What does “Microsoft Dynamics RMS End of Life” mean?
Back in 2015, the Microsoft Dynamics RMS (Retail Management System) was claimed to enter its “extended support” phase which means that future development is going to other versions and Microsoft’s RMS retail solution has reached its end of life. As of July 13, 2021, the extended support will also end.
Overall, you can follow the timeline by seeing the overview of the product lifecycle of Microsoft Dynamics RMS below:
- In March of 2015, Microsoft made a public announcement that Microsoft Dynamics Retail Management System (RMS), their retail point of sale solution, was reaching its End of Life.
- Starting in 2016, Microsoft Dynamics RMS was off the shelf for new customers.
- On 10th July 2016, mainstream support for RMS officially ended.
- The extended support is going to end on July 13, 2021. This means that Microsoft still continues supporting the latest existing version of RMS through July 2021.
According to the updated numbers from Convergence 2015 provided by Jim Desler, Director, Corporate Communications at Microsoft, at least 45,000 companies using Microsoft Dynamics RMS. Until the 13th of July 2021, Microsoft still continues supporting the latest existing version of RMS.
However, under this extended phase, existing customers have to maintain a paid annual maintenance agreement. Furthermore, with the end of RMS extended support service soon coming, Microsoft Dynamics RMS users are in the need of looking for a suitable alternative solution.
Why do you need a Microsoft RMS Replacement?
If your organization is using Microsoft RMS, even the solution is meeting your requirements and the extended support has not expired yet, upgrading or changing to another retail POS software is still recommended.
Think of the extended support phase as a retirement phase for the retail management software, once it officially ends, Microsoft Dynamics RMS becomes an outdated software and your organization might face a few problems which will lead to a delay in your business development.
Extra fee to maintain the system
No longer being able to buy new licenses of Microsoft RMS, you have to maintain the system by a paid annual maintenance agreement and rely on value-added resellers (VARs) to support the software. Those not only cost your organization a bunch of money but once the Microsoft Dynamics RMS is discontinued, no partner can further support the system.
Not to mention that currently, you can be charged extra fees for maintaining outdated software. Once it gets old, maintenance becomes too cost-prohibitive.
A significant overhaul to get on with the standards of evolving technology and the tastes of UI designs
Microsoft Dynamics RMS has been representing a great value in the POS marketplace for clients who are using it and are growing and adding stores. However, when it reaches its End of Life, without the needed support and update, if there is anything your business needs right now or in the near future, even long-term, you cannot do now with RMS.
Just imagine the same model machine being made for decades with few to no noticeable apparent changes, without keeping pace with the standards of evolving technology and UI design trends, your organization might face the same situation and that would be a nightmare.
Additional problems with RMS
As consequence of lacking proper support and update, there are more problems with obsolete software such as:
- Loss of working integrations or add-ons
- Lack of hardware support
- Issues with Windows 10
RMS is not the only software product that a software giant like Microsoft has decided to sundown, but if you are in the retail management space, it’s time to looking for an alternative system!
Top Microsoft Dynamics RMS Alternatives in 2020
Recommended replacement is in your decision, but here we have a list of top Microsoft Dynamics RMS Alternatives in 2020 to help you choose the most suitable solution for your organization.
1. Retail Management Hero (RMH) – A Microsoft RMS Upgrade
With the aim of being an upgrade for small-to-medium size businesses using Microsoft Dynamics RMS, RMH includes all the features that retailers love in RMS, and many of the hotkeys, for example, do the same in RMH as they do in RMS. Besides, RMH supports the majority of the hardware supported by RMS, avoiding the expense of costly upgrades in IT infrastructure.
Overview of Retail Management Hero features:
- Back office capabilities (purchasing, accounts receivables)
- Payment processing
- Business intelligence
- Inventory
- Multi-language support
- eCommerce integration
The solution is based on the RMS system so keeping your data, existing hardware, and anything else tied to your current system will be easily upgraded.
2. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce: A POS-eCommerce RMS Upgrade
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce is a combination of Microsoft Dynamics AX and Dynamics 365 including POS functionality.
Overview of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce features:
- Customer insights
- Editable grids
- Web API enhancements
- Activity sorting control
- Programmatic management of product properties
- Define access permission for modular business apps
- Use form scripts to add icons with tooltip text for view columns
- Client APIs for creating and managing records in Dynamics 365 mobile clients
- Server-to-server authentication
- Process enhancements
- Sitemap designer for apps
- Power BI
- Dynamics 365 app for Outlook
- Cortana integration
With Dynamics 365 Commerce eCommerce management-focused capabilities, users can:
- Save on IT costs.
- Engage customers across channels.
- Build loyalty and exceed expectations.
- Get everything to build and run digital commerce.
- Streamline and optimize your retail operations.
- Get the flexibility and security you need.
Those 2 first on the top list are Microsoft recommended replacements because with the built basement from Microsoft RMS, all the work and data that you have put into RMS over years will be easily transferred to your new software including all history. It is one the biggest advantages of choosing RMH and Dynamics 365 Commerce, along with discount offers from Microsoft.
If you want to start on a brand new software full of new features and claiming to be a replacement for RMS, the names continuously listed below are considerable.
3. Shopify POS
Shopify is a premier web-based POS platform in the retail market with over 1 million business customers worldwide using its e-commerce, Amazon marketplace, and point-of-sale services. As an e-commerce powerhouse specifically created for Retail, Shopify POS equips you with streamlined tools to manage your retail businesses with ease.
Shopify POS has been a leader in small business and mid-market thanks to its reasonable pricing structure, intuitive design, and a thorough customer support system. Not only easy to navigate and set up but also being continuously updated to suit retailers needs, if you are owning a Shopify eCommerce store, there is no doubt that it is easy to integrate your Shopify POS with your online store.
Shopify POS offers a list of lifetime supporting features that depends on your plan such as:
- Email cart add-on
- Product QR codes
- External card terminals
- Gift cards and discounts
- Partial payments
- Split tenders
- Custom payment types
- Popular payment method support
- Low in-person card rates
- Shopify hardware integration
- Cash flow management tools
- No hidden fees
- POS hardware
- POS software
- Connectivity screens
- Free shipping and returns for POS tools
- Compatible accessories
- Customized checkout
- Global search
- Mobile checkout
- Taxes
- Custom discounts
- Custom receipts
Among 6 Shopify POS plans – Lite Plan, Basic Shopify Plan, Shopify Plan, Advanced Shopify Plan, and Shopify POS Pro, you can look for more details to see which one is the most suitable for your business needs to replace Microsoft Dynamics RMS.
4. Square Point of Sale
Square Point of Sale is an option with a great feature selection for organizations looking for flat, predictable pricing. The POS app is designed for a wide variety of businesses and includes digital receipts, customer feedback via receipt, and other features.
Because of its flexible POS setup and suitability for small to midsize businesses, Square Point of Sale has become a versatile option for companies that require brick-and-mortar retail along with online e-commerce operations.
You will love how easy Square is to use both online and in-person. Online, you can quickly add customers, send estimates or invoices, and track them. In addition to it, you can set up a basic shopping cart system to sell products and send customers to the URL for quick purchases. In-person, those same items can be selected via a tablet or computer by customers. Square POS users can even send invoices using their smartphones.
Square Point of Sale offers the following features:
- Credit card processing
- Printable sales reports
- Accounting system integration
- Adjustable taxes
- Discount management
- Tipping by percentage or custom amount
- Full & partial refunds
- Customizable loyalty programs & rewards
- Manual credit card entry
- Customer signature capture
- Receipt printer support
- Barcode scanner support
- Digital receipts via SMS or email
- Cash, check & gift card payment recording
- Employee permission management
- Employee clock-in/clock-out
- Labor hour reporting
- Multi-location reporting
- Custom item library
- Price variations by item
- Bulk item import
- Item search
- Summary reports
- Cash drawer history
- Transaction history
- Offline mode
5. Lightspeed Retail
Lightspeed Retail is a cloud-based POS solution that is suitable for retailers in industries such as apparel, footwear, bike, jewelry, pet, sporting goods, and home decor. The solution offers retailers tools including inventory management, retail store management, cash drawer control, payment processing, purchase order management, customer profile access, accounting software integration, and integration with POS hardware such as barcode scanner or receipt printer tools. Lightspeed offers a fully integrated, eCommerce platform that allows customers to manage in-store and online inventory, have a single view of customers, and analyze multi-channel sales data.
Furthermore, the Lightspeed Retail POS iPad app enables businesses to create an iPad POS system within their retail store to process payments, perform returns, accept gift card payments, apply discounts, and more, and it can also be used in offline mode. LightSpeed Retail is conquering the market as a leading POS provider, you can read more details about it through our recent article about LightSpeed POS Introduction.
The main features of Lightspeed are:
- Advanced Reporting Uploader
- Customer Profiling
- Customization Options
- Data Reports
- Drag and Drop
- Inventory Management
- Invoicing
- Multi-Store Passwords
- Omnichannel
- Ordering
- POS
- Purchase Orders included in API
- Purchasing Inventory
- Quoting
- Sales Reports
- Track Product Transfers
6. Toast POS
Toast POS is a cloud- and tablet-based restaurant management platform that enables you to rid your business of your old POS and provides you absolute control and a real-time view of your business at all times. You will find that the best benefits that come with the software are those offered by its integrations, which provide the following features:
- Gift and Loyalty Programs
- Inventory
- Online Ordering
- Business Visibility
- Table Payment and Line Busting
- Customer-facing Screens
- Flexible Android App
- Integrate POS with Payroll
Other Considerable RMS Alternatives
Besides all the POS software mentioned above, one of the names in the top RMS Alternatives below, sorted by FinancesOnline, an independent B2B software review platform that lists reviews of products from the category of Business-to-business services, could also be an option for you.
Top Alternatives To Microsoft Dynamics RMS By Total Score:
- QuickBooks POS
- Cybersys POS
- Loyverse POS
- Highline
- COMCASH POS
Top Alternatives To Microsoft Dynamics RMS By Price:
- GoFrugal POS
- Cegid
- IVEPOS
- WooPOS
- KORONA
So what is the next step?
It is a true challenge to find a trustworthy POS Software solution that fits both your needs and your budget limits. When studying a variety of alternatives to Microsoft Dynamics RMS, what you should pay attention to are not only offered tools and product features but also to other important aspects like price, level of client support, supported mobile devices, and offered integrations.
Now you have chosen your new POS software, then what should you do next?
If your company does not have an in-house development team, it’s time to find a solution provider to help you manage the data and get ready with the new system by:
1. Migrate your data from Microsoft Dynamics RMS to the chosen alternative software.
2. Integrate your eCommerce platform with the new system.
As a strategy, integration is the first step toward transforming data into other systems and applications. Because disconnected systems and data sources can slow down your process and negatively affect your business, looking for an effective data integration vendor is crucial to your organization.
If you are anticipate integrating your eCommerce store and Microsoft Dynamics RMS into any system, no need to waste your time on a handful of options out there because here we can help!
How can we help you?
Having been in the data integration market for years, Beehexa has successfully developed our own integration platform called HexaSync. It acts as a middleware that can help to connect any software and applications, no matter they are legacy systems or modern SaaS applications. With HexaSync, we have helped numerous companies to connect their online store with ERP, POS, CRM, and eCommerce applications to automate their business process.
The integration of Microsoft Dynamics with other systems is one of our outstanding products. Therefore, we are confident that we can help you transfer data from your Dynamics RMS to your new POS software seamlessly without delaying your business process. Not just stop there, our HexaSync enables the integration between your eCommerce platform with any other systems, so you do not have to look for another solution provider for further data integration projects. This will definitely make it much easier to maintain and grow your business.
Conclusion
For many business owners, moving to a new POS system or retail management platform can be daunting. With Microsoft Dynamics RMS End of Life is around the corner, having sufficient research will help you find software that contains all the elements you for your organization at an affordable price.
Though it may be challenging to find the best product to fulfill the needs of your organization, you can always have our support to make the right decision.
Need a free consultation? Don’t hesitate to contact us now!
