations. This is the logical upgrade path for businesses that use most of the Dynamics AX functionality. For smaller businesses, or businesses that are finding they aren’t using everything the system has to offer, there is Dynamics 365 Business Central.
Moving to one of these options will mitigate the risks outlined above as Dynamics 365 uses a subscription model where you are always on the latest version, raising the interesting possibility of never upgrading your ERP again. As a result of always being on the latest version, Microsoft are adding functionality, bug fixes and new capability all the time, and this is included in your subscription.
The benefits of moving to a modern, business application with built-in intelligence and flexibility to suit your business are massive. It can offer new levels of integration and the ability to mould to your organisation that has never been seen before. The integration with other Microsoft solutions makes the solution feel like it’s a part of your business as Outlook or Microsoft Word. All of this drives greater efficiency, insight and success for your business. For more information on the benefits read our blog 6 key benefits of this ERP upgrade.
To understand more about what this means, your options and the opportunity it presents your business, contact us.