From AI Experiments to AI That Can Be Trusted  Generative AI has moved from experimentation to executive priority. Yet across industries, many organizations struggle to convert pilots into dependable business outcomes.  At CloudFronts, we’ve consistently seen why.  Whether working with Sonee Hardware in distribution and retail or BÜCHI Labortechnik AG in manufacturing and life sciences, AI success has never started with models. It has started with trust in data.  AI that operates on fragmented, inconsistent, or poorly governed data introduces risk not advantage. The organizations that succeed follow a different path: they build intelligence on top of trusted, enterprise-grade data platforms.  The Real Challenge: AI Without Context or Control  Most stalled AI initiatives share common traits:  This pattern leads to AI that looks impressive in demos but struggles in production.  CloudFronts has seen this firsthand when customers approach AI before fixing data fragmentation. In contrast, customers who first unified ERP, CRM, and operational data created a far smoother path to AI-driven decision-making.  What Data-Native AI Looks Like in Practice  Agent Bricks represents a shift from model-centric AI to data-centric intelligence, where AI agents operate directly inside the enterprise data ecosystem.  This aligns closely with how CloudFronts has helped customers mature their data platforms:  In both cases, AI readiness emerged naturally once data trust was established.  Why Modularity Matters at Enterprise Scale  Enterprise intelligence is not built with a single AI agent.  It requires:  Agent Bricks mirrors how modern enterprises already operate through modular, orchestrated components rather than monolithic solutions.  This same principle guided CloudFronts data architecture work with customers:  AI agents built on top of this architecture inherit the same scalability and control.  Governance Is the Difference Between Insight and Risk  One of the most underestimated risks in AI adoption is hallucination, AI confidently delivering incorrect or unverifiable answers.  CloudFronts customers in regulated and data-intensive industries are especially sensitive to this risk.  For example:  By embedding AI agents directly into governed data platforms (via Unity Catalog and Lakehouse architecture), Agent Bricks ensures AI outputs are traceable, explainable, and trusted.  From Reporting to “Ask-Me-Anything” Intelligence  Most CloudFronts customers already start with a familiar goal: better reporting.  The journey typically evolves as follows:  This is the same evolution seen with customers like Sonee Hardware, where reliable reporting laid the groundwork for more advanced analytics and eventually AI-driven insights.  Agent Bricks accelerates this final leap by enabling conversational, governed access to enterprise data without bypassing controls.  Choosing the Right AI Platform Is About Maturity, Not Hype  CloudFronts advises customers that AI platforms are not mutually exclusive:  The deciding factor is data maturity.  Organizations with fragmented data struggle with AI regardless of platform. Those with trusted, governed data like CloudFronts mature ERP and analytics customers are best positioned to unlock Agent Bricks’ full value.  What Business Leaders Can Learn from Real Customer Journeys  Across CloudFronts customer engagements, a consistent pattern emerges:  AI success follows data maturity not the other way around.  Customers who:  were able to adopt AI faster, safer, and with measurable outcomes.  Agent Bricks aligns perfectly with this reality because it doesn’t ask organizations to trust AI blindly. It builds AI where trust already exists.  The Bigger Picture  Agent Bricks is not just an AI framework it reflects the next phase of enterprise intelligence.  From isolated AI experiments to integrated, governed decision systems  From dashboards to conversational, explainable insight  From AI as an initiative to AI as a core business capability  At CloudFronts, this philosophy is already reflected in real customer success stories where data foundations came first, and AI followed naturally.  We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudFronts.com

In the world of Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations (D365 F&O), efficient code management isn’t just a luxury-it’s a critical requirement. Whether you are a seasoned developer or just setting up your first Virtual Machine (VM), correctly configuring Visual Studio with Azure DevOps (Team Foundation Server/TFVC) is the bedrock of a stable development lifecycle. This guide will walk you through the step-by-step configuration to ensure your environment is ready for enterprise-grade development. 1. Why TFVC and Not Git? While Git is widely adopted across modern software development, Team Foundation Version Control (TFVC) continues to be the preferred version control system for Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations due to its architectural fit. 2. Prerequisites Before you dive into Visual Studio, ensure you have the following ready: 3. Step-by-Step Configuration Step A: Connect Visual Studio to Azure DevOps Step B: The “Golden” Folder Structure Before mapping, you must define a clean folder structure in your Azure DevOps repository (Source Control Explorer). A standard structure looks like this: Step C: Workspace Mapping (The Critical Step) This is where most errors occur. You must map the server folders (Azure DevOps) to the specific local directories where the D365 runtime looks for code. Note: On some local VHDs or older VMs, the drive letter might be C: or J: instead of K:. Verify your AOSService location before mapping. Step D: Configuring Dynamics 365 Options Once mapped, you need to tell Visual Studio to organize new projects correctly. 4. Best Practices for the Development Lifecycle To conclude, configuring Visual Studio for D365 F&O is a one-time setup that pays dividends in stability. By ensuring your Metadata maps to the AOS service directory and your Projects map to your user directory, you create a seamless bridge between your IDE and the D365 runtime. We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudFronts.com

Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) with concessional rates on threshold limits is a provision that enables eligible taxpayers to benefit from lower TDS rates, as permitted by government-issued certificates. These certificates are granted to individuals or entities that meet specific criteria, such as lower tax liability or involvement in designated transactions. By implementing concessional rates, taxpayers can effectively manage their immediate tax burden, enhance cash flow, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. This guide outlines the step-by-step process for configuring concessional TDS rates in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations (D365 F&O) to facilitate accurate tax calculations and ensure seamless compliance. Step-by-Step Configuration of TDS in D365 F&O 1. Setting Up the Withholding Tax Code Navigate to Tax → Indirect Taxes → Withholding Tax → Withholding Tax Code and either select an existing tax code or create a new one. Ensure all required details are entered accurately. 2. Defining Concessional TDS Rates Click on Values and insert the applicable TDS rates as per government guidelines. 3. Configuring Threshold Limits Access Tax → Indirect Taxes → Withholding Tax → Withholding Tax Code and select Threshold Designer. Enter the threshold limits for TDS rates, specifying the applicable conditions when these limits are reached. 4. Establishing Post-Threshold Tax Treatment Provide details regarding the applicable tax rate once the threshold limit is exceeded to ensure proper compliance. 5. Assigning Threshold References Navigate to Tax → Indirect Taxes → Withholding Tax → Withholding Tax Code and select Threshold Reference. Assign the relevant Vendor, specific group, and threshold code to ensure accurate tax calculations. 6. Creating a TDS Group Define a new TDS Group and link it with the recently created withholding tax code to streamline tax application across transactions. 7. Configuring the Tax Code in Designer Use the Designer tool to reassign the withholding tax code, ensuring correct integration within tax processing workflows. 8. Associating the Tax Group with Vendors Assign the defined Tax Group to the relevant vendor. Once this is set up, proceed with Vendor Invoice postings or Purchase Order creation, ensuring that the concessional TDS rates are accurately applied to financial transactions. Proper configuration of TDS with concessional rates in D365 F&O ensures compliance with tax regulations while optimizing cash flow for eligible taxpayers. By implementing the correct withholding tax setup, organizations can streamline their tax processes and minimize unnecessary deductions. This structured approach enhances financial accuracy and simplifies tax management, contributing to more efficient business operations. We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfronts.com

This blog provides a comprehensive, step-by-step guide for performing a year-end close in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations (F&O). It includes instructions, common issues, and suggestions for extracting relevant screenshots from a demo environment. 1. Pre-Close Activities 2. Performing the Year-End Close A. Set Up the Fiscal Year End Parameters B. Perform the Year-End Close Process C. Review Results D. Post-Close Activities 3. Common Issues and Tips Issue Action Profit and Loss accounts didn’t zero out Check ledger account settings. Retained Earnings entry missing Verify Retained Earnings account in ledger setup. Incorrect balances after year-end close Use the “Reverse” option and review postings. User doesn’t have access Ensure role has Financial Period Close privileges. Ledger Calendar page Performing the year-end close in D365 F&O is a structured process that ensures data integrity across financial periods. We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfronts.com

In today’s global manufacturing landscape, businesses need more than just strong products to stay competitive. They need digital operations that connect customers, distributors, and internal teams in different regions. One powerful way to achieve this is by integrating e-commerce platforms with enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. This is the story of a 140-year-old global leader in materials testing machine manufacturing that transformed its order-taking process through a Shopify–Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations integration. The Challenge With offices in five countries and sales across the UK, Europe, China, India and multiple U.S. territories, this manufacturer had a truly global footprint. Yet, order-taking remained manual and inefficient: In short: their legacy setup couldn’t keep up with modern customer expectations or their own ambitions for global growth. The Solution Over the course of a decade long partnership, we helped the company modernize and digitize its business processes. The centerpiece was a seamless integration between Shopify and Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations (F&O), built natively within F&O (no recurring middleware costs). Key integrations included: This solution ensured that high data volumes and complex processing demands could be handled efficiently within F&O. The Results The change has reshaped how the company works: Lessons for Other Global Manufacturers This journey highlights critical lessons for manufacturers, distributors, and global businesses alike: The Road Ahead After integrating Shopify with Dynamics 365 F&O, the company has launched a dedicated distributor website where approved distributors can place orders directly on behalf of customers. This portal creates a new revenue stream, strengthens the distribution network, and ensures orders flow into F&O with the same automation, inventory sync, and reporting as direct sales. By extending digital integration to distributors, the company is simplifying order-taking while expanding its business model for global growth. Ending thoughts The journey of this global manufacturer shows that true digital transformation isn’t about adding more tools, it’s about connecting the right ones. By integrating Shopify with Dynamics 365 F&O, they moved from fragmented, manual processes to a scalable, automated ecosystem that empowers customers, distributors, and internal teams alike. For any organization operating across regions, the lesson is clear: e-commerce and ERP should not live in silos. When they work together, they create a foundation that not only accelerates order taking but also unlocks new revenue streams, sharper insights, and stronger global relationships. In a world where speed, accuracy, and customer experience define competitiveness, the question isn’t whether you can afford to integrate, it’s whether you can afford not to. If you need further assistance or have specific questions about your ERP setup, feel free to reach out for personalized guidance.We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfonts.com.

Managing budgets is a key part of financial discipline and managing budgets is more than just tracking numbers. Companies need to make sure departments, projects, and cost centers spend within limits. Dynamics 365 Finance helps by providing a built-in Budget Control feature that keeps spending under check right where daily transactions happen. In Dynamics 365 Finance, Budget Control helps to enforce spending limits in real time, directly within transactions. Budget control is a tool in D365 Finance that checks transactions against available budgets. If a transaction exceeds the budget, the system can either: This way, overspending is caught before it happens. Steps to know how It works How Budget Control Works in Dynamics 365 Finance When setting up budget control (see screenshot below), finance teams define: This ensures that every purchase, expense, or journal is validated against budgets before the company commits to spending. Example: If Marketing has a $100,000 budget and a new purchase order exceeds it, the system can block it or route it to a manager. Why is Budget Control Important? Budget control in D365 Finance is a simple but powerful way to enforce financial discipline. It connects budgeting with daily operations, helping companies stay on track. If you are looking to set up or optimize Budget Control in your organization, our team can help you design the right approach, implement best practices, and ensure a smooth rollout. Reach out to CloudFronts Technologies at transform@cloudfronts.com to explore how we can support your Dynamics 365 Finance Budgeting journey.

Budget Control in D365 Finance allows organizations to enforce spending discipline by validating transactions against defined budgets. Here are the steps to set it up. 1. Navigate to Setup Go to: Budgeting > Setup > Budget control configuration. 2. General Settings 3. Define Dimensions Select the financial dimensions to apply budget control against, such as: If Department + Cost Center are selected, every transaction is validated against that combined budget. 4. Approval Rules Determine the actions when a budget is exceeded: 5. Documents & Journals Specify which transactions should be included in budget checks, such as: It is best practice to include unposted documents (e.g., open POs) to ensure commitments are accurately reflected. 6. Activate Once the configuration is complete, activate Budget Control. From this point, all relevant transactions will be validated against the assigned budgets. Example To conclude, budget Control in Dynamics 365 Finance is straightforward to configure but highly effective in preventing overspending. With the right setup, organizations can gain real-time visibility and strengthen financial governance. For Finance consultants, system admins requiring guidance with setup or optimization, CloudFronts can help you design the right Budget Control configuration for your business. Get in touch with CloudFronts Technologies at transform@cloudfronts.com for assistance.

At CloudFronts Technologies, we understand that growing organizations often operate across multiple geographies and business units. Whether you’re working with Dynamics 365 CRM or Finance & Operations (F&O), syncing data between systems can quickly become complex—especially when different legal entities follow different formats, rules, or structures. To solve this, our team developed a powerful yet simple approach: Dynamic Templates for Multi-Entity Integration. The Business Challenge When a global business operates in multiple regions (like India, the US, or Europe), each location may have different formats for project codes, financial categories, customer naming, or compliance requirements. Traditional integrations hardcode these rules—making them expensive to maintain and difficult to scale as your business grows. Our Solution: Dynamic Liquid Templates We built a flexible, reusable template system that automatically adjusts to each legal entity’s specific rules—without the need to rebuild integrations for each one. Here’s how it works: Why This Matters for Your Business Real-World Success Story One of our client’s needs to integrate project data from CRM to F&O across three different regions. Instead of building three separate integrations, we implemented a single solution with dynamic templates. The result? What Makes CloudFronts Different At CloudFronts, we build future-ready integration frameworks. Our approach ensures you don’t just solve today’s problems—but prepare your business for tomorrow’s growth. We specialize in Microsoft Dynamics 365, Azure, and enterprise-grade automation solutions. “Smart integrations are the key to global growth. Let’s build yours.” We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfronts.com.

Microsoft’s Unified Developer Experience (UDE) helps developers build solutions that work across both Finance and Operations (F&O) and the Power Platform by providing a common, cloud-based environment. Challenges Before UDE Before UDE, developers often faced the following issues: What UDE Changes With UDE, Microsoft combines these tools into one environment, making it easier to: Why UDE Is Useful Adopting UDE brings several practical benefits for developers and organizations: Check Access, Licenses, and Capacity Before starting, make sure your user role, license, and environment capacity are all set up properly. You can check this in the Power Platform Admin Center. Starting the Setup with PowerShell To get started, open PowerShell ISE on your laptop. If you haven’t installed the required Power Platform module yet, run this command (skip it if it’s already installed): #Install the module Install-Module -Name Microsoft.PowerApps.Administration.PowerShell -Force Next, sign in to your account and prepare the JSON template that defines your environment settings. Make sure DevToolsEnabled is set to true so developer tools are available. You can also set DemoDataEnabled to true if you want sample Contoso data included by default. Write-Host “Creating a session against the Power Platform API” Add-PowerAppsAccount -Endpoint prod #To construct the json object to pass in $jsonObject= @” { “PostProvisioningPackages”: [ { “applicationUniqueName”: “msdyn_FinanceAndOperationsProvisioningAppAnchor”, “parameters”: “DevToolsEnabled=true|DemoDataEnabled=true” } ] } “@ | ConvertFrom-Json Finally, you’re ready to start the environment deployment. New-AdminPowerAppEnvironment -DisplayName “EnvironmentName” -EnvironmentSku Sandbox -Templates “D365_FinOps_Finance” -TemplateMetadata $jsonObject -LocationName “unitedstates” -ProvisionDatabase Example: New-AdminPowerAppEnvironment -DisplayName “Basic_Env” -EnvironmentSku Sandbox -LocationName “unitedstates” -Templates “D365_FinOps_Finance” -TemplateMetadata $jsonObject -ProvisionDatabase Make sure to use a proper name for your environment — it must be 20 characters or fewer. Also, pick the correct data center location based on your region (for example, I used unitedstates, but you could choose India or another available region). Alternatively: Install on an Existing Environment If you already have a Power Platform environment with a Dataverse database, you can use it to install Finance and Operations apps. Simply select the environment, navigate to Resources > Dynamics 365 apps, and then select Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations Provisioning App. Once your environment is successfully provisioned, you’ll see it listed in the Power Platform Admin Center — just like in the screenshot above. Here’s what the key information means: You’ll also see links to manage: These settings help control access and structure within your environment. This confirms your Finance + Power Platform environment is now fully functional and integrated — ready for development, testing, and customization. Make sure your user account has the System Administrator security role in Dataverse. Once assigned, this role will automatically carry over to the Finance and Operations (F&O) environment — no need to reassign it separately. If you navigate to the Dynamics 365 apps, you’ll also find pre-configured and installed solutions available. You can check out the Modules, Packages, and Operation History by simply clicking on the Environment URL. System Requirements for Setting Up the Development Environment Before you begin working with the Unified Development Experience (UDE), it’s important to make sure your machine meets the basic hardware and software requirements. Here’s what you’ll need: Workstation Requirements To ensure smooth performance while developing: Required Software The following software components are essential for working with UDE in Visual Studio: Once everything is set up, you’re ready to open Visual Studio. Make sure to run it as Administrator and choose the “Continue without code” option when prompted. This ensures all tools load properly and you’re ready to begin your development work. Install Power Platform VS Extension Go to VS > Manage Extensions > Search ‘Power Platform Tools Now, navigate to Tools > Options > Power Platform Tools and enable the specified parameters. Now, go to Tools > Connect to Dataverse Always show the full list of organizations. Avoid signing in with your current Windows user if it’s not the same account you’ve already connected to in Visual Studio. You can view the environments you previously created in PowerShell – just select the one you set up earlier. Choose the default option, unless you’re planning to create specific components for D365 CE or Power Platform—in that case, it’s best to create a dedicated solution and publisher for your work. If the X++ source code for your specific UnO DevBox version (e.g., 10.0.35) hasn’t been downloaded yet, you’ll be prompted to get it locally. After setting up the Power Platform Tools extension and connecting to your Dataverse sandbox, you’ll see an option to install the Finance and Operations extension for Visual Studio, along with the related metadata. If you didn’t get any option you can download it manually by going to “C:\Users\ShubhamPrajapati\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Dynamics365\10.0.2263.74” Meanwhile, in the background, the PackageLocalDirectory is being extracted. You can monitor the progress by going to View > Output. The installation typically takes around 30 minutes. After installation, you’ll see a few prompts the first time you open Visual Studio—just click “Yes” to continue. As you can see, all models have been downloaded successfully. You can switch between Classic View and Model View by right-clicking on the AOT. Once that’s done, navigate to Tools > Options > Power Platform Tools and apply the required changes as shown in the image below. The final step is to configure the Finance & Operations extension. In my case, I use LocalDB for the Cross Reference (Cross Ref) Database—it’s convenient because it’s already included when you install Visual Studio. If you’re using LocalDB, ensure your connection string is correct. A typical value is: (localdb)\ To set up LocalDB (if not already initialized), open Command Prompt and run: sqllocaldb create MSSQLLocalDB -s This command initializes and starts the LocalDB instance. Once LocalDB is running, your Cross Reference Database will be restored. This enables key development features such as: These features significantly enhance the development experience by improving code navigation and reference tracking. If you receive errors when trying to open certain class files (which are XML files under the hood), it’s likely because the Modeling SDK is not installed. This SDK is essential for working with … Continue reading A Unified Approach to Developing Finance and Operations Applications →

When working on big projects, it can be hard to quickly find classes, methods, or properties spread across different libraries. Searching through files one by one takes too much time. This is where metadata search in Visual Studio helps. It lets you explore and navigate types from external libraries (like .NET assemblies or NuGet packages) even if you don’t have the source code. Visual Studio creates a readable view of the compiled metadata, so you can instantly see definitions and details, almost like built-in documentation. References Metadata search – Visual Studio Usage -In Visual Studio, go to Dynamics 365 > Metadata Search OR Ctrl + R, Ctrl + S.-Start typing the name of the element you are looking for.-Results appear as you type.-Double-click a result to go directly to that metadata or code.-You can also right-click to add items to your project. You can filter via the follow criteria: To conclude, Metadata search in Visual Studio is a fast and easy way to find code and metadata in Dynamics 365 F&O projects. Using it saves time, reduces frustration, and helps you understand and work with large projects more efficiently.If you require additional support or have specific questions about your ERP setup, please don’t hesitate to contact us for personalized guidance. We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfronts.com.