Web client vs Windows client: 7 benefits to make your work easier

How do you prefer to check your e-mail? Do you by default use the desktop application to read your email? Or are you one of those who prefers to use the web application? Research by Litmus shows that 36% of people use webmail to check their emails compared to 17% that still use the desktop application. How about you? Do you prefer the flexibility of a browser over a local application? And how about your business software? Do you always work with the Windows Client?

Yes? Well, you are not the only one. Many of our customers use the (locally installed) windows client. But at the same time, we notice that the desire increases to have more flexibility in the way they use the application. Just get away from the office and still be able to run your business from home or on the road. Simultaneously, we are increasingly used to execute all kinds of tasks from a browser and less and less from local applications. And that also applies to business applications. This increases the demand for the web client. We also see this shift within our own customer base. At the end of last year, for example, a customer went live with only the Web client and at the end of this month the next one will go live. But what are the benefits of the web client compared to the windows Client?

“You can remotely access Dynamics NAV using the web client via your laptop, tablet or phone just by entering a URL – as you would for any web address. From that point on you have access to your NAV data and functionality.”

The technical advantages

• Installation. The web client works with a URL that you can use in any browser (Edge, Chrome, etc.). Installation of the clients is therefore no longer necessary. Your system administrator no longer has to check all PCs and that saves time.
• Updates. Updating a web client is much easier compared to updating a windows client.
• Hardware/Software requirements. Minimum hardware/software requirements apply to the web client.

The benefits in terms of ease of use

In addition to the mentioned (technical) advantages, there are also some differences in terms of the user interface.

The look & feel

The look & feel of both clients differ – yet in small details. The web client is, of course, runs from a browser and the windows client is a ‘private’ client. This already gives you the first difference between the two: the available ‘shortcuts’. The shortcuts that increase the ‘convenience’ when using the windows client, for example, “F8 – copying the value above the field”, does not work in the web client.
You immediately can see that the look & feel of the web client is calmer and feels easier to use.

Adjusting your settings

When using the windows client, you have to adjust the user settings in different places. The web client offers you the possibility to quickly and easily adjust your user settings in one place, for example, to adjust your role (order administration / financial):

Navigation panel

The navigation panel also works just slightly different than the windows client. For example, you only see the ‘buttons’ that you have on HOME. You can change this to for example ‘Master Data’ to show only this specific content.

Using filters

The web client has no restrictions on which column you want to filter. The filter uses the value you entered and checks this value within all available columns. See the example below for ‘RO’:

Perform actions directly from the overview

In the example above, you also immediately see a clear difference with the windows client. The customer number, telephone no. and the balance is colored blue and have a ‘hyperlink’ behind their value. Clicking on these values offers you the following options:

• Customer number: If you click on the customer number, the customer card is opened and you can adjust the customer data.
• Telephone number: Do you use Skype or do you use the web client from your smartphone? Then you just have to click the phone number to start a call-action.
• Balance: Navigate directly to the linked invoices where the balance comes from with one mouse click.

Show and/or hide columns in one simple action

Finally, I would like to highlight the possibility to easily hide or show columns. Through the windows client, you always had to adjust the columns as shown in the screen below. With the web client, this works much more user-friendly. You can easily hide or add columns by simply ticking the desired columns.

Windows client:

Web client:

Assure your business of continuity and innovation.

Microsoft is constantly working on improving the web client and regularly updates the application.

Would you like to know more about the possibilities of the web client? Please leave us a message using the form below: