Pieter Jansen
Export to Data Lake stops 30 November 2026: what to check
Dynamics 365 F&O Export to Data Lake stops on 30 November 2026. The impact on finance reports, Link to Fabric and Synapse Link compared, and a checklist.
Microsoft says Export to Data Lake in Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations permanently stops on 30 November 2026, with no extensions (checked 23 October 2026). Nothing is exported after that; exported files stay. The replacements are Link to Microsoft Fabric and Azure Synapse Link for Dataverse. Check which reports depend on those files and whether closed-month figures change.
What changes on 30 November 2026
- What stops. The notice covers the legacy Export to Data Lake add-in that is installed on an environment through Lifecycle Services (LCS). It uses change data capture to export CSV files to your own data lake (Microsoft transition FAQ).
- What stays. No new or changed data is exported, but the files already in your data lake remain in place (Microsoft).
- What the notice does not cover. Link to Fabric and Azure Synapse Link for Dataverse remain supported. Existing Link to Fabric profiles are not turned off by this notice (Microsoft transition FAQ).
- Why. Microsoft decided to stop developing the feature and replace it with Azure Synapse Link for Dataverse (Microsoft).
Timeline
| Date | What happens | Who it affects |
|---|---|---|
| 1 November 2024 | Microsoft retired Export to Data Lake. | Everyone using the add-in |
| 30 November 2026 | The service stops for good. No new or changed data is exported; existing files stay. No extensions. | Everyone whose reports or data warehouses read those files |
| After your move | The add-in can be uninstalled in LCS. Microsoft says this causes no downtime and the files stay. | IT and the F&O administrator |
| 1 June 2027 | Azure Synapse Analytics changes how it reaches firewall-protected storage accounts. Microsoft moved this change from 1 August 2026 and added a setting that keeps the current behaviour. | Teams that choose Azure Synapse Link and keep the storage account behind a firewall |
| Not set | BYOD (bring your own database): no retirement date has been set, but Microsoft recommends moving. | Teams that use BYOD |
Sources: Microsoft: removed or deprecated features and the Microsoft transition FAQ, checked 23 October 2026.
The two replacements
Microsoft’s transition guidance recommends Link to Microsoft Fabric with low-latency sync for most organisations. It recommends Azure Synapse Link when data must keep landing in your own storage account. Both run on the same data engine, so the column changes are the same in both (FAQ).
The data route before and after
| Route | How the data moves |
|---|---|
| Before: Export to Data Lake | F&O, CSV files in your data lake, your own pipelines and data stores, the report |
| After: Link to Fabric | F&O, Dataverse managed storage (Delta Parquet), shortcuts into Fabric, the report |
| After: Azure Synapse Link | F&O, your Azure storage account (Delta Parquet or CSV change files), your pipelines, the report |
Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 FastTrack team publishes transition tools on GitHub that recreate a data shape similar to Export to Data Lake in Fabric or Synapse (FAQ).
What finance should compare
| What to check | Link to Microsoft Fabric | Azure Synapse Link for Dataverse |
|---|---|---|
| Where the data lives | In Dataverse. Authorised users see it in Fabric; no storage account of your own is needed. | In your own Azure storage account. You manage user access. |
| Choosing tables | You select F&O tables yourself, at setup or later in Manage tables; they are not selected automatically. Only selected tables use storage. | An administrator chooses the tables, up to 1,000 per profile. For F&O tables in a query profile, Delta Lake must be enabled; an incremental-update profile writes CSV change files. |
| Freshness, as Microsoft states it | Changes typically take up to an hour to appear, depending on volume and load. For low-latency sync Microsoft gives throughput (up to 1 million or more records per hour per F&O table), not minutes. | You choose the interval: 5, 15 or 60 minutes, or daily. Data can refresh less often than the chosen interval, depending on the Spark pool size and the volume of changes. |
| History and deleted rows | An initial sync runs at setup and whenever a table is added. Deleted rows stay, flagged (isDelete). If you use long-term retention and relink a profile for low-latency sync, the shortcuts currently show live data only. | The first export contains all rows, then changes follow. Deleted rows are flagged (IsDelete) and purged from the Delta files after 28 days. |
| What drives cost | Dataverse database capacity. The quota depends on the number of licences; add-on storage can be bought above it. Plus Fabric or Power BI Premium capacity in the same region as Dataverse. | Azure storage, a Synapse workspace and a Spark pool for the Delta conversion: the shorter the interval, the more compute. A data lake alone is enough for CSV change exports. |
| Prerequisites | System Administrator role in the Power Platform environment and Power BI workspace administrator. Low-latency sync needs a minimum F&O build; Microsoft’s table lists versions 10.0.47 to 10.0.49. | An F&O sandbox (Tier-2) or higher environment, an Azure subscription and a new Synapse Link profile. |
| Who Microsoft recommends it for | Most organisations moving off the legacy services, with low-latency sync. | When data must land in your own storage account, for example for existing pipelines. |
Sources: Link to Fabric setup, Link to Fabric FAQ, F&O data in Azure Synapse Link and the transition guidance, checked 23 October 2026. We do not quote prices here.
How this affects your reports
The move is IT work, but the finance question is simple: do the reports show the same numbers afterwards?
- The old files stop updating. After 30 November 2026 a report built on those files shows the state of the last export. The gap is easy to miss: the report still opens, but new postings are missing.
- Deleted rows. Export to Data Lake removed a row from the lake as soon as it was deleted at source. The new services keep the row and flag it (Microsoft). If a report sums every row, deleted rows must be filtered out.
- Column names and fields. The ID field is now FnO_Id, SQL reserved words get a trailing underscore (for example Level_), time zone and binary fields are gone, and long text is cut at 2,000 characters (FAQ).
- Exchange rates. On older versions, tables with valid time behaviour, such as ExchangeRate, exported only the currently valid rows. The fix is in Microsoft’s updates, and a full refresh is needed to bring in earlier rows (Microsoft). In group reporting this affects the translation of companies that report in another currency.
- Companies that share data. If you use master company data sharing (a preview feature), shared tables are exported with the records of every company. Compared with the old export you may need to filter out the other companies (Microsoft).
- Freshness. Agree with management what "today’s figures" means. Through Link to Fabric, Microsoft says changes typically take up to an hour to appear (FAQ).
The simplest check: one closed month through both routes
Before the old route is switched off, take one closed month and compare each company’s figures through the old and the new route, report line by report line. Below is a month of our fictional sample group. Its companies use other ledgers, but the check is the same: every line must give the same amount through both routes.
| Company | Revenue | Gross profit | EBITDA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company A | 800 | 330 | 100 |
| Company B | 400 | 150 | 50 |
| Company C | 300 | 120 | 30 |
| Elimination | −40 | −40 | 0 |
| Group | 1,460 | 560 | 180 |
If the new route gives group revenue other than 1,460 thousand euros, look for the cause in the data: deleted rows, a missing table, a renamed column or an exchange rate. How the group figures are put together each month is shown in our guide to monthly group reporting.
A checklist for the finance team
Find every dependency
Ask IT whether the Export to Data Lake add-in is installed in your F&O environment, and which reports, models, Excel files or data warehouses read its files. Mark the ones used in the month-end close and in management reporting.
Choose the new route with IT
Link to Fabric or Azure Synapse Link. Decide where the data lives, who can reach it and what freshness finance needs. The deadline is 30 November 2026 and there are no extensions.
Confirm the tables you need
For example general ledger entries, the chart of accounts, financial dimensions, companies and exchange rates. Microsoft says the company table DATAAREA refreshes once every 24 hours, not continuously (Microsoft). If change tracking cannot be enabled for a data entity, Microsoft says you can choose the tables that make up the entity. For a derived table, select its base table too.
Check the version
Low-latency sync needs a minimum F&O build. The exchange-rate fix and other fixes may need an update and a full refresh. Ask IT for the current version and build number.
Adjust the report logic
Add a filter for deleted rows (isDelete) and point references to the new column names (for example FnO_Id). If companies share data, check the company filter.
Compare one closed month
Same period, same companies, old and new route side by side. Record every difference and its cause before the old route is switched off.
Decide what happens to the old files
Files already exported stay in your data lake. Agree whether and how long to keep them, and whether any report needs periods archived with long-term retention.
Remove the old add-in
Once the move is done, the F&O administrator uninstalls the add-in in LCS. Microsoft says this causes no downtime and the files stay.
Frequently asked questions
Will Microsoft extend the 30 November 2026 deadline?
No. Microsoft’s transition FAQ says no extensions will be granted after 30 November 2026.
Will the files in our data lake be deleted?
No. Files already exported stay in place, but no new or changed data is added to them.
Does the notice affect Link to Fabric or Azure Synapse Link?
No. Both remain supported, and existing Link to Fabric profiles are not turned off by this notice.
Does BYOD end at the same time?
Microsoft has not set a retirement date for BYOD, but recommends moving to Azure Synapse Link or Link to Fabric.
Will our month-end numbers change?
The accounting does not change; the route the data takes to the report does. That is why it pays to compare one closed month through both routes before the move.
Next step
If you would like to talk through the data route behind your F&O reports, book a call. An overview of the systems is on our systems page.
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: Removed or deprecated platform features, Export to Azure Data Lake, page dated 25 August 2026, checked 23 October 2026.
- Microsoft Learn: Transitioning from legacy data integration services, FAQ, page dated 14 October 2026, checked 23 October 2026.
- Microsoft Learn: Transition from legacy data integration services, page dated 30 March 2026, checked 23 October 2026.
- Microsoft Learn: Configure your environment and link to Microsoft Fabric, page dated 28 September 2026, checked 23 October 2026.
- Microsoft Learn: Fabric Link for Dataverse, FAQ, page dated 1 October 2026, checked 23 October 2026.
- Microsoft Learn: Choose finance and operations data in Azure Synapse Link for Dataverse, page dated 3 August 2026, checked 23 October 2026.
- Microsoft Learn: System tables, DataArea, page dated 1 April 2026, checked 23 October 2026.
- Sample data: the fictional sample group, the same as in the monthly group reporting guide.