Get started

Path: Development > Get started · tier official · system development · narrative reviewed (checked by Opus)

Overview

This section is the entry point for AL development. It starts with setting up a sandbox, installing Visual Studio Code and the AL Language extension, and creating a first project with the AL:Go! command. A walkthrough then builds a sample extension with new objects and extension objects, including install and upgrade code. A page on differences between C/SIDE and AL helps developers coming from Dynamics NAV.

Most other pages describe editor tooling in Visual Studio Code: code actions, Go To Definition navigation, AL Explorer, AL Formatter, AL Home, the Outline View, snippets, keyboard shortcuts, and productivity tips. Designer is the in-client alternative for changing page layouts without AL code in a sandbox. Further pages cover feature topics: telemetry, XLIFF translation files, context-sensitive Help links, and runtime packages for on-premises.

Three subtopics extend this. ALTool covers command-line compiling and packaging for CI/CD. Ready to Go covers publishing apps to the commercial marketplace. Marketplace validation covers AppSource technical validation and presenting an app. Start with Get started with AL, then the first sample extension.

Key points

• Get started with AL: set up a sandbox, install VS Code and the AL Language extension, create a project with AL:Go!, and configure launch.json and app.json.
• AL code actions fix errors and warnings in VS Code with configurable scope (instance, document, project, workspace), for example converting multiple if statements to case or fixing explicit with statements.
• AL Explorer, Go To Definition, and the Outline View help browse objects, events, APIs, enums, and symbols without reading all the code.
• Use Designer in a sandbox to change page layouts by drag and drop without writing AL.
• Runtime packages for on-premises distribute only runtime artifacts, protecting source code without developer licenses on target servers; showMyCode and allowDebugging flags apply.
• XLIFF translation support uses the TranslationFile feature, GenerateCaptions, and namespace-aware translation IDs; the page references runtime 18.
• Telemetry pages explain implementing signals with LogMessage and SendTraceTag and Application Insights integration.
• ALTool, Ready to Go, and Marketplace validation cover CI/CD packaging, partner registration and Partner Center submission, and AppSource technical validation.

Subtopics

• ALTool (2 pages)
• Ready to Go (2 pages)
• Marketplace validation (7 pages)

More Learn pages

• AL code actions: Learn about AL code actions in Visual Studio Code, including scope levels, available actions, and how to enable them for your project.
• AL code navigation: This article describes how to use the Go To Definition feature when debugging the AL code in Dynamics 365 Business Central.
• AL Explorer: The AL Explorer for Business Central lets you explore and navigate objects in extensions.
• AL Formatter: The AL formatter can help you insert and remove space from AL code.
• AL Home: Get an overview of the AL Home view for Business Central which shares news, best practices, events, status and learn content.
• Build your first sample extension that uses new objects and extension objects: Includes code for an example extension, complete with new objects, extension objects, and install and upgrade code.
• Context-Sensitive Help Links for AL Objects: Learn how to use the ContextSensitiveHelpPage property in AL to connect pages, queries, and request pages to context-sensitive Help.
• Create runtime packages for Business Central on-premises: Describes how you can create runtime packages used for distribution of extensions for Business Central.
• Developer productivity tips: Learn about productivity tips when programming in AL for Business Central.
• Developing telemetry into your Business Central application: This article describes how to add code to application objects that enables you to gather telemetry.
• Differences in the development environments: Describes the various differences between the C/SIDE and AL for Business Central.
• Get started with AL: Description of how to get started with the AL development environment.
• Keyboard shortcuts for AL in Visual Studio Code: List of keyboard shortcuts for the new development environment (Visual Studio Code).
• Object ranges: Description of the object ranges used for licensing in Business Central.
• Syntax and snippets: Description of syntax and snippets available with the AL language for Business Central.
• Use Designer: Description of how Designer works and is integrated with the AL development experience.
• Use the AL Outline View in Visual Studio Code: Use the Visual Studio Code Outline view to browse AL symbols, follow the active cursor, filter symbols, and review problem decorations.
• Work with XLIFF Translation Files: Learn how to generate, maintain, and package XLIFF translation files for multilingual Business Central extensions, including namespace-aware IDs.

Videos, posts and code changes

Linked by a Haiku matcher with a grounding quote from the item’s summary (link/topics.ts); machine-generated.

• #2367 Enhance NuGet feed selection to support pre-release packages (code change): “AL-Go now supports pre-release NuGet packages by adding”
• How to Set Up a New Business Central Development Project – The 100% Correct Way (community post): “This guide covers the essential setup steps for creating a new Business Central AL development project”

Source: Microsoft Learn (CC BY 4.0). Descriptions are Learn’s own.