Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
CHAPTER 6: ANALYZE MICROSOFT DYNAMICS
NAV 5.0 DATA IN MICROSOFT EXCEL
Objectives
The objectives are:
•
Explain the process of exporting analysis views to Microsoft®
Office Excel® 2007 and describe the elements of the exported file.
•
Describe how to work with analysis data that has been imported into
Excel.
•
Describe how to view Business Analytics cubes in Excel.
Introduction
As this course has established, Microsoft® Office Excel® 2007 is an ideal
partner client for Microsoft Dynamics NAV. There are numerous ways to export
data from Microsoft Dynamics NAV to Excel, including the following:
•
Copy from Microsoft Dynamics NAV list views and paste to Excel
worksheets.
•
Export to Excel directly from such Microsoft Dynamics NAV feature
areas as Account Schedules and Analysis Views.
•
Connect from Excel to the Microsoft Dynamics NAV SQL Server
database.
There are many benefits to working with Microsoft Dynamics NAV data in
Excel. In particular, Excel is widely used, so it is easy to share data with those
outside your company, or even internal employees who do not work within the
Microsoft Dynamics NAV environment. In addition, Excel enables users to
quickly add formatting and design enhancements to Microsoft Dynamics NAV
data. This chapter describes how to export and work with Analysis Views in
Excel.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6-1
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
Export Analysis Views to Excel
Like account schedules, an analysis view can be exported to Excel. Exporting the
analysis view enables you to distribute the dimension information to external
parties who do not have access to Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0. Excel's chart
functions can also be used to display the analysis view graphically.
Demonstration: Export an Analysis View to Excel
Scenario: The accounting manager at CRONUS International Ltd., has been
asked to provide the Revenue analysis view for the fourth quarter of 2007. She
exports the analysis view to Excel using the following criteria:
•
Show as Lines: G/L Account
•
Show as Columns: Period
•
Date Filter: 10/01/07..12/31/07
•
Show: Actual Amounts
•
Show Amount Field: Amount
•
Time Interval: Month (31)
•
Amount Type: Net Change
The exported analysis view is used as an example to explain the worksheets.
Steps
To export the Revenue analysis view, follow these steps:
1. On the Navigation Pane, click Financial Management > Analysis
& Reporting > Analysis by Dimensions.
2. In the Analysis View Code field, select Revenues.
3. Click OK to close the Analysis View Names window.
4. In the Show as Lines field, select G/L Account
5. In the Show as Columns field, select Period.
6. Click the Filters tab.
7. In the Date Filter field, enter "10/01/07..12/31/07".
8. Click the Options tab.
9. Ensure that the Show field is set to "Actual Amounts" and Show
Amount field is set to "Amount".
10. Click the 31 (Month) time interval button and ensure that the Net
Change button is selected.
6-2
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
11. Click Functions > Export to Excel.
When you have finished looking at the pivot table that Excel has
generated, save the file as Revenue Analysis to your desktop. During
this process, Microsoft Dynamics NAV:
•
Exports the information to a text file.
•
Opens the text file in Excel.
•
Creates a pivot table based on the information in the text file.
FIGURE 6-1: ANALYSIS VIEW IN EXCEL PIVOT TABLE
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6-3
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
Analysis by Dimension Settings
The number of entries and the information included in the text file created when
you export to Excel depends on the settings in the Analysis by Dimensions
window. The effect of these settings are as follows:
6-4
Field
Description
G/L Account Filter
and Date Filter
Filters the number of entries exported based on
Account No. or Posting Date.
Budget Filter
Filters the number of analysis view budget entries
exported based on Budget No.
Dimension Filters
Filters the number of entries exported based on the
dimensions included in the analysis view.
Show
If Variance, Variance%, or Index% is selected, a
warning is displayed since no entries will be
exported. This is because these amount types are
calculated in the window and not recorded on the
analysis view entries.
If Actual Amounts or Budgeted Amounts is
selected, Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 always
exports both.
Show Amount Field
Microsoft Dynamics NAV exports Amount, Debit
Amount, and Credit Amount for actual amounts
and Amount for budgeted amounts, regardless of
what is selected in this field. If Debit Amount or
Credit Amount is selected for Budgeted Amounts, a
warning is displayed.
Closing Entries
If Include is selected, entries on closing dates are
included in the analysis by dimensions and
therefore exported to Excel.
Rounding Factor
This field has no effect on the information exported
to Excel. To round and format the numerical
information, do so in Excel.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Field
Description
Show Amounts in
Add. Reporting
Currency
If an additional reporting currency is set up, the
amounts appearing as Amount, Debit Amount,
Credit Amount, and Budgeted Amount in the Data
Sheet are additional reporting currency amounts.
If an additional reporting currency is not used,
nothing is exported.
Show Column Name
If selected and a dimension code or G/L Account is
selected in the Show as Lines field, the exported
information includes the Name of the account or
dimension value. If Period is selected in the Show
as Lines field, only the date information is
exported.
If not selected, only the account No. or dimension
value Code is exported.
Show Opposite Sign
If selected, the amounts exported to the lines will
have the opposite sign to the Amount field on the
analysis view entries.
Amount Type
The number of entries exported is also affected by
whether Net Change or Balance to Date is selected
as the amount type.
• If using Net Change, all entries within the
date filter will be exported.
• If using Balance to Date, Microsoft
Dynamics NAV ignores the starting date
and exports all entries up to and including
the ending date in the filter.
NOTE: It may be a good idea to know how many lines your version of Excel can
contain. Microsoft Excel 2007 can contain 1,000,000 lines, but previous versions can
contain a maximum of 65536 lines. If you are worried that your analysis view will
exceed the maximum number of lines, use a date filter to limit the number of periods to
display in Excel.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6-5
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
Excel Workbook Overview
The workbook in Excel contains three sheets:
•
Data sheet
•
General information sheet
•
Pivot table sheet
Data Sheet
The data sheet can be separated into two main sections:
•
The first section contains information from the analysis view entries
and analysis view budget entries.
•
The second section contains all the accounts, dimensions, and
periods for which there is no data. If the second section were not
included, the pivot table would only include accounts and dimension
values with data.
In the first section, each line in the sheet represents an analysis view entry or
analysis view budget entry. Note that the settings in the Analysis by Dimensions
window only affect the number of entries exported.
For each entry exported, all data will be exported regardless of what was chosen
as lines or columns. As a result, each line usually contains the following
information:
6-6
Information
Description
G/L Account Level n
The G/L account for the line. To display the
account hierarchy of Begin-Total and End-Total
accounts in the pivot table, Microsoft Dynamics
NAV must use the grouping functions in Excel.
Microsoft Dynamics NAV uses the Indentation
field of a Posting account to fill in the Begin-Total
account structure it belongs to. If there is no
hierarchy within the chart of accounts, the entries
are displayed with G/L Account Level 0 only.
For example, Account 6120 is included in the range
beginning with account 6100. Therefore, all data
related to account 6120 is rolled up to account
6105, and all data related to 6105 is rolled up to
account 6100.
• G/L Account Level 0: 6100
• G/L Account Level 1: 6105
• G/L Account Level 2: 6120
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Information
Description
Dimension Codes
Dimension values can also be hierarchical. The
same principles for hierarchical G/L accounts apply
to hierarchical dimension values. If there is no
hierarchy within the dimension values, the entries
are displayed with Dimension Code Level 0 only.
Dates
Each Excel line has the period information
calculated based on the Posting Date for the
analysis view entry or analysis view budget entry.
The periods include Day, Week, Month, Quarter,
Year, and Accounting Period.
If the analysis view entries have been compressed
by a period greater than a day, the date calculated
for the Day period is the starting date of the
compressed period; it is not the Posting Date of the
underlying G/L transaction. This is the same as
when viewing analysis view entries in the Analysis
by Dimensions window.
Amounts
The amounts displayed are based on the entry
types:
• If the Excel line relates to an analysis view
entry, the line contains the Amount, Debit
Amount, and Credit Amount from the
entry.
• If the Excel line relates to an analysis view
budget entry, the line contains the
Budgeted Amount (Amount field) from the
entry.
The second section of the data sheet contains all the G/L accounts, dimension
values and periods with no entries. The exception is the Day period. Regardless
of the compression of the analysis view, the data sheet will only include days
with data. This is to limit the number of lines created in the Excel sheet.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6-7
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
General Information Sheet
Microsoft Dynamics NAV records the settings from the Analysis View Card
and the Analysis by Dimensions windows at the time the analysis view was
exported.
NOTE: This information is only at the time of export and is not updated for changes in
the pivot table or changes to Microsoft Dynamics NAV.
The sheet displays the contents of the following fields on the Analysis View
Card window:
•
Analysis View Code
•
Analysis View Name
•
G/L Account Filter
•
Date Compression
•
Starting Date
•
Last Date Updated
The sheet displays the contents of the following fields on the Analysis by
Dimensions window:
•
Amount Type (Net Change or Balance at Date)
•
Date Filter
•
G/L Account Filter
•
Budget Filter
•
Dimension Filters
•
Closing Entries
•
Show Opposite Sign
If any of the filters are empty, they are not displayed on the general information
sheet.
6-8
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Pivot Table Sheet
Microsoft Dynamics NAV creates pivot fields based on each column of data
exported to the data sheet and forms the pivot table from the pivot fields.
The fields in the Analysis by Dimensions window determine which pivot fields
to use as rows and columns in the pivot table.
Field
Show as Lines
Show as Columns
Setting
The content of this field determines which pivot field is
used as rows in the pivot table. In this demonstration, the
Show as Lines field contained G/L Account, so the
lowest G/L Account Level pivot field has been used to
make the rows in the pivot table.
The content of this field determines which pivot field is
used as columns in the pivot table. In this demonstration,
the Show as Lines field contained Periods. The Month
time interval button is also selected, so the Month pivot
field has been used to make columns in the pivot table.
To determine the data pivot fields to display in the pivot table, Microsoft
Dynamics NAV uses the Show and Show Amount Field fields. The actual
Amount, Debit Amount, Credit Amount, or budgeted Amount can be displayed.
NOTE: Only Actual Amounts and Budgeted Amounts can be shown in the pivot table.
This is because the other amount types are not stored on the analysis view entries and
are not exported. However, calculated fields can be created in the pivot table to
represent Variance, Variance%, and Index% amounts.
Benefits of the Pivot Table
A pivot table is created to manipulate data quickly within Excel. The rows,
columns, and data displayed in the pivot table can be changed in the fields
included in the layout. However, if data is formatted in Excel,the changes may
not be kept. You may, therefore, want to change the layout in the Analysis by
Dimensions window and export the information again.
In addition to how easily and quickly data can be manipulated in Excel, the pivot
table also includes the following benefits:
•
More than one type of amount can be viewed. For example, both
actual and budgeted amounts can be included in the pivot table.
•
More than one pivot field can be shown per column or row. For
example, all the G/L Account levels can be shown per row, or each
AREA by Month in each column.
•
Exported data is not limited to the pivot fields created by Microsoft
Dynamics NAV. Calculated pivot fields can be created that can make
a comparison of actual to budgeted amounts.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6-9
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
•
A chart linked to the pivot table can be created using a wizard in
Excel, allowing the graphical display of dimension analysis. Changes
made to the chart layout are automatically updated in the pivot table.
Note: For more information on how to use data exported from Microsoft Dynamics
NAV 5.0 to Excel refer to the technical white paper Analyzing Dimension Data Using
Pivot Tables.
Limitations to Data Displayed in Pivot Tables
When exporting and displaying information in a pivot table in Excel, there are a
few limitations in:
•
Totaling accounts and dimensions
•
Begin-Total and End-Total accounts and dimensions
•
Sorting account numbers and numerical dimension values
•
Exporting Balance at Date amounts
These limitations are described in the following topics.
Totaling Accounts and Dimensions
Totaling accounts do not have any posted entries and will never be included in
the exported accounts. If implementing a hierarchical chart of accounts using
Totaling accounts instead of Begin-Total and End-Total accounts, only posting
accounts can be exported.
The same limitation applies with the Totaling dimension values.
Begin-Total and End-Total Accounts and Dimensions
If a hierarchical chart of accounts that uses Begin-Total and End-Total accounts
is exported, show all the G/L Account Level pivot fields to view the entire chart
of accounts in the pivot table.
Only the Begin-Total accounts are exported. The End-Total account information
is included in the pivot table as a subtotal of the Posting accounts assigned to the
Begin-Total Account. The pivot table line for the End-Total information has a
description including the Begin-Total Account No. and Total.
The same rules apply with Begin-Total and End-Total dimension values.
Sorting Account Numbers and Numerical Dimension
Values
Account numbers that are numeric are always sorted as numbers in Excel.
When a chart of accounts with account numbers of different lengths is exported,
the sorting may be incorrect if using Microsoft® SQL Server® or changing the
account numbers in Microsoft Dynamics NAV Server to have text sorting.
6 - 10
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
To achieve the correct text sorting in these situations, export both the account
number and name by selecting the Show Column Name field in the Analysis by
Dimensions window.
Exporting Balance at Date Amounts
If exporting an analysis with the Balance to Date amount type, a starting date in
the Date Filter field will be ignored. All analysis view entries prior to the ending
date in the filter will be exported to Excel so the correct running balance can be
displayed in the pivot table.
Hide any balance to date periods in the pivot table as needed.
In addition, if the ending date in the filter is after the date of the last analysis
view entry, the pivot table will not include the periods with no data. This is to
reduce the amount of entries exported to Excel.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6 - 11
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
Lab 6.1: Export an Analysis View to Excel
Scenario
The accounting manager has asked you to create some financial analyses that can
be used for a presentation. The analyses must be easily made into graphs and
include the company's dimension information. All dimension information must
include the name of the dimension so that the board members can understand the
analyses.
You are responsible for the following expense analyses:
•
Monthly actual expenses for all departments for the 2007 financial
year.
•
Monthly budgeted expenses for all departments for the 2007
financial year.
Save the exported files as Microsoft Office Excel Workbooks to your desktop
with the following names:
•
2007 Actual Expenses by Department
•
2007 Budgeted Expenses by Department
Challenge Yourself!
1. Create two analyses for the presentation based on the criteria in the
scenario.
2. Export each analysis to Excel and save as specified in the scenario.
Need a Little Help?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Open the Analysis by Dimensions window.
Set up the header as specified in the scenario for the first analysis.
Export the file to Excel.
Save the file as specified in the scenario and close Excel.
In the Analysis by Dimensions window, set up the header as
specified in the scenario for the second analysis.
6. Export the file to Excel.
7. Save the file as specified in the scenario and close Excel.
6 - 12
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Step by Step
To create the monthly actual expenses for all departments for the 2007 financial
year, follow these steps:
1. On the Navigation Pane, click Financial Management > Analysis
& Reporting > Analysis by Dimensions.
2. In the Analysis View Code field, select Departmental Expenses,
and click OK.
3. In the Show as Lines field, select G/L Account, and click OK.
4. In the Show as Columns field, select Department.
5. Click the Filters tab.
6. In the Date Filter field, enter "01/01/07..12/31/07".
7. In the G/L Account Filter field, enter "8000..8530".
8. Click the Options tab.
9. Ensure that the Show field is set to Actual Amounts and the Show
Amount Field field is set to Amount.
10. Select the Show Column Name check box.
11. Click the 31 (Month) time interval button and ensure that Net
Change is selected.
12. Click Functions > Export to Excel.
13. Review the exported file.
14. On the File menu, click Save As.
15. In the Save in field, select Desktop.
16. In the Save as type field, select Microsoft Office Excel Workbook.
17. In the File Name field, enter 2007 Actual Expenses by Department.
18. Click Save.
19. Close Excel.
To create the monthly budgeted expenses for all departments for the 2007
financial year, follow these steps:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
In the Analysis by Dimensions window, click the Filters tab.
Ensure that the Date Filter field is set to "01/01/07..12/31/07".
In the Budget Filter field, select 2007 budget.
Click the Options tab.
In the Show field, select Budgeted Amounts.
Ensure that Show Amount Field is set to "Amount" and that the
Show Column Name check box is selected.
7. Ensure that the 31 (Month) time interval button and Net Change are
selected.
8. Click Functions > Export to Excel.
9. Review the exported file.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6 - 13
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
10.
11.
12.
13.
On the File menu, click Save As.
In the Save in field, select Desktop.
In the Save as type field, select Microsoft Office Excel Workbook.
In the File Name field, enter 2007 Budgeted Expenses by
Department.
14. Click Save.
15. Close Excel.
6 - 14
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Work with Data in Excel
Once you have your data in Excel, you can work with Excel formatting features
to create robust views. Among other things, you can:
•
Add and remove fields from the pivot table.
•
Rename columns.
•
Add columns from other spreadsheets.
•
Format columns and row headings or values to make important
information, such as totals, stand out and to enhance the appearance
of your data.
•
Add charts or graphics to your worksheets.
The following demonstration shows how to change some of your pivot table
fields, and how to create a chart.
Demonstration: Rename a Column and Add Bold Effects
To change a column label in your pivot table, perform these steps:
1. Open the Revenue Analysis spreadsheet in Excel. The first column in
the pivot table is called G/L Account Level 2.
2. Click the Data_REVENUE tab at the bottom of the spreadsheet. All
of the data you exported is contained here.
3. Click the G/L Account Level 2 column heading, and replace it with
Revenue.
4. Click the Pivot Table_REVENUE tab at the bottom of the
spreadsheet. The pivot table is unchanged.
5. Click the Data tab at the top of the spreadsheet, and then in the
Connections group, click Refresh All. All of the account data
disappears from the pivot table.
6. In the Pivot Table Fields List, locate Revenue.
7. Select the Revenue check box. The accounts are once again listed in
the pivot table.
To make column headings and totals bold, perform these steps:
1. With the pivot table selected, click the Design tab.
2. In the PivotTable Styles group, click Pivot Style Light 3. Column
headings and the Grand Total line are bolded.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6 - 15
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
Demonstration: Add a Chart
A number of different chart types can be automatically generated for your pivot
table data. For this data, column, line, and bar charts are cluttered and confusing,
because much of the revenue information included is in negative amounts.
Therefore, a pie chart is the best option.
To add a pie chart, follow these steps:
1. Make sure the pivot table is selected.
2. Click the Insert tab, and then in the Charts group, click Pie. A pie
chart is displayed on top of the pivot table, but it only reflects the
data for October.
3. Drag the pie chart to a blank area on your spreadsheet.
4. In the Pivot Table Field List, clear the Month check box. Now,
only the Revenue and Total fields are displayed in the pivot table.
You can change formatting in your table and chart as you wish.
6 - 16
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Lab 6.2: Review Exported Analysis Views Side-by-Side
Scenario
In Lab 6.1, you exported two Analysis Views to Excel:
•
Actual operating expenses for 2007 by Department
•
Budgeted operating expenses for 2007 by Department
This information is significant, but what you really need is to evaluate the actual
costs for each department against the budgeted costs in order to evaluate how
well you planned and to make budget decisions for the next year. Therefore you
combine data from the two spreadsheets. You add a chart to display the sums of
budgeted amounts next to sums of actual amounts for each operating expense.
Challenge Yourself!
1. Add an Actual Amounts column for each department from the 2007
Actual Expenses by Department spreadsheet to the 2007 Budgeted
Expenses by Department pivot table, making sure you can
differentiate between the two Amounts.
2. Add a chart to display the budgeted amounts side-by-side with the
actual amounts.
Need a Little Help?
1. Copy the Amounts column from the 2007 Actual Expenses by
Department spreadsheet to the 2007 Budgeted Expenses by
Department spreadsheet.
2. Rename the Amounts column to "Actual Amount".
3. Refresh the data, and then add the Actual Amount column to the
pivot table.
4. Remove the Department columns from the pivot table.
5. Add a Column chart to the spreadsheet.
Step by Step
To add data from one spreadsheet to another, and then update the pivot table:
1. In the 2007 Actual Expenses by Department spreadsheet, click the
Data_DEPTEXP tab.
2. Select the Amount column, and then copy it.
3. Open the 2007 Budgeted Expenses by Department spreadsheet, and
click the Data_DEPTEXP tab.
4. In the column next to Debit Amount column, paste the Amount
column from the Actual Expenses spreadsheet.
5. Rename the Amount column to Actual Amount.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6 - 17
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
6. Click the Pivot Table_DEPTEXP tab to open the Budgeted
Amounts pivot table.
7. Click the Data tab at the top of the worksheet, and in the
Connections group, click Refresh All.
8. In the Choose fields to add to report list, select the Actual Amount
check box.
9. In the Pivot Table Field List, make sure Sum of Actual Amount is
displayed in the Values box, and that Values are listed below
Department Level 0 in the Column Labels box.
To add a chart to display the differences between budgeted and actual for each
operating expense:
1. In the Pivot Table Field List, clear the Department Level 0 check
box.
2. Click the Insert tab at the top of the spreadsheet.
3. In the Charts group, click Column, and then in the 2-D Column
list, click the left-most button.
4. Drag the chart to a spot below the pivot table.
6 - 18
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Connect Business Analytics Cubes to Excel
It has become relatively easy to create a connection between Excel and external
databases. This means you can view and work with data cubes you create in other
applications, including SQL Server Analysis Services, and Business Analytics.
The following demonstration shows how to create a connection between Excel
and the CRONUS International database that contains the cubes you created
using Business Analytics.
Demonstration: Create a Data Connection between Excel
and the Microsoft Dynamics NAV Database
The steps to establish a data connection between Excel and the Microsoft
Dynamics NAV database are as follows:
1. Open Microsoft Excel 2007.
2. Click the Data tab.
3. In the Get External Data group, click From Other Sources>From
SQL Server.
4. Type the server name in the Server Name box, and then select the
type of credentials to use in the Log on credentials list.
5. Click Next.
6. In the Select the database that contains the data you want box,
select Navision Demo Database (5-0).
7. Clear the Connect to a specific table check box.
8. Click Finish. If you chose specific log on credentials, the SQL
Server Login dialog appears.
9. Type in your password, and then click OK. The Select Table dialog
appears.
10. Review the list of items in the databse, and select the item you want
to view in your spreadsheet.
11. Select how you want the data to display in the spreadsheet -- as a
table, pivot table, or pivot table with chart. The data is automatically
imported into the Excel spreadsheet.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6 - 19
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
Summary
Because Excel is widely used, and easy to connect to, the ability to export data to
and work with data in Excel can help you quickly generate attractive charts, pivot
tables, and reports that can be shared outside the Microsoft Dynamics NAV
environment. In addition, you may find it easier to examine data in Excel, where
you can use formatting not available in Microsoft Dynamics NAV to highlight
and organize important aspects of your data. If you are interested in developing
your data mining skills further, consider taking the course, "Business Intelligence
for IT Pros," which will concentrate on more complex report and analysis
generation in such tools as SQL Server Analysis Services, and Business
Analytics Advanced.
6 - 20
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
Chapter 6: Analyze Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Data in Microsoft Excel
Quick Interaction: Lessons Learned
Take a moment and write down three Key Points you have learned from this
chapter:
1.
2.
3.
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement
6 - 21
Business Intelligence for Information Workers in Microsoft Dynamics™
NAV 5.0
6 - 22
Microsoft Official Training Materials for Microsoft Dynamics ™
Your use of this content is subject to your current services agreement