The Replicate Master Data Information functionality in Business Central lets you assign selected fields from your master data information cards directly onto items, customers, vendors, and documents. You can have as many information codes per item, customer, or vendor as you want. You can replicate up to 10 fields onto the item card. Any change you make on the card updates the master data information, and any change in the master data information updates the card. The replicated field on the card is named SCB Master Data Information followed by a number, so you filter on that technical field name rather than your own label.
What Replicate Master Data Information does in Business Central
The functionality we call Replicate Master Data Information makes it possible to assign selected fields from your master data information cards directly to items, customers, vendors, and documents such as order documents. The point is that the data you maintain as master data information shows up where you actually work with it, and stays in sync both ways.
Take customer 20000 as an example. If you open the master data information on that customer, you can see the contact is Susan West. If you scroll right on the customer list, Susan has been added directly as a column. That happens because the field was added in the setup. Open the customer card, and Susan West shows up there too.
How field replication works on the item card
The same applies to items. Open item 1000, and you can see the gear and bike type have been added, for example a City Bike with a Nexus 7 gear. Open the master data information for that item, and the same values are stated there.
The synchronisation goes both ways. If you change the gear in the master data information from Nexus 7 to a Claris 8, it updates the item card so it now reads Claris 8. If you instead update it on the item card back to Nexus 7, it updates the master data information the other way around. This is how you replicate master data between the two places.
Limitations on the number of replicated fields
You can store as many information codes per item, customer, or vendor as you like. There is a limit on how many fields you can replicate onto the card itself. On the item card you can have up to 10 fields, at least as it stands now.
To add a field, go into the Replicate Master Data Setup, select the item table either by typing it or picking it from the list, and choose the field you want as an information value, for example a Brake Type. Once added, you also need to update the item cards that already have a brake type set up so the existing data is brought in. From then on, the functionality replicates the value, so changing the brake type in the master data information changes it on the item card as well.
Filtering on replicated fields and the technical field names
There is one thing to be aware of. On the item card the replicated field is not called Brake Type. It is called SCB Master Data Information 3. If you want to filter on it, you have to use that technical name instead of your own label. That is one of the disadvantages.
The upside is that you can filter directly on the item card, and the same goes for sales lines, sales order headers, purchase lines, and so on. The functionality is available on all open documents, on jobs and job items, and on customers and vendors. In practice this means you work directly in the relevant view when you handle your data. Scroll right on the item list, and you will find the brake type out among the columns for the items where it has been applied.
For the full setup details, including the replicate master data setup, see the other videos on the topic.
Q&A
How many fields can you replicate onto the item card?
You can replicate up to 10 fields onto the item card. You can store as many information codes per item, customer, or vendor as you want, but only up to 10 can be pushed onto the card itself.
Does a change in the master data information update the card automatically?
Yes, the synchronisation works both ways. Change a value in the master data information and it updates the card. Change it on the card and it updates the master data information.
What field name do you filter on for a replicated field?
You filter on the technical field name, for example SCB Master Data Information 3, not your own label such as Brake Type. The card does not use your label for the replicated field.
On which tables and documents is the functionality available?
It is available on items, customers, and vendors, and on open documents such as sales lines, sales order headers, and purchase lines. It also works on jobs and job items.
What do you do for items that already have a value before adding the field?
After adding the field in the Replicate Master Data Setup, you need to update the item cards that already have the value set up so the existing data is brought into the replication.