D365 F&O Document Automation with Docentric Free Edition (Full Demo)

Overview

This demo is a full walkthrough of Docentric Free Edition for Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations (D365 F&O / FNO) — a free, Microsoft‑certified ISV solution for document/report generation, customization, distribution and archiving. The presentation emphasizes solving real‑world document automation challenges at go‑live and in high‑volume production (printing, emailing, storing, reprinting, bulk jobs).

Core technological concepts & product capabilities

Placeholders / tokens

• Standard placeholders: company ID, user, date/time, logo, etc.
• Report‑specific custom placeholders: invoice ID, sales order ID, customer contact, due date.
• Usage: email bodies/subjects, file and folder names, sender display name, and other dynamic content.

Print destinations (improvements over standard D365)

• Email print destination
  • Rich HTML editor with placeholders.
  • Dynamic To/CC/BCC/From and “open in Outlook to edit before send” option.
  • Dynamic attachment names, preview before sending, integration with outgoing queue.
• File print destination
  • Dynamic file and folder names via placeholders.
  • Save to Azure Blob, Azure Files, SharePoint, or on‑prem file system.
  • Attach generated files to D365 records (journal, customer, vendor, sales order) with override options.
• Printer destination
  • Advanced printer lookup and management (default, favorite, restricted, user‑allowed).
  • PDF output support, integration options to external printing services (avoids Document Routing Agent).
  • Scales to large numbers of printers and supports virtual test printers.
• Memory print destination (API)
  • Generate PDF/bytes from code for custom scenarios.

Print archive (searchable, metadata‑rich)

• Stores generated PDFs and emails with rich metadata (document ID, account ID, sales order ID, journal, node, batch, tags, language, active period).
• Quick preview and download options: separate files, zipped archive, or merged single PDF.
• Includes print archive cleanup policy.

Bulk printing / reprinting

• Bulk reprint of already posted documents using filters or explicit selection.
• Support for interactive or batch/background processing.
• Invoice journal integration: select/rerun printing for multiple invoices and schedule recurring jobs.

Email processing improvements

• Token handling with fallback rules if tokens are unresolved (redirect to printer or exception mailbox).
• Outgoing queue / batch distributor: retries, sending logs, failure handling and manual resubmission.
• Sender account options for bulk mail (e.g., SendGrid) and fake SMTP for testing.
• Organizational & system email templates: rich HTML editor with placeholders and attachments (used for alerts, workflows, retail notifications, etc.).

Report execution & extensibility

• Built around SSRS reports initially — Docentric replaces distribution and post‑processing blocks.
• Free edition: full support for SSRS output and an API for advanced document manipulation and programmatic electronic document generation.
• Full edition (commercial): GUI attachments/merge/zip, Word/Excel designer templates, electronic reporting / configurable business documents (CBD), UBL invoicing support (roadmap).
• Developers: rich API, delegates/hooks across the pipeline, DSP classes for report specifics (placeholders, archive params), sample code and tutorials; source code available for audit and extension.

Print management & admin utilities

• Utilities provide an overview of all print management settings in a flat grid with filtering and editing — simplifies troubleshooting which config applies.
• Migration helper: print management data entity to export/import configurations between environments (useful for DB copies where MS clears print management).
• UI quality improvements: Save & Back buttons to reduce confusion about persistence.

Print archive, distribution & administration (summary)

• Centralized archive of generated documents and emails with searchable metadata.
• Multiple distribution destinations (email, file stores, printers, memory/API).
• Admin tools for print management, migration, and monitoring outgoing queues and retries.

Security, deployment & support (Q&A highlights)

• Docentric installs as a custom module inside your D365 F&O instance; processing runs locally on that instance — no external services are used for document processing.
• Telemetry: only non‑business usage data is optionally sent externally; business data is not shared.
• Source code and security documentation are available for inspection.
• Free edition is downloadable from the Docentric website (deployable packages after a form). Partners/consultants can demo and install on sandbox/UAT environments.
• Docentric provides free support for the free edition; partners are the primary channel and Docentric offers sales/partner support for demos and onboarding.

Proof‑of‑concepts and example solutions mentioned

• Send multiple invoices in a single consolidated email (daily or monthly batching).
• Collection letters and account statements with overdue invoice details.
• Enhanced “bad job” alerts including full info log (avoid truncation) and export action.
• Merge reports with other attachments, zip/email together or send to printer.
• Integration with external print services (e.g., follow‑me printing via web service) to avoid DRA.
• Label/license plate label improvements, query/label/table browsers, and other productivity tools.

Free vs Full (high level comparison)

• Free edition
  • Distribution/archiving/emailing/print destination enhancements.
  • Print archive, print management utilities, developer API, sample DSP classes.
  • SSRS templates supported.
• Full (commercial) edition
  • GUI designer for Word (and soon Excel) templates.
  • Full electronic reporting/CBD and UBL invoice support via GUI.
  • Advanced attachment/merge/zip features, extra integrations (SFTP, external Azure accounts, SharePoint metadata).
  • PDF signing/encryption, multilingual emails, and other advanced features.

Guides, tutorials, and resources mentioned

• Docentric website: feature list, free vs full comparison, step‑by‑step how‑to manuals.
• Blog articles and use‑case posts (examples: DocuSign integration, e‑invoicing scenarios).
• Community forum for Q&A and published solutions.
• Sample code, API docs and developer tutorials; source code for review.
• Migration guide and examples for using the print management data entity.

Key demo steps (practical workflow)

1. Configure Docentric print management for a sales/customer invoice.
2. Use the email print destination with an HTML template and placeholders; preview and queue the resulting email; document stored in print archive.
3. Use the file print destination to save PDFs to SharePoint and attach to the invoice journal; metadata and tags applied.
4. Use the print archive to search by customer/order/journal/document ID, preview, and download as zip or merged PDF.
5. Perform bulk print/reprint from the invoice journal with filters and configured print destinations.

Main speakers / sources

Presenter: Miha (introduced as “Mhabuk”), software architect / technical fellow at Docentric — led the demo and Q&A. Q&A participants included Mia (functional consultant), Ramit, Shila, and other webinar attendees/moderators.