Microsoft Dynamics GP contains a number of features
that can't be controlled via the interface. The controls for these
features reside in an initialization file known as the Dex.ini file. Dynamics GP loads settings from the Dex.ini file as it starts. The Dex.ini
file settings affect only the computer on which the file is installed.
This means that the system can behave differently for different users if
their Dex.ini files are different.
As an example, Dex.ini file settings can be
used to control the date warning that appears when midnight passes,
allow the installation of update files without a warning, and
dramatically speed up the export of SmartLists to Excel. If a particular
setting is not present in the Dex.ini file a user can simply add it to the end of the file.
If there are errors in the Dex.ini file it can prevent Dynamics GP from opening. So users should make a copy of the Dex.ini file before making changes. In this recipe, we'll look at how to apply some of the most common and useful Dex.ini settings.
Getting ready
Before we can change Dex.ini settings we need to open up the file. To open and modify the Dex.ini file:
1. Open the Notepad utility provided with all copies of Microsoft Windows.
2. In Notepad select File | Open. Navigate to the GP folder. Typically, this is found in c:\Program Files\Microsoft Dynamics\GP.
3. Open the Data folder and select Dex.ini to open the file. (If the Dex.ini file is not visible type *.ini in the File name field to show files without a .txt extension):
How to do it...
To demonstrate how to change the settings in the Dex.ini
file we'll start by turning on an alternative setting to dramatically
speed up exporting SmartLists to Excel and then we'll look at other
common settings:
1.
To force Dynamics GP to export SmartLists to Excel using the much
faster recordset method instead of the default line-by-line process
navigate to the Dex.ini file and add the line SmartlistEnhancedExcelExport=TRUE to the bottom of the Dex.ini file.
2. To force Dynamics GP to always open in a full screen navigate to the Dex.ini file, find the setting named WindowMax, and set it to WindowMax=True.
3. To suppress sounds in Dynamics GP, but not other applications, find the setting SupressSound and set it to SupressSound=True.
4. Prevent the warning that appears when adding new code or modules to Dynamics GP by finding AutoInstallChunks and setting it to AutoInstallChunks=True.
5.
One of the problems that occur when exporting Report Writer based
reports is that long sets of data wrap to the next line in the export.
This makes opening and analyzing exported data in Excel difficult. To
prevent text report lines from wrapping when exporting find the Dex.ini
setting named ExportOneLineBody and set it to ExportOneLineBody=True.
6. Reducing posting steps with better Printing Control, we looked at how to turn off the print dialogue box via the interface. The same result can be accomplished by finding the NoPrintDialogs setting and changing it to NoPrintDialogs=True.
7.
Finally, when the computer time passes midnight Dynamics GP displays a
message indicating that the date has changed and asking the user if they
want to change the date in Dynamics GP. This message can be turned off
by setting SuppressChangeDateDialog=True. The date in the open Dynamics GP session won't automatically change to the next day, the warning is simply suppressed.
8. When finished, select File | Save to save the Dex.ini file and restart Dynamics GP to see the changes.
There's more...
These settings are just a sample of common changes that can be made via the Dex.ini file. There are lot more settings available.
Additional Dex.ini settings
OLEPath=\\server\folder\ole: This sets the path for linked and
embedded files and should be the same for all users. When using a
Universal Naming Convention path, such as \\server\,
the complete folder structure must exist. Dynamics GP will not create
it with the first note. If a mapped drive is used, such as f:\, the folder structure does not have to be created beforehand.
ShowAdvancedMacroMenu=True: This setting turns on an additional menu for working with macros.
DPSInstance=1: This setting allows the use of multiple process
servers on a single physical machine. Process servers can be used to
move the load of certain functions, such as posting, off a user's
machine and on to a central process server.
SampleDateMsg=False: This setting prevents the date warning
that appears when the sample company is opened in Dynamics GP. However,
the sample date is still set to 4/12/2017.
SampleDateMMDDYYYY=00000000: This prevents the date warning in the sample company and sets the sample company date to the current date.
SampleDateMMDDYYYY=03302010: This prevents the date warning in
the sample company and sets the date to the date entered in the setting.
In this case, March 30, 2010.
