The versions of Dynamics NAV / Navision

World famous ERP system

With over one million registered users worldwide Business Central / Dynamics NAV today is one of the most widely used ERP applications. From the start, Navision has distinguished itself by being a supple and flexible financial management solution that can be adapted to all companies, regardless of size and industry.

ERP system with danish origin

Business Central / Dynamics NAV / Navision has with its origins in Denmark where the solution was developed in the mid-1980s, a long history behind it. Below you will find information about each solution, from PC Plus, the different versions of Dynamics NAV and up to Business Central.

Overview of the versions of Business Central / Dynamics NAV / Navision

1984 - 1987 / PC Plus
1987 - 1989 / Navigator
1989 - 1995 / Navision
1995 - 2001 / Navision Financials
2001 - 2002 / Navision Attain
2002 - 2005 / MS BS - Navision
2005 - 2008 / MS Dynamics NAV
2008 - 2012 / Dynamics NAV 2009
2013 - 2014 / Dynamics NAV 2013
2014 - 2015 / Dynamics NAV 2015
2015 - 2016 / Dynamics NAV 2016
2016 - 2017 / Dynamics NAV 2017
2017 - 2018 / Dynamics NAV 2018
2018 - and forward / Business Central

1983

PC & C Ltd.

Dynamics NAV has its origin in Denmark where it was developed in the mid 1980s. It all began exactly in 1983 when Jesper Balser, Peter Bang and Torben Wind founded the company PC & C ApS in Copenhagen.
 

1984 - 1987

PC Plus

In 1984 launched the PC & C the ERP system PC Plus. The solution was at the time a revelation in the ERP market, but the program could unfortunately only be used by a single user at a time.
 

1987 - 1989

Navigator / IBM Navigator

In 1987 launched the PC & C their latest ERP solution called Navigator. Where PC plus was only a single user program revolutionized Navigator the market by being one of the first client / server applications in the world.
 

1989 - 1995

Navision

In 1989 the third version came on the market. This upgrade stood out from previous versions by having a built-in development environment and private development languages which PC & C chose to call AL (application language).

With the third version of Navigator the solution slowly began to break through internationally. It started mainly in the countries Germany, Spain and Iceland, but soon spread to many other countries as well. When it broke through on the international market, in most countries the name was changed from the Navigator to Navision, with the exception of the USA where the ERP solution was named Avista. As a result of the increased internationalization the company changed it's name from PC & C to Navision Sofware A/S.
 

1995 - 2001

Navision Financials | Version 1.00 - 2.60

When Microsoft in 1995 introduced Windows 95 the first Windows-based version of Navision / Navigator nicknamed Financials was also launched. Shortly after the launch Navigator was also in Denmark renamed Navision.
 

2000

The fusion

At the beginning of the new millennium Navision Software a/s merges with their Danish rival Damgaard Data A/S and is named NavisionDamgaard A/S.

In 2001, the name is again changed from NavisionDamgaard A/S to the shorter easier pronounced name Navision A/S.
 

2001 - 2002

Navision Attain | Version 3.01 - 3.60

Version 3 of the windows based version was first briefly called Navision Solutions, but from version 3.01, this was changed to Navision.
 

2002 - 2005

Microsoft Business Solutions - Navision / NAV | Version 3.70 - 4.00

It was probably only for a very few for whom it came as a surprise when Microsoft in 2002 bought Navision A/S. Microsoft had a few years already acquired Navision's biggest competitor in the U.S. market, Great Plains. The two companies were merged under the Microsoft Business Solutions.
 

2005 -  2008

Microsoft Dynamics NAV | Version 5.00

Microsoft changed the name of their business solutions from Microsoft Business Solutions to Microsoft Dynamics. At the same time the name of the business management solution was changed from Navision to Dynamics NAV.
 

2008 - 2012

Dynamics NAV 2009 | Version 6.00

With Dynamics NAV 2009 came the technological innovation RTC, the RoleTailored client.
 

2013 - 2014

Dynamics NAV 2013 | Version 7.00

First Microsoft Dynamics ERP product on Azure.
 

2014

Dynamics NAV 2015 | Version 8.00

On Oct. 1, 2014 Microsoft launched NAV 2015. This version is designed with a modern user interface and is also developed for mobile devices.
 

2015

Dynamics NAV 2016 | Version 9.00

Dynamics NAV 2016 contains a wide range of new features which means that the solution becomes even faster to implement, easier to configure and not least simpler to use.
 

2016

Dynamics NAV 2017 | Version 10.00

With the successor to NAV 2016, Dynamics NAV 2017 we're going to see a number of improvements and not least further integration with Office 365.
 

2017

Dynamics NAV 2018 | 'Tenerife'

NAV 2018 is enhanced with extended functionality and technology, including Cognitive Services, and further integration into a variety of applications, including Office 365 and Power BI.
 

2018

Dynamics 365 Business Central | Version 14.00

The new version of Dynamics 365 Business Central is built on Dynamics NAV and therefore consists of a lot of standard functionality from NAV, but the new version has new functionality, which includes:

• Closer integration with other Microsoft apps
• A complete overview of your company via built-in integration to Power BI
• Continuous upgrades
• Setting up and automating your workflows (workflows)
• Seamless data sharing with Microsoft's CRM platform, Dynamics 365 Sales

However, the biggest difference between Business Central and Dynamics NAV is how the new version is licensed:

License options:
You both have the opportunity to license Business Central on a monthly basis via subscription and to buy the solution (perpetual licensing).

Hosting options:
Business Central is both available as a pure cloud based SaaS solution and as a hosted (perpetual) solution, whereas with Dynamics NAV you have the option of using the solution hosted at a private data center or on your own server, but cannot rent the solution on subscription via SaaS models.

Easy upgrade:
With Business Central, your solution is automatically upgraded and third-party add-ons and customizations developed for your solution are developed as Extensions so that they will not interfere with the ongoing upgrades. This model is significantly different from what we know from Dynamics NAV, where an upgrade project can take months, depending on the complexity of the adaptations and the environment.

Upgrading

It is not certain that we recommend you to upgrade your current solution of the latest version of Business Central / Dynamics NAV. Regardless of which version your company uses we always start a project with a needs analysis where we determine what type of software you need.

Find more information about upgrading and maintenance.