BC v25 Synchronization between Online Main Site and Offline Remote Sites

Med
Med Member Posts: 1
in NAV Three Tier
Hi Fiends,

I’m looking for a technical solution to synchronize two Business Central on-premises instances:

Main site: Full BC installation with all master data
Remote site: Local BC used for CMMS and inventory, with an unstable VSAT connection

Requirements:

One-way sync: Send master data (e.g., items) from the main site to the remote site

Two-way sync: Exchange transactional data like purchase receipts, transfers, stock adjustments, and production orders

The remote site must work autonomously, even offline, and sync reliably with the main site when the connection is available.

What technical solutions do you recommend for this setup?
APIs, data replication, middleware, or other?

Thanks in advance for your help

Answers

  • Sean56
    Sean56 Member Posts: 4
    syncing two Business Central on-prem instances with one-way and two-way data flows, and offline capability — here are a few solid technical solutions you can consider:

    🔧 Recommended Approach:
    1. Integration via Web Services or APIs (with Local Buffering):
    Use BC APIs or OData web services for sending and receiving data between sites. At the remote site, implement a middleware or service that:

    Buffers data locally (e.g., using a local SQL or queue)

    Sends/receives updates when the VSAT connection is active

    Ensures retries and conflict handling during outages

    2. Use Azure Service Bus or Queue-Based Middleware:
    If cloud access is acceptable when online, you can:

    Push data from both sites to an Azure Service Bus or similar messaging queue

    Process it asynchronously once connections are available

    3. File-Based Sync (for unstable connections):
    Use scheduled jobs to export/import XML or JSON files via FTP/SFTP between sites. Trigger sync jobs via BC Job Queues or external scripts.

    🧠 Tools to Consider:
    Custom-built C/AL or AL code units for controlled export/import

    Task Scheduler or Windows Services for sync logic

    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) if you're open to SQL-level integration

    3rd-party BC sync tools (like To-Increase Connectivity Studio or Tinx-IT) if budget allows

    ✅ Key Tips:
    Use change tracking (modification timestamps or journal tables) to limit data transfer

    Maintain data conflict resolution rules for two-way sync

    Test with delayed/incomplete connections to simulate real-world VSAT behavior

    This hybrid, loosely coupled sync approach gives you offline independence at the remote site while maintaining consistency with the main site once reconnected.

    Let me know if you want help.

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