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NAV to Business Central: What Actually Moves, and What Needs to Change?

Moving from Dynamics NAV to Business Central requires two separate projects: a technical upgrade through mandatory waypoints (version 14 and 25) followed by cloud migration via data replication. The process demands converting C/AL customizations to AL extensions and evaluating whether to do a full migration or reimplementation, with data only moving as far as code does.

Open in Claudetag-blogger-com-1999-blog-1492436440038408053-post-7706250162700204847--ff7a1d395b.md

post Mohana's Dynamics NAV & BC blog

Mohana Yadav · 2026-09-16 · 1,683 words · about 8 min

"It isn't one move. It's an upgrade, then a migration"
Show the post hereRead on Mohana's Dynamics NAV & BC blog

Key points

  • NAV to Business Central migration is two sequential projects: upgrade first through version 14 and 25 waypoints, then replicate data to online via Integration Runtime
  • Code does not replicate automatically; customizations must be converted to AL extensions installed on both on-premises and online for data to migrate
  • Every NAV version requires different numbers of upgrade hops (NAV 2018 needs two, NAV 2009 needs four), determining timeline before migration begins
  • Choose between full migration (all data and customizations) or reimplementation (essential data only) based on regulatory needs, historical data importance, and customization value
  • Third-party integrations, solutions, and custom tables need conversion to cloud equivalents or replacement before assessment is complete

Quotes

  • “It isn’t one move. It’s an upgrade, then a migration” (Clarifies the fundamental misconception that NAV migration is a single operation, establishing that version upgrades must precede cloud data replication)
  • “Your data travels only as far as your code does.” (Summarizes the central dependency between code conversion and data migration, essential for scoping realistic project scope and outcomes)

Context

  • Features: cloud migration tool, Integration Runtime, Azure Data Factory, Business Central 14 reimplementation tool, AL extensions, data replication, extension installation
  • Versions: NAV 2009, NAV 2009 R2, NAV 2009 SP1, NAV 2013, NAV 2013 R2, NAV 2015, NAV 2018, Business Central 13

Source: Mohana’s Dynamics NAV & BC blog, community blog. Summary, key points and quotes are derived (CONTENT-NOTICE.md); read the original for the full text.