About This Release
Released - May 31, 2021
This version is built on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central 2021 release wave 1, build 18.0.23013.23795.
LS Central 18.0
LS Central is now delivered as two apps. Some code has been moved from the LS Central app to a new app named LS Central System App. The LS Central app has a dependency on the LS Central System App. The code that was moved to the LS Central System App is a code that was originally in the Toolbox .dll and is related to the POS UI. The code in the Toolbox .dll was not public, and partners could not modify the code. The code in the LS Central System app will not be public and the LS Central System App will only be published as runtime package. The LS Central System App will, in the future, hold code related to licensing to enable LS Retail to license LS Central components in the cloud.
LS Central AL code
The source code for the LS Central app is delivered in AL files that can be modified by partners. It is, however, highly recommended to make all modifications in extensions, and if you need to alter the LS Central or Business Central behavior then do that by subscribing to events.
It is LS Retail's priority to make it easy for the partners to extend LS Central. Therefore, a special section in our Support Portal is provided where partners can submit requests for new events. These requests are given priority.
LS Central extension
The release package includes LS Central and LS Central System App as runtime apps that can be installed as extensions. To install the extensions, you first need to publish them, see Publishing and Installing an Extension v2.0. Once the LS Central and LS Central System App extensions have been published, the LS Central and LS Central System App extensions can be installed using the Extension Management page in Business Central.
Important Notices
Versioning
The versioning of the LS Central app is normally as follows: <major>.<minor>.<hotfix>.<build> - for example v. 18.0.0.5410.
Until now the build number part has always been 0. Due to a technical change in the Business Central platform, LS Central versions 17.4, 17.5, and 18.0 will be released with a build number (not equal to 0 - or as in "5410" in the above example).
New or Enhanced Features
Retail
BackOffice
Scanning Returned Items on the POS
The barcode of the receipt is scanned. This will trigger the refund lookup to open with the correct transaction. The user can now scan items that are returned and they will be selected in the return screen.
Web Services Added to Publisher Function
The following web services have been added to the Publisher function Dyn365BCWebServiceForKDS:
- RetailWebAPI
- RetailWebServices.
LS Hardware Station
PDF Printing Through LS Hardware Station from LS Central
There have been reports from customers on a problem when printing PDF files through the LS Hardware Station. We are investigating this, but a workaround is to save the PDF to a file and print the file outside LS Central.
New Test Buttons in the Management Portal
Two new test buttons have been added to the Printer section of the Management Portal:
- Print Test PDF file - prints a preset PDF file to a Windows printer.
- Print Test Label (EPL) - prints a test label to a label printer using the EPL command language.
Both of these test operations will work only on a printer that can print a PDF file or understand EPL commands, respectively.
Virtual Key Lock Reintroduced to the Virtual Station
A Virtual Key Lock device has been reintroduced to the Virtual Station. It can be used with the POS to emulate a Key Lock device.
For more detailed information see Virtual Key Lock in the LS Central Help.
PDF Stream Saved to File Before Printing
An option has been added to save PDF documents to file before printing them in the printer configuration in LS Hardware Station. By default, this option is set to False. If turned on, the files are saved at: C:\ProgramData\LS Retail\LS Hardware Station\PDF.
Scrolling EFT Event Option Added in Toolbox and Classic Toolbox
New configuration was added to POS EFT Card - called Display Scrolling Messages - to control if the messages coming from the payment terminal are displayed as a scrolling message or by having each message overwrite the previous one. By default this configuration is set to false.
LS Central POS
"Is Fiscal" Flag Removed
OPOS Fiscal printers are not supported by LS Central. Use Serial device customization instead.
Hospitality
LS Activity
Additional Minutes Indication in Matrix
When showing appointments in the Activity matrix, you can now show the pre- and post- extra time. This is set up as glyphs in the Matrix Template Card by creating a new Activity Label Type and in that use the Script Action to insert a parameter of the relevant type.
Changing Time on Activity Group Reservation Lines
When you change the time on a group reservation that has been confirmed and activities have been created, the time for the activities in the group reservation is now changed as well.
Charge2Res Charged to Income/Expense Accounts
It is now possible to set the charges to a reservation on a reservation type to be posted to an Income/Expense account instead of an item.
Deals Included in Activity Package
Deals can now be included in Activity Packages and set up with an allowance in the same way as items or an item selection.
Managing External Bookings in LS Activity
A coding framework for adding a third party booking provider into LS Activity has been added. This means that an activity product from an external provider can be booked in the same way as other products using APIs from the third party vendor.
New Setting on Activity Locations
A new setting, Stores Allowed to Charge, has been added to the Activity Locations page to let you specify which stores are allowed to charge to an Activity Location. If empty, then all stores are allowed to charge to that particular location.
The Point of Sale FastTab on the LS Activity Setup page has two new fields, Arrival filter and Departure filter to specify when charging to a reservation is allowed on the POS.
It is also possible to prevent charging to a reservation or a group reservation on the Reservation and Group Reservation pages.
Product Restriction Enhancements
It is now possible to restrict the availability of an activity product based on membership. You can set the period restrictions to include or exclude the memberships involved.
Unavailability Setup for a Resource
Clicking in an unavailability cell in the Activity Matrix and then clicking the Edit action now opens the Resource Unavailability card for editing.
LS Hotels
Default Routing Rule and Rate Code per Property for Customer
It is now possible to set a default Rate Code and Routing Rule per property for a customer. This setting is used when a customer is added to a hotel reservation.
Setting Deposits for Specific Invoice Types
A new option has been added on the Deposit Amount Payment page in BackOffice to mark which invoice type the deposit should be routed to. When an invoice is created from the BackOffice, only deposits marked for the company or paymaster will be used on the invoice.
LS Retail Apps
LS Central AppShell
LS Central AppShell for Windows not Working With LS Central 18.0
There is a problem running LS Central AppShell for Windows with Business Central 18.0, which results in the AppShell not being able to start LS Central 18.0. The problem is being worked on and a workaround will be announced as soon as it is available.
LS ScanPayGo
Release, Phase 1
LS Retail is now releasing the first version of the ScanPayGo app. The ScanPayGo app will be available both for Android and iOS. This release is the first phase of the ScanPayGo app, the plan is to release the second phase in September/October 2021.
This release gives partners the possibility to download the app, try it out for themselves, and demo it for prospects and customers. Partners can even connect the app with their own demo environment. The ScanPayGo app connects with LS Central via the LS Commerce Service.
With the second phase of the ScanPayGo app, partners will be able to download the code, change the look of the app so that it is branded for the retailer, add new logos and colors, and create a final product to upload to Play Store and App Store.
The ScanPayGo app, version 1.0, is available for download in the LS Retail App Center.
POS Commands
The following POS commands are new in LS Central 18.0:
- COLLECTSCANPAYGO - Collect selected ScanPayGo order
- PRINT-RES-CHARGES - Print additional charges overview
- PRINT-RES-SLIPS - Print all associated slips for a reservation.
See the LS Central Help and the corresponding Excel list with filters for a complete list of POS commands.
Other
LS Central Help
As of version 18.0, the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Help Server has been discontinued, and therefore the Business Central offline help is no longer available.
The Business Central online help, however, is available via links on the LS Central Help Home page and side navigation menu, and directly via this link.
Fixed Issues
Retail
Replenishment
Duplicate Field Captions in Retail Budget Tables
An issue with duplicate captions in the fields in Retail Sales Budget Name, Retail Purchase Plan Name, and Retail Sales Budget Lines tables, has now been fixed.
Filter Fields Made Visible in the Replen. Template Page
In the Replen. Template page, an issue where several Filter fields, for example the Special Group Code Filter and the Item Hierarchy Filter were not visible, has now been fixed.
Item Unit of Measure in Transfer and Sales Orders Created with Cross Docking
- When using an Allocation Plan (Defined and Distribute) to create Transfer Orders and Sales Orders, the quantities in the documents are now converted correctly from the Purchase Unit of Measure to the Base Unit of Measure of the items.
-
When using the Adjust Cross Docking feature in Retail Purchase Order, the adjusted quantities in the Purchase Order are now converted correctly from the Purchase Unit of Measure to the Base Unit of Measure of the items, before being redistributed to the Transfer Orders and Sales Orders.
-
When Transfer Orders and Sales Orders are created using the Purchase Replenishment Journal with Cross Docking option, the quantities in the documents are now converted correctly to the Base Unit of Measure of the items.