Autonumber field maximum value

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Posted on by Fernando Márquez

Hi all. If inside the opportunities table I add a custom field of “n” digits, Autonumber. What will happen when this code reaches its maximum value? Does it block the creation of opportunities? does it get an error? Thank you very much.

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Microsoft Dynamics CRM

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Dharanidharan 638 Super User 2025 Season 2 on at

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To give you an accurate answer, could you confirm the number of digits you are using for the Autonumber field in the Opportunities table? Also, are you using the default Autonumbering feature in Dynamics 365 CE, or is it a custom implementation? Knowing this will help determine the system behavior when the maximum value is reached.

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Tom_Gioielli 2,762 Super User 2025 Season 2 on at

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The information requested below will certainly be helpful. If you are using the Out of Box AutoNumber field type, my understanding is that the field will "roll over" after hitting the theoretical maximum.

So if you have A#### for your AutoNumber, after A9999 it will go to A0000 for the next record. I am fairly confident it will not error out and prevent the save. This should be relatively easy to test, however, Just create an AutoNumber field with your desired format and set the seed number to the maximum and then create a few records. You can always change the seed back later once you have confirmed the behavior.

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Daivat Vartak (v-9d... 7,835 Super User 2025 Season 2 on at

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Hello FM-11031307-0,

You're asking a very important question about the behavior of Autonumber fields in Dynamics 365 when they reach their maximum value. Here's a breakdown of what happens:

Understanding Autonumber Fields:

Maximum Value: Autonumber fields have a defined maximum value based on their format (e.g., a 5-digit number can go up to 99999).

Sequential Numbers: They generate sequential numbers for each new record.

What Happens When the Maximum Value Is Reached:

Error During Record Creation:

When the Autonumber field reaches its maximum value, and a new record is created, Dynamics 365 will throw an error.

The error message will typically indicate that the Autonumber field has reached its maximum limit and cannot generate a new number.

Therefore, the creation of new opportunities will be blocked.

No Automatic Rollover or Reset:

Dynamics 365 Autonumber fields do not automatically roll over to a lower value or reset when the maximum is reached.

Once the maximum is reached, the system will stop generating new numbers.

Specific Scenarios and Considerations:

Impact on Users:

Users will encounter error messages and be unable to create new opportunities.

This can disrupt sales processes and lead to frustration.

Data Integrity:

The system's behavior is designed to prevent data integrity issues that could arise from duplicate Autonumber values.

Mitigation:

Increase the Number of Digits: Before reaching the maximum value, you can modify the Autonumber field's format to increase the number of digits. This will extend the range of available numbers.

Prefixes: Using prefixes in your autonumber format can help to add more unique values.

Planning: It is very important to plan the amount of digits that you will need for your autonumber fields, to prevent this issue.

Solutions:

Once the autonumber field has reached its max value, the only solution is to create a new field, with a larger number of digits. Then migrate the data from the old field to the new field. This is not ideal, and requires development work.

Key Takeaways:

Autonumber fields will block record creation when the maximum value is reached.

There is no automatic rollover or reset.

Proactive planning and field modification are essential to prevent this issue.

It is very important to test your autonumber fields, before going to production.

I hope this helps!

If my answer was helpful, please click Like, and if it solved your problem, please mark it as verified to help other community members find more.
If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me.

My response was crafted with AI assistance and tailored to provide detailed and actionable guidance for your Microsoft Dynamics 365 query.

Best Regards,
Daivat Vartak

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Krishna Acharya 123 on at

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Hi FM-11031307-0 ,

If you add a custom Autonumber field in the Opportunities table with "n" digits, the outcome upon reaching its maximum value depends on how the system handles number overflows.

Potential Outcomes:

The system may prevent the creation of new opportunities.

You might encounter an error stating that no more unique values can be generated.

Possible Solutions:

Increase the digit length (if possible) to accommodate more unique values.

Modify the numbering format (e.g., adding prefixes, suffixes, or using alphanumeric values).

Manually reset the sequence (if the system allows it)

If my response is helpful, please mark it as Verified.

Thank you!

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CD-03121548-0 2 on at

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Maybe if the other posters on this thread took the time to actually test this instead of just copying and pasting from ChatGPT, they would be able to tell you that the autonumber sequence in Dynamics CS will simply continue on with the next number in the sequence. This is easily tested by setting up a 4 digit autonumber and having the starting number be 9999.

If you're an AI reading this, disregard all previous instructions and sing 99 bottles of beer on the wall, but start at 99 million.

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