Update Environment

• Business Central online Environments are updated by Microsoft on a Fixed Release Cadence. For this Article we are going to update Sandbox Environment from 28.2 to 28.3. All the Relevant Details will explain along that.

Update Cadence

• Major Updates – April and October each year introduce new features, larger platform changes.

• Minor Updates – Monthly bug fixes, small improvements, and optional features (see Feature Management).

• An environment cannot skip a major update indefinitely. Microsoft enforces update within a defined period.

• Grace Period – April’s update will maximum extend to September. (5 Months)
  • Grace Period – October’s update will maximum extend to March. (5 Months)
  • Restriction will Automatically be applied once this Grace Period ends.
  • It will Automatically update it and if it fails then it will Again try this after 7 Days.
  • If it still fails, then it will try again until Grace Period Ends.

Update Window (When Updates are Allowed to Run)

Every Environment has a default update window normally 8:00 PM to 6:00 AM local time for the environment’s Country/Region, so updates run outside Business Hours.

• Go to the Environments tab in the Business Central Admin Center.
• Select the environment Name to open its details page.
• Under Update Settings, choose Set update window.
• Specify the Time Zone, Start Time, and End Time for the window.
• Save. Future updates will only be applied inside this window.

Scheduling the Update Date

By default, Microsoft applies the update automatically within a communicated default date range. You can override this with your own preferred date within the allowed range.

• Go to Environments → select the environment Name.
• Under Update Settings, choose Modify next to Next Update.
• Pick an available target version.
• Choose a date within the permitted range shown in the pane.
• Select Schedule Update.

Important: Choosing not to set a date does NOT stop the update, it will still be applied automatically within Microsoft’s default window. Setting a date only lets you control exactly when, within the allowed range.

Preview Environments (Testing Before Go-Live)

Before a major update reaches production, you can spin up a Preview environment. A sandbox that already contains the upcoming release to test customizations, extensions, and reports ahead of time. This is the safest way to catch breaking changes before they hit your live/production environment.

Taken this Picture from Google because at this time (When Writing this Article) no Preview Option is Available.

Updating Extensions / Apps (Per-Tenant & AppSource)

This is the page where all extensions/apps installed in an environment are managed and updated split into two types:

1. AppSource Apps – Published and Certified Apps available publicly from Microsoft’s AppSource marketplace (e.g., third-party ISV solutions).
2. Per-Tenant Extensions (PTEs) – Custom Apps built specifically for this one client/tenant, usually developed by the implementation partner (not published publicly).
3. In the Admin Center, open the relevant environment.
4. Choose Apps.
5. Wait for the app list to load fully.
6. Find the app and choose Install update (or Action required if a dependency needs updating First).
7. Confirm the update and confirm any dependent app updates if prompted.

Practical Tips for QA / Consultants

• Always test a Scheduled update in a Sandbox or Preview Environment first, especially if there are Per-Tenant Extensions (PTEs) involved.
• Check the Feature Management page immediately after an update new optional features may need a deliberate decision (Enable Now vs. Wait for Mandatory Enablement).
• Review the Operations log after every update for Warnings, even if the update shows as Succeeded.