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Dynamics 365 Community / Forums / Small and medium business | Business Central, N... / How to make a Approval...
Small and medium business | Business Central, N...
Answered

How to make a Approval Workflow mandatory?

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Posted on by TR-12121238-0 111

Hi all,

I've set up an approval workflow for new customers, and here's my current understanding of how it works:

  1. A user creates a new customer.

  2. The user clicks the "Request Approval" button to send it for approval.

  3. The approver then approves the new customer.

I have a question about this process: I don't think it's mandatory to click "Request Approval," as the customer seems to be created and available for use by anyone regardless. Am I correct about this?

If so, how can I make this a mandatory step? It would be much better if the new customer remained "invisible" or "blocked" until it is officially approved.

Thanks a lot for your help!

Categories:
Dynamics 365 Business Central
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  • Verified answer
    DAnny3211 Profile Picture
    DAnny3211 11,397 on at

    Hi there,

    You're absolutely right — by default, the approval workflow in Business Central is not mandatory, meaning users can create and use customer records without triggering the approval process unless they manually click "Request Approval."

    To make approval mandatory, here are a few options:

    1. Use the "Blocked" Field:

      • Set the Blocked field to All automatically when a new customer is created.
      • Then, configure the workflow so that approval unblocks the customer.
      • This ensures the customer cannot be used in transactions until approved.

    2. Customize with Event Subscribers:

      • Create an event subscriber in AL that listens to the OnInsert or OnModify event of the Customer table.
      • Automatically trigger the approval request or block usage until approval is completed.

    3. Page-Level Validation:

      • Add logic to prevent users from creating sales documents for customers whose approval status is pending.
      • You can do this via page extensions or by customizing the validation logic.

    4. Workflow Conditions:

      • Ensure your workflow includes conditions that check for the approval status and only allow changes or usage if approved.

    Let me know if you'd like help writing the AL code or configuring the workflow!

    Please verify if this response was helpful.

    Best regards!

  • Bret Fraser Profile Picture
    Bret Fraser Community Manager on at
    Thanks for posting @DAnny3211, we appreciate your desire to help the Community!
     
    I think your reply might be an AI-assisted post, but I do not see any tools or sources cited. Can you update the post to include your sources, or confirm this was not produced using AI? If AI assisted, please update any other recent posts as well.
     
    Please refer to the Use AI responsibly section of Writing effective responses in the community:
     
    Do not
    • Copy and paste AI-generated answers into the forum without verification. While AI is a valuable tool, it is not always correct, and can provide detailed answers that look correct, but are not.
       
    • Conceal the use of AI. If your answer was written in concert with AI, be forthright about it to ensure that others have an opportunity to review or vet your response for accuracy.
     
    Thank you!
     
    Bret
  • Suggested answer
    YUN ZHU Profile Picture
    YUN ZHU 95,329 Super User 2025 Season 2 on at
    As far as I know, there is no other way except customization. This is a problem with the standard system for master data Workflow. 
    You could consider adding a new field like Invisible and setting it to False after approval. Although this is relatively complicated.
     
    Hope this helps.
    Thanks.
    ZHU

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