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Dynamics 365 Community / Forums / Small and medium business | Business Central, N... / Clarification on Licen...
Small and medium business | Business Central, N...
Answered

Clarification on Licensing for Accessing Business Central Virtual Tables in Dataverse

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Posted on by MP-29031148-0 42

Hello,

I would like to request clarification regarding licensing requirements for users accessing Business Central data through Dataverse Virtual Tables.

Scenario:

We have set up the integration between Business Central and Dataverse and installed the necessary applications to enable Business Central Virtual Tables.

Some users in our organization do not have a Business Central license. These users, however, do have Power Apps licenses (per app or per user).

We would like them to use a Power Apps application (Model-driven or Canvas) that reads and manipulates data exposed via the Business Central Virtual Tables.

 

Questions:

Can users without a Business Central license access and use Virtual Tables in Dataverse if they have the appropriate Power Apps license and security roles in Dataverse?

Is a Business Central license required in any way for these users, considering that they would never access the Business Central client directly but only the Virtual Tables in Dataverse?

Are there any limitations or constraints we should be aware of in this scenario?

 

Thank you in advance for your clarification.
Best regards,

 


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Categories:
Dynamics 365 Business Central
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  • Verified answer
    Sumit Singh Profile Picture
    Sumit Singh 11,757 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at
    Hi,
    As per my understanding, please find below answers:-

    1. Can users without a Business Central license access Virtual Tables in Dataverse if they have Power Apps licenses?

    • No, not directly.
      Business Central Virtual Tables do not store data in Dataverse; they act as a live proxy to Business Central via APIs.
      When a user interacts with a Virtual Table (read/write), the request is sent to Business Central, which enforces Business Central licensing.
      Therefore, a Business Central license is required for any user performing CRUD operations on BC data, even if they only use Power Apps.

     2. Is a Business Central license required if the user never opens the BC client?

    • Yes.
      Licensing is based on data access rights, not the UI.
      Virtual Tables are just a Dataverse representation; the actual data and business logic remain in Business Central.
      Microsoft licensing guides and community confirmations state that Power Apps licenses alone do not grant rights to BC data.

     3. Limitations and Constraints

    • Authentication: Virtual Tables use an application user or delegated user identity to call BC APIs. If the user identity lacks a BC license, the call fails.
    • No offline data: Virtual Tables do not replicate data; they query BC in real time.
    • Multiplexing rules apply: Using a service account to bypass licensing is not compliant with Microsoft licensing terms.
    • CRUD vs Read: Even read-only access typically requires a BC license because the data is served by BC APIs.

    Official References

    Bottom line:
    Power Apps licenses allow you to build apps using Dataverse, but Business Central data accessed via Virtual Tables still requires a BC license for the end user.
    References
    [1] Business Central virtual table for Microsoft Dataverse admin reference
    [2] Solved: Can I use Business Central Virtual Tables though Power Apps ...

    Created answers with the help of Co-Pilot
    Mark true, “Does this answer your question” if it helps.
  • Suggested answer
    YUN ZHU Profile Picture
    YUN ZHU 99,086 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at
    Hopefully the information below can give you some hints.
    Dynamics 365 Business Central Blog Series: Integrate with Microsoft Dataverse
     
    Thanks.
    ZHU
  • Suggested answer
    Pallavi Phade Profile Picture
    Pallavi Phade 5,420 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at
    Namaste 
     
    To have an integration with Dataverse and Business Central . User should have both licenses . We also did integration but same user need to present in both . 
     
    Refer below FAQ in Microsoft Site for reference
     
     
     
    This is Data Synchronization works
    Shows how data synchronization works between Business Central and Dataverse
     
    Below are reference links 
     
    This is FAQ Link 
     
    Hope this helped . Please verify the answer .
     
    Regards 
    Pallavi Phade 
  • Verified answer
    Rishabh Kanaskar Profile Picture
    Rishabh Kanaskar 6,219 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

    Here’s what the official/licensed-info says, plus how it applies to your scenario:

    What Microsoft Docs & Licensing Guides Say

    • Dataverse tables in general require the user to have a Power Apps or Power Automate license if the app uses tables in Dataverse.

    • If the table has “complex business logic,” plug-ins, real-time workflows or is tied to “customer engagement apps” (Dynamics 365 Sales, Customer Service, etc.), then additional or different licensing may be required. 

    • Business Central has added virtual table support in recent versions (Wave releases) so that BC data can be exposed in Dataverse via APIs / virtual tables. The licensing guide mentions that using these virtual tables in Dataverse is supported, but it doesn’t explicitly state that only a Power Apps/license is enough if BC licenses are missing. 

    Applying it to your question:

    Question Answer
    Can users without a BC license access BC data exposed via Business Central Virtual Tables, if they have Power Apps license and correct Dataverse permissions? Probably yes, if the virtual table does not requirement features tied to BC that enforce BC client access or restricted licensing. They must have a Power Apps premium license or the plan that covers Dataverse tables (model-driven and virtual tables are premium). Also, they must be given Dataverse security roles that permit access.
    Is a BC license required if they never use the BC client and only use the virtual tables in Dataverse? In many cases no, a BC license is not strictly required for read / update of those tables via Dataverse, provided licensing and permissions are aligned. But there could be corner cases depending on what the BC virtual table does (some APIs may enforce BC specific permissions). Also Microsoft licensing terms or terms of use could require something more if you are changing data via BC APIs in certain ways, so you must check current Microsoft Product Terms.
    Limitations / constraints to watch out for
    1) Users need Power Apps premium / per app plan (or equivalent) to use apps involving Dataverse or virtual tables.
    2) Performance / latency of virtual tables (they are “live” BC data via API, so filtering / queries with many joins may be slow).
    3) Not all BC tables may be exposed as virtual tables or may have limitations in what fields/actions are allowed.
    4) Audit / security concerns, especially around BC permissions. 5) Licensing may change, or some virtual table features might be considered “premium” or restricted.
       

    Download the D365 License Guide 2025:

    https://www.microsoft.com/content/dam/microsoft/final/en-us/microsoft-brand/documents/Dynamics-365-Licensing-Guide-APRIL-2025.pdf?utm


    Thanks

    Rishabh

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