How to update Dynamics NAV from Excel

The CData Excel Add-In for Dynamics NAV enables you to edit and save Dynamics NAV data directly from Excel. This article explains how to transfer data from Excel to Dynamics NAV. This technique is useful if you want to work on Dynamics NAV data in Excel and update changes, or if you have a whole spreadsheet you want to import into Dynamics NAV. In this example, you will use the Customer table; however, the same process will work for any table that can be retrieved by the CData Excel Add-In.

Establish a Connection

If you have not already done so, create a new Dynamics NAV connection by clicking From Dynamics NAV on the ribbon.

Before you can connect, OData Services will need to be enabled on the server. Once OData Services are enabled, you will be able to query any Services that are published on the server.

The User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, must be set to valid Dynamics NAV user credentials. In addition, you will need to specify a URL to a valid Dynamics NAV server organization root and a ServerInstance. If there is not a Service Default Company for the server, you will need to set the Company as well.

Retrieve Data from Dynamics NAV

To insert data into Dynamics NAV, you will first need to retrieve data from the Dynamics NAV table you want to add to. This links the Excel spreadsheet to the Dynamics NAV table selected: After you retrieve data, any changes you make to the data are highlighted in red.

1. Click the From Dynamics NAV button on the CData ribbon. The Data Selection wizard is displayed.
2. In the Table or View menu, select the Customer table.
3. In the Maximum Rows menu, select the number of rows you want to retrieve. If you want to insert rows, you need to retrieve only one row. The Query box will then display the SQL query that corresponds to your request.
4. In the Sheet Name box, enter the name for the sheet that will be populated. By default the add-in will create a new sheet with the name of the table.

Insert Rows to Dynamics NAV

After retrieving data, you can add data from an existing spreadsheet in Excel.

1. In a cell after the last row, enter a formula referencing the corresponding cell from the other spreadsheet; for example, =MyCustomerSheetInExcel!A1.
2. After using a formula to reference the cells you want to add to Dynamics NAV, select the cells that you are inserting data into and drag the formula down as far as needed. The referenced values you want to add will be displayed on the Customer sheet.
3. Highlight the rows you want to insert and click the Update Rows button.

As each row is inserted, the Id value will appear in the Id column and the row's text will change to black, indicating that the record has been inserted.