Can a positive pay file be exported from Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC) as comma-delimited text file? Of course it can, it just takes a little bit of work to get it set up properly. I share a couple of tips to make it easier as I walk you through the steps here.
A real-life example
My customer asked me to create a Positive Pay export that is a comma-delimited text file containing only detail records. She said the lines should contain the same information as the Bank of America example in Cronus. However, when she deleted the header and footer Line Definitions, it was not in the correct format. The Cronus export selected created a Fixed Length file with no comma’s separating the values. She tried a few changes in the DED to get it to work, but couldn’t
Where to begin
I don’t create my Data Exchange Definitions (DED) from scratch. To date, all but once, I have been able to start with one of the definitions provided in Cronus and modify it to meet my needs. First, I export the definition that I want to use as my basis. Then I change the code name of the DED I just exported from to what I want to name my new DED. Then lastly, I import the file that I just created by exporting the DED prior to changing the code name of the definition. I now have both the original DED and a copy of that DED with my new name.
Changing the file type and encoding
In the General FastTab, change the File Type to Variable Text. DO NOT change Type or any of the assigned Codeunits. In the File Type: Variable/Fixed section of the General FastTab, change File Encoding to MS-DOS and Column Separator to Comma.
Simplifying the export file output
The request is to generate a file of only bank records. A header and footer are not needed as the file will be uploaded through a dedicated banking portal. To meet this requirement, we delete the Header and Footer records in Line Definitions retaining only the Detail line type. At this time, if you need to make any changes to the column definitions, do that now. We did not need to change anything based on the documentation from the bank. The columns were a complete match to what was being requested in our file.
As a double check, I go to Field Mapping to confirm all the values are set as expected.
Assigning DED to Bank Export/Import
Before we can assign our new DED to the bank account for testing, we must first create a new Bank Export/Import Setup record. I created a new record with all settings the same as the other positive pay export records except for assigning our new positive pay DED as the Data Exch. Def. Code.
Selecting the Positive Pay Export Format on Bank Account
And finally, go to the Bank Account card, Transfer FastTab and select the newly created Bank Export/Import Format setup for our new DED.
Testing the results
After making sure we had records to export, we tested the file output. At first it was thought that since a “csv” file was requested, the extension of the file needed to be “.csv”. I explained to my customer that this was most likely not the case and a file with a “.txt” extension would probably be accepted. Upon checking with the bank, we found this to be correct. So, we sent on our “.txt” file for testing. And, our first attempt was a success!
Business Central does it again!
So once again, we are able to meet a bank requirement using out-of-the-box functionality in Data Exchange Definitions. Sometimes you just need a little bit of help. And I hope that just maybe, reading this blog post provided that help to you.
More about using Data Exchange Definitions and positive pay in Business Central
9999999999999999 at the bottom of my ACH payment file – Sharing The Righter Way – Cynthiapriebe.com
ACH file format for Business Central – Sharing The Righter Way – Cynthiapriebe.com
