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If you ship sales order lines and post them later from a sales invoice where you have collected the sales shipment lines, you end up with fully processed sales orders that stay open in your list. In Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central you can delete these completed sales orders manually or with the Delete Invoiced Sales Orders report.
A sales order can be deleted when the quantity shipped and the quantity invoiced are both equal to the ordered quantity. The report is easy to miss, because you only find it from the sales order list and not from the search in your role center.
The most practical approach is to set the report up as a batch job that runs during the night. It then cleans up your sales order list automatically, so you do not have to remember to delete completed orders by hand.
Why completed sales orders stay open in Business Central
A common workflow is to ship the lines directly from the sales order, but post the actual invoice from a sales invoice where you have collected the sales shipment lines. When you work this way, the sales order has done its job, but it remains in your sales order list as an open document.
These leftover orders clutter the list and make it harder to see which orders still need attention. They can be removed, because everything on them has already been shipped and invoiced.
When a sales order can be deleted
The rule is straightforward. If the quantity shipped and the quantity invoiced are both equal to the ordered quantity, the sales order is fully processed and can be deleted. You can check this on the individual sales order by looking at the quantity, quantity shipped, and quantity invoiced fields on the lines.
Where to find the Delete Invoiced Sales Orders report
The report is a little hidden. If you search for “delete” from the role center, you do not get it as an option. You have to be in the sales order list to find it.
Open the sales order list and search for “delete”. The first suggestion works on the current page, meaning it only deletes the sales order you are currently on. To delete more than one, run the report instead.
Running the report manually
From the sales order list you can run the report directly. You can filter on a specific customer if you only want to clean up that customer’s orders, or you can run it for everything. The report goes through the orders and deletes the ones that meet the criteria. For example, two fully shipped and invoiced sales orders for a customer get removed in one run.
Setting up the report as a batch job
We normally recommend setting this report up as a batch job that runs during the night. Completed sales orders almost always just need to be deleted, so there is no reason to do it by hand. The batch job runs automatically, cleans up the sales order list, and you set it up the same way as any other batch job in Business Central.
Q&A
When can a sales order be deleted in Business Central?
A sales order can be deleted when the quantity shipped and the quantity invoiced are both equal to the ordered quantity. At that point the order is fully processed and no longer needs to stay open.
Where do I find the report to delete invoiced sales orders?
You find it from the sales order list, not from the search in the role center. Open the sales order list, search for “delete”, and run the report from there.
Can I delete completed sales orders automatically?
Yes. Set the delete report up as a batch job that runs during the night. It will then clean up your sales order list automatically, and you configure it like any other batch job in Business Central.
Can I limit the deletion to a specific customer?
Yes. When you run the report you can filter on a customer to delete only that customer’s completed sales orders, or you can run it for everything.