LEGACY ESCAPE · DYNAMICS NAV

NAV cannot jump straight to the cloud. Most partners let you find that out mid-project.

NAV 2017 support ends 11 January 2027. The bigger surprise for most teams is not the date, it is that NAV has to land on Business Central on-premises first, then move online, not in one step.

TODAY NAV 2016, died 14 Apr 2026 NAV 2017, dies 11 Jan 2027 NAV 2018, dies 11 Jan 2028 Dates per learn.microsoft.com lifecycle policy
The two-hop problem

Why "just move NAV to the cloud" is not a one-step project.

This is the single most common nasty surprise in a NAV migration, and it is almost never disclosed before the statement of work is signed.

What most teams expect

  • 1
    One migration, straight to Business Central onlineThe natural assumption, since that is how most other cloud moves work.
  • 2
    A single cutover weekendPlan for one go-live event, one set of testing, one hypercare window.

What actually has to happen

  • Hop one: upgrade to Business Central on-premisesNAV's data and customisations land on BC's codebase first, still self-hosted.
  • Hop two: move that BC on-premises instance onlineOnly once the codebase is current does the actual cloud migration happen.

"We have watched this catch out project teams mid-migration more than once: the sales conversation covers 'NAV to the cloud' as one step, and the two-hop reality only surfaces once work has started."

How we scope every NAV migration up front
The exact dates

Three NAV versions, three different clocks.

Apr 2026
NAV 2016 and earlier, already unsupported
Jan 2027
NAV 2017, support ends, the version most teams are on right now
Jan 2028
NAV 2018, the latest version still has a clock
  • 1
    A 9 to 15 month migration is typicalDepending on customisation depth, integration count, and data volume.
  • 2
    Add 3 to 6 months for partner selectionMost teams underestimate how long scoping and selection itself takes.
  • 3
    NAV 2017 customers who have not started selecting by late 2026 are at real riskWorking backwards from January 2027, the runway is already short.
The realistic path

Same six-stage method, with the two-hop built into the plan from day one.

01

Diagnose

Full inventory of NAV customisations, add-ons, and integrations, and which ones are actually load-bearing.

AI: customisation scan
02

Design

Decide upfront whether hop one lands as a short bridge or a longer-lived step, based on your customisation depth.

AI: gap mapping
03

Data

Migrate master data and required history once, not twice, by planning both hops together from the start.

AI: cleansing & matching
06

Land

Two planned cutover events instead of one surprise mid-project, each with its own testing and hypercare.

Common questions

What NAV customers usually ask first.

Q.Can we skip the on-premises hop entirely?

No. Microsoft's supported path requires landing on a current Business Central codebase before the online move, regardless of partner.

Q.Does the two-hop path cost more than a direct migration?

It is priced as one migration with two cutover events, not two separate projects. The bigger risk is a partner who quotes it as one step and finds hop one mid-project.

Q.How long can we stay on hop one before moving online?

There is no fixed limit, but staying on BC on-premises long-term forfeits most of the reason to migrate at all.

Q.Do our NAV customisations carry over to Business Central?

Some do as extensions, some should be retired. That decision is made explicitly during design, not discovered during testing.

Q.What if we are already mid-migration and just found out about the two-hop?

That is a rescue conversation, not a NAV question. Run the situation diagnostic or talk to us directly.

Still on Dynamics NAV

Get a straight read on your migration, not a pitch deck.

Tell us your NAV version and what's customised. We'll tell you honestly what the two-hop path looks like for your data.

Book a 30-minute call

With someone who's run a NAV-to-BC migration before.

Run the situation diagnostic

Four minutes, no email required to see the result.