Upgrade Business Central Sandbox to Preview Version
Updating an existing Business Central sandbox to a preview version from the admin center, so upcoming functionality can be tested with real customer data, configurations and extensions. Covers scheduling the update, post-upgrade testing and preview limitations, including deletion 30 days after GA.
- Introduction and Overview
- Why Test Preview with Customer Data
- Preview Sandbox vs Existing Sandbox Approaches
- Admin Center and Update Settings
- Scheduling the Preview Update
- Testing After Upgrade
- Preview Environment Limitations
- Upgrade in Progress and Data Considerations
- Summary and Call to Action
Overview
The video shows how to schedule an existing sandbox to update to a preview version instead of creating a new clean preview environment. The presenter argues this is useful for customers because the sandbox already holds their extensions, realistic data and configurations, which gives a rough estimate of how the new version will behave for them.
It walks through the admin center: viewing environments, checking application versions, and choosing a date and time for the update. It then covers testing after the upgrade and the limits of preview environments, which are temporary and cannot be moved to a different version.
Key points
- An existing sandbox can be scheduled to update to a preview version, rather than creating a new clean preview environment.
- Testing this way uses the customer’s own extensions, data and configuration, which gives a rough estimate of impact, not a guaranteed result.
- Updates are scheduled in the admin center, where you check environments and application versions and pick a target version, date and time.
- The scheduled date and time are based on the environment’s region; an option allows the update to run outside the configured update window.
- Check that the sandbox is not in use for active testing before upgrading it.
- Preview environments are deleted automatically 30 days after the version becomes generally available, without prior notice.
- A preview environment cannot be updated to a different version, and it should not be treated as a permanent sandbox. Tell customers it is temporary.
Features
| Feature | Status | At |
|---|---|---|
| Update existing sandbox to preview version | status not stated, demoed | 0:01 |
| Preview environment deletion after GA | status not stated | 8:02 |
| Schedule preview version update from admin center | status not stated, demoed | 3:31 |
AL objects mentioned
As heard in the captions. A name that matches one object page by exact type and name links to it; the others stay as named.
- other “BC28 US environment” at 3:31
Quotes
- 0:54 “Microsoft I don’t remember the exact timeline but I have allowed existing sandbox environment to update to a preview version during the preview period.”
- 1:52 “Microsoft specifically documents that upcoming updating an existing sandbox to a preview allows you to review the new functionality in an environment where the”
- 3:07 “This approach is particularly useful for customers because it has customer extension, customer realistic data setups and configurations.”
- 8:15 “Microsoft deletes those environment 30 days after the version becomes generally available.”
- 8:55 “You will not be able to update a preview environment to a different version. So it automatically gets update from Microsoft but you cannot”
Disclaimers in the video
- 8:15 coming-later: Microsoft deletes those environment 30 days after the version becomes generally available.
- 8:41 subject-to-change: This environment will only be available 30 days after the GA.
- 9:11 subject-to-change: Don’t treat this as a permanent sandbox it is just temporarily for testing.
Presenters (as heard): Savani.