Dimensions in daily use: defaults and rules

Dimensions let you analyse entries by department, project or location without making the chart of accounts unmanageable. The everyday problem is that people forget to fill them in. Business Central can fill them in automatically and require them. Here are default dimensions, code mandatory, priorities and combination rules, and what you should consider before changing global dimensions. It applies to both new and existing setups. Here are the functions you need to know.

Default dimensions

You can link a default dimension to an account, for example a customer, vendor, item or general ledger account. The value is copied to the journal or document when you select the account, and the user can change it. On the Dimensions page you use Account Type Default Dim. to set a default for a whole account type. A specific account can have a different value, which then replaces the type's default.

It is most effective to set defaults on the master data used most, typically customers, vendors and general ledger accounts, so that users only need to correct exceptions.

Code mandatory and other rules

The Value Posting field determines what must apply when posting. If you want to require a dimension without suggesting a value, leave Dimension Value Code empty and choose Code Mandatory. You can also choose Same Code, which only allows the specified value, or No Code, which allows no value.

Be careful with accounts included in the Adjust Exchange Rates and Post Inventory Cost to G/L batch jobs. Learn warns against Code Mandatory and Same Code on them, because the jobs cannot use dimension codes.

Use code mandatory with care. If every journal requires a department, users will pick the first one on the list. If you want reliable figures, give them a sensible default and only require a code on the accounts where the analysis matters.

Priorities

An entry can get different suggestions, for example from the customer and from the item. On the Default Dimension Priorities page you specify per source code which source wins. If two tables have the same priority, the one with the lowest table ID is chosen.

Learn points out that dimensions in the document header are considered to come from the customer or vendor. Test the setup and the order in which you enter data.

Write the priorities down, so new colleagues can understand why an entry got a particular dimension.

Combinations

On the Dimension Combinations page you can prevent conflicting dimensions on the same entry. There are three choices:

Try the combination rules with a test posting. If you block too much, posting stops on documents that were actually fine.

No limitation: all values are allowed.
Limited: only some combinations of values are blocked, and you specify which.
Blocked: the two dimensions must not be used together.

Global dimensions and shortcut dimensions

On General Ledger Setup you can specify two global dimensions, which can be used as filters in reports and batch jobs, and up to eight shortcut dimensions, which appear as fields on journal and document lines. Choose carefully. Learn warns that changing global dimensions with Change Global Dimensions can be time-consuming, affect performance and lock tables, and that you cannot delete a dimension once it has been used on an entry.

Shortcut dimensions are the ones users see in the columns. Choose the ones used most often, and leave the rest under the Dimensions button.

Edit several accounts at once and agree ownership

The Default Dimensions-Multiple page lets you select several accounts and set dimension, value and rule on all of them at once. Conflicts are shown as (Conflict). It is a quick way to clean up a chart of accounts.

Agree which dimensions finance should use in reports and who owns the value lists. Which requirements accounting and any grant providers place on the breakdown of costs, your auditor can help with.