Data drives most aspects of organizations operating in a modern business environment. Different business areas end up responsible for storing information and making it available to the rest of the enterprise. That decentralization makes it harder for companies to get the data needed to help customers, keep up with financial transactions, and create reports. Microsoft Business Central provides organizations with a centralized platform to access BI, CRM, and ERP software solutions powered by cloud technology.
What Is the Microsoft Business Central API?
An application programming interface (API) is a tool that makes it possible for two different applications to communicate with each other. The Microsoft Business Central API lets companies connect an ERP tool to other business applications like Power BI. With the Business Central integration API, an organization can also integrate with non-Microsoft platforms.
Imagine having the ability to connect your marketing software with Power BI. You could create dashboards that show you which campaigns perform best at driving new business to your company. You get a continuous flow of real-time information when you need it, helping your organization stay on top of trends in the marketplace and recognize situations that could blow up into major issues.
Making Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central CRM integration available through an API gives end-users control over how data flows to different parts of the company. Developers focus on setting up and securing data connections. Business professionals who understand company workflows the best take responsibility for making data available to those who require it within an organization.
How Do I Get Started with Microsoft Business Central API?
Microsoft Business Central provides users with various ready-to-use APIs that create seamless integrations with other business applications. You’ll need to sign up for a tenant for Business Central, then create an environment that lets you connect and start exploring available APIs.
Basic Authentication
- To set up basic authentication, log into your tenant, then enter Users into the Search field. Select the correct link when it pops up.
- Pick the user for whom you want to provide access. The User Card page should generate a key in the Web Service Access Key field. Copy the key to use as the password for the username.
Open up Postman or your preferred API authentication tool. Set up a call to the base API URL to see a list of available APIs. If you want information about fields within the API, append $metadata to the end of the URL. Make sure the URL also contains the user domain.
To execute the call in Postman, select Basic Auth in the Type field on the Authorization tab. Enter the username and the Web Service Access Key created earlier as the password. Click send to execute the call and explore the returned list of APIs.
Azure Active Directory (AAD) Authentication
- After registering with the Microsoft identity platform, click the Add a permission button located on the API permissions page of your application.
- Select the Microsoft APIs tab. Look for the Commonly used Microsoft APIs section, click Dynamics 365 Business Central, then select Delegated permissions.
- Make sure you’ve checked User impersonation, then click Add permissions.
- Navigate to the Certificates and Secrets page. Look for the Client Secrets section, then select New Client Secret.
- Type in a key description, pick the length of time you want the key to last, then click Add. Copy the key value that appears and save it in a secure location.
Set up a GET call to the vase API URL in Postman. Add $metadata to the end if you want information on the fields that are present. Select OAuth 2.0 in the Type field located on the Authorization tab, then choose Get New Access Token.
Enter the following information into the GET NEW TOKEN ACCESS WINDOW:
- A descriptive name in the Token name field
- Select Authorization Code in the Grant type field
- Enter the sign-on URL from the Azure portal in the Callback URL field
- Specify a URL in the Auth URL field
- Specify a URL in the Access Token URL field
- Enter the Application ID from the registered App in the Azure portal into the Client ID field
- Enter the key generated when you set up your AAD authentication.
- Select the Send client credentials in body option in the Client Authentication field
Select the Request token button, then choose the Use Token button. You should now see an Authorization request header that includes the Bearer token. Click Send to execute the call and review the list of available APIs.
You should be able to call individual APIs using their unique ID. Make sure you pay attention to the limits for OData and SOAP requests.
What Should I Do with Microsoft Business Central API?
Look for API integrations that address your most significant business concerns. For example, you can connect to an ERP like Salesforce to get a clear picture around current business processes and where you might want to make improvements.
You can provide your sales team with real-time information from Business Central by creating an API endpoint connection to Dynamics 365 Sales. Create Dataverse integrations that let you do the same for any Dynamic 365 applications or custom business software.
Internet eBusiness Solutions can help your company optimize how it uses the Microsoft Business Central API. Let us show you how to revolutionize your business processes by setting up a consultation with one of our Microsoft Gold Partners.
