AI in Business Central sounds exciting… until you try to build something and hit that first wall:

“Where do I even start?”

If you’ve looked at Microsoft’s documentation, you probably got the idea—but not always the steps. And when you’re busy, the last thing you want is to spend an hour just figuring out where to click.

So let’s make this real.

This is a practical, step-by-step walkthrough—based on Microsoft’s docs—using a simple but meaningful example: a Sales Order Validation Agent.

First—one important note

👉 This feature is currently in Preview.

That means:

• Use it in a sandbox environment

• Expect to test and iterate

• Don’t treat it as production-ready (yet)

Microsoft positions this toolkit as a prototyping environment, not a finished automation engine. And that’s actually helpful—it gives you permission to experiment.

The example we’ll build

We’ll create an agent that:

• Reviews sales orders

• Checks inventory availability

• Helps determine if an order is ready to process

Nothing flashy. Just something useful.

Because let’s be honest:

👉 How many times does someone in your team double-check a sales order before releasing it?

That’s exactly the kind of task this is meant for.

Before you start

Make sure you have:

• A sandbox environment (v27.2+)

• The Custom Agent capability enabled

• Permissions like AGENT - ADMIN

• Access to Copilot & agent capabilities

Step-by-step: Creating your agent (the correct flow)

This is the part most blogs get wrong. Let’s keep it clean and accurate.

1. Enable the AI capability

• Use Search (Alt + Q)

• Type Copilot & agent capabilities

• Open the page

Enable the custom agent capability.

If required, allow data movement.

👉 If this isn’t enabled, nothing else will work.

2. Open the Agent page

• Use Search (Alt + Q)

• Type Agent

• Open the Agent page from the results

This is the most reliable way to access the feature—don’t rely on UI shortcuts.

3. Start designing your agent

On the Agent page:

• Click Design

• Select Create Agent

This opens the Create Agent wizard.

4. Choose a template

In the wizard:

• Select Sales Validation template

• Click Create agent

This gives you a working starting point with predefined logic.

If you’re doing this for the first time, don’t start from scratch. This template is there for a reason.

5. Review and rename your agent

Once created, you’ll land in the configuration screen.

Update:

• Agent Name → e.g. Sales Order Validation Agent

• Description (optional)

Keep it simple and clear. You’ll likely create more agents later.

6. Set up the profile (this part matters more than it looks)

• Go to Profile

• Click Setup profile

This controls what the agent can “see” in Business Central.

👉 Best practice:
Give it a minimal, focused profile—only what it needs to do the job.

Think of it like onboarding a new employee. You wouldn’t give them access to everything on day one.

7. Assign permissions

• Go to Permissions

• Click Manage permissions

• Add required permission sets

For example:

• Sales Orders access

• Item / inventory read access

Important detail:

👉 The agent runs using the intersection of user permissions and agent permissions

So if something doesn’t work later, this is one of the first places to check.

8. Adjust the instructions

• Go to Instructions

• Click Edit

This is where you define how the agent behaves.

For this example, keep it practical:

• Review sales orders for the shipment date

• Check inventory availability

• Confirm readiness for processing

• Flag issues or request review if needed

👉 If your instructions are vague, your results will be too.

9. Activate the agent

• Turn on the Active toggle

• Click Update

Your agent is now active in your sandbox.

Now test it properly (this is where it becomes real)

This is the part that actually shows whether your agent works.

10. Add inventory

• Search for Items

• Open an Item Card

• In the Inventory section:

  • Adjust inventory

  • Add quantity to a valid location

Without this, your agent has nothing meaningful to validate.

11. Create a sales order

• Search for Sales Orders

• Create a new order

• Add:

  • Customer

  • Item

  • Quantity

  • Location

Optional (but useful):

• Reserve inventory

• Set a shipping date

12. Run the agent

• Search for Agent Tasks (preview)

• Open the page

• Click Run task

Enter:

• Title: Validate sales orders

• Message:
  Run and process shipment date <your date>

Click OK

What happens next?

The agent will:

• Pick up the task

• Review the sales order

• Apply your instructions

• Log what it did

Now you can:

• Check results

• Review logs

• Adjust instructions

A few practical lessons (you’ll run into these)

• If it fails → check permissions first

• If results are inconsistent → refine instructions

• If it feels unreliable → your task is too broad

And the biggest mindset shift:

👉 This isn’t automation you configure once
👉 It’s something you train and refine

Why this matters

Once you get one agent working, things start to click.

You’ll start seeing opportunities in:

• Invoice validation

• Approval flows

• Data quality checks

• Repetitive reviews

But don’t rush there.

Start with one agent that works well.

Final thought

The AI toolkit in Business Central isn’t about replacing processes overnight.

It’s about proving what can be automated safely.

So here’s a better question to leave with:

👉 What’s one process in your system that people don’t fully trust without checking?

That’s your first agent.

Let’s take it further

If you want help turning this into something practical in your environment—or just want a sanity check before you start—reach out to channel@4sight.cloud.

Sometimes one well-built agent is all it takes to change how your team works.