What's New: Flexible Update Management (2024 release wave 2)
Flexible update management in Business Central 2024 release wave 2: the major update period grows from 60 days to 5 months starting with version 25, with a shortened grace period, enforced updates, minor-update opt-out, version skipping, and admin center API and telemetry changes. Public preview starts October 2024 for Microsoft localized environments.
- Introduction and customer requirements
- Current update cycle process
- Version 25 major changes to update periods
- New update cycle phases and timeline
- Minor updates and new flexibility features
- Public preview rollout details
- General availability and API changes
- Best practices and recommendations
Overview
The video explains how update management changes for Business Central online customers who need more control over when updates run, such as those running 24-hour operations. It walks through the current update cycle and then the new phases that start with version 25.
It covers the longer update period for major releases, the shortened grace period and enforced update period, and new options for minor updates. It also covers what is limited in public preview, what arrives with general availability, and the API and telemetry changes partners should prepare for.
Key points
- From version 25, the update period for major releases increases from 60 days to 5 calendar months.
- The public preview starts in October 2024 with version 25 and applies only to Microsoft localized environments. General availability is to follow towards the end of the release wave.
- The grace period is shortened to one month. Updates are scheduled weekly and can be moved earlier but not later, with four update attempts in total.
- After the grace period an enforced update period begins. Incompatible extensions are uninstalled automatically and the update cannot be postponed.
- An environment-level setting lets you opt out of automatic scheduling of minor updates. It arrives with general availability.
- With general availability you can skip minor versions by choosing a target version. During public preview you still go through each intermediate version, for example 25.1 and 25.2 on the way to 25.3.
- Admin center API and telemetry signal changes are expected in March and are breaking for partners who automate update scheduling or alert on update telemetry. From then on you can also create environments on any supported version.
Features
| Feature | Status | At | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5-month update period for major releases | status not stated | 1:54 | |
| Shortened grace period with weekly attempts | status not stated | 3:40 | |
| Enforced update period with extension uninstall | status not stated | 2:34 | |
| Opt-out for automatic minor update scheduling | announced | 4:59 | “at that point also the admin Center changes will come so we’ll introduce the opt out for automatic scheduling” (7:43) |
| Ability to skip minor versions | announced | 5:19 | “at that point it will be possible to change the update Target version as well so it’ll be possible to skip versions” (7:43) |
| Create environments on any supported version | status not stated | 5:51 | |
| Admin Center API changes for update scheduling | announced | 8:00 | “will slightly change to reflect the new flexibility um those changes are coming in March” (8:00) |
| Telemetry signal changes for update events | status not stated | 8:20 |
Quotes
- 0:26 “we’re meeting the require ments of update diverse customers so these are customers that are running 24hour shops and don’t want plan downtime every”
- 1:54 “the update period is increasing from 60 days to 5 months so now when version 25 ships on the 1st of October uh any”
- 3:08 “the update cycle as I just said starts with a preview period that lasts for 30 days um after the preview period will start”
- 3:40 “during this period is not possible to postpone the update uh to a later date so if we schedule uh the update after a”
- 6:11 “the public review is starting in October 2024 when we ship version 25 and it only applies to Microsoft localized environments”
- 7:31 “General availability is going to follow towards the end of this release wave um at that point these changes will be available globally so”
- 8:40 “for most most environments um the best course of action will be to install the minor updates when we ship it every month and”
Disclaimers in the video
- 6:11 preview: the public review is starting in October 2024 when we ship version 25 and it only applies to Microsoft localized environments
- 6:49 preview: what is not possible during the public preview is to change the target version so after you update to 25.0 let’s say you want to get to 25.3 but you don’t necessarily want to update to 25.1 or 25.2 you still have to go through those versions
- 7:31 coming-later: General availability is going to follow towards the end of this release wave
- 8:00 coming-later: those changes are coming in March um and also from that date on it’ll be possible to create versions or create environments on any supported version