Restore Print Management Settings After a Database Copy from Production to UAT D365FO Environment

D365FO
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Copying a database from Production to UAT in Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations is a common task for testing and troubleshooting.

When copying a database from Production to UAT (or any other lower environment) Print management settings are reset. This behaviour is expected and documented by Microsoft (Refresh database | Microsoft Learn).

There are two scenarios you might want to cover when it comes to preserving the Print management settings.

Scenario 1: Preserve existing UAT Print management settings

In many cases, UAT has environment-specific Print management settings that must not be lost, like for example:

  • Test printers
  • Test email recipients
  • Separate network locations (SharePoint, SFTP, file shares)

For such case, the procedure below explains how to preserve existing UAT Print management settings when refreshing the database from Production:

Step 1: Export Print management settings from UAT

Before copying the database:

  1. Open and review Print management settings in the UAT environment.
    For a complete overview, use our Print management utilities tool, which displays all Print management settings in a single view.

  2. Open Data Management workspace.

  3. Export these settings using the Docentric Print Management Settings Package data entity. Learn how >>

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Step 2: Perform the database copy

Proceed with copying the database from Production to UAT as planned.

Step 3: Import Print management settings into UAT environment

Import the settings exported in Step 1 after the database copy is completed:

  1. Open Data Management workspace in the UAT environment.

  2. Create a new Import job and import the previously exported file by following the instructions from the link above.

  3. Run the import job to apply the Print management settings to the UAT environment.


Scenario 2: Copy Print management settings from PROD to UAT

This scenario applies when you want the Print management settings from the Production environment to be available in UAT (or another lower-tier environment).
Unlike Scenario 1, the database is copied first, and the Production settings are exported afterward.

Step 1: Perform the database copy

Copy the database from Production to UAT environment.

Step 2: Export Print management settings from Production

After the database copy:

  1. Open and review Print management settings in the Production environment.
    For a complete overview, you can use our Print management utilities tool, to see all Print management settings in a single view.

  2. Open Data Management workspace.

    1. Export the settings using the Docentric Print Management Settings Package data entity. Learn how >>

Step 3: Import Print management settings into UAT environment

Import the settings exported in Step 1 after the database copy is completed:

  1. Open Data Management workspace in the UAT environment.

  2. Create a new Import job and import the previously exported file by following the instructions from the link above.

  3. Run the import job to apply the Print management settings to the UAT environment.

Always verify and adjust settings

After the import:

  1. Open Print management settings in UAT (or another target environment) and confirm that all configurations are restored correctly.

  2. Test a few critical documents or reports to ensure Print management configurations work as expected.

  3. Adjust any environment-specific settings if necessary, such as:

  • Printer paths
  • Email settings
  • Network resources (SharePoint, SFTP, …)

This is important to avoid unintended actions, for example sending emails to real customers from UAT environment.