Microsoft has surprised us with a series of changes to the Finance and Operations update system that will affect us starting in April 2024. These changes involve the number, frequency, flexibility, and naming of updates. Here’s what you need to know to stay informed and avoid confusion.

Number and Frequency of Updates

Until now, Microsoft has been bombarding us with seven updates per year for Finance and Operations, in the months of February, April, May, July, August, October, and November. Starting in April 2024, the number of updates will be reduced to four, which will be released in February, April, July, and October. These updates will be larger and more powerful, and will include new features, performance improvements, and bug fixes.

This change has its advantages:

  • Reduce the work and time we dedicate to testing and validating updates.
  • Minimize the interruptions and risks associated with frequent updates.
  • Increase platform stability and consistency.
  • Facilitate planning and management of implementation and customization projects.

Changes in Finance and Operations Updates

Flexibility and Update Options

Another aspect that changes is the degree of flexibility and options we have for scheduling and pausing updates. Until now, we could pause up to three consecutive updates as long as we updated at least twice a year. Starting in April 2024, we will only be able to pause one update, and we will be required to update at least twice a year.

Additionally, scheduled update calendars are being modified. Until now, we had only one four-week window to choose when the UAT (User Acceptance Testing) environment would be updated. The PRO (Production) environment would be updated the following week. Starting in April 2024, we will be able to choose between two complete update windows, spaced four weeks apart. This means we can update during the first four-week window, or update during the second four-week window. The PRO environment will be updated the week following the one we choose for the UAT environment.

In the following image you can see an example of the April update and the two windows we will have available:

This change also has a positive side. It offers us more options and flexibility for scheduling updates, which can facilitate coordination and organization of teams and resources.

As a summary, in the following image you can see how the updates for this year and their corresponding automatic windows will be organized:

Update Nomenclature

Finally, another change being introduced is the naming convention used for update packages. Until now, the naming followed the format 10.0.XX, where XX was the update number. Starting in February 2024, the naming will follow the format CY24Q2: 10.0.39*, where the first part refers to the calendar year and quarter (Calendar Year YY, Quarter Q), and the second part refers to the product version. The asterisk indicates that it is a major update corresponding to the release of wave 1 and wave 2.

This change aims to simplify and clarify the identification of updates, as well as facilitate their communication and documentation. It has no effect on platform functionality or performance.

Thus, the following updates will be formatted as follows:

Release versionPreview availabilityPreview latest possible updateGeneral availability (self-update)First autoupdate schedule for production start dateSecond autoupdate schedule for production start date
CY25Q4: 10.0.45*July 28, 2025August 8, 2025September 12, 2025October 3, 2025October 31, 2025
CY25Q3: 10.0.44April 25, 2025May 2, 2025June 6, 2025July 4, 2025August 1, 2025
CY25Q2: 10.0.43*January 27, 2025February 7, 2025March 14, 2025April 4, 2025May 2, 2025
CY25Q1: 10.0.42October 25, 2024November 1, 2024December 27, 2024February 1, 2025March 7, 2025
CY24Q4: 10.0.41*July 29, 2024August 9, 2024September 13, 2024October 4, 2024Nov 1, 2024
CY24Q3: 10.0.40April 26, 2024May 3, 2024June 7, 2024July 5, 2024August 2, 2024
CY24Q2: 10.0.39*January 29, 2024February 9, 2024March 15, 2024April 5, 2024May 3, 2024