Rally Recap: What the Real Dynamics GP Timeline Looks Like

Knights of GP 2026 Plan and the Road Ahead for Dynamics GP
If you've been fielding pressure from partners or Microsoft about an impending "end" for Dynamics GP, this rally was designed for you. In our inaugural Knights of GP rally, three committed GP ecosystem leaders sat down to clear the noise, share the real timeline, and walk through exactly what the Knights of GP is building to carry the ecosystem forward.

The Panel

Who was on the panel

Mark Rockwell

Founder & President, Rockton Software
25+ years building tools for Dynamics GP

Chris Dobkins

CEO, Njevity & PowerGP Online
Founding voice behind Knights of GP

Mike Biwer

CEO, Cavallo
Makers of SalesPad for GP, 10-year public commitment

The Timeline

The real GP timeline

A lot of what customers are hearing in the market conflates two very different things: Microsoft's end of support and GP stopping working. They are not the same thing.

Microsoft has announced a support timeline that runs through 2029 for new feature updates and through 2031 for mainstream support. What that actually means, as Chris explained in the session, is that Microsoft will stop making new investments in GP — not that the software stops functioning.

"There is no end of life for Dynamics GP. There is simply a date at which Microsoft is no longer going to support GP. GP is not going to just stop working."

— Chris Dobkins, CEO, Njevity

There's also a meaningful SQL and Windows runway that often goes unmentioned. Microsoft's recent commitment at Summit means GP 18.12 will support the most current versions of SQL and Windows available in 2029. Given Microsoft's 10-year support lifecycle for those products, customers running current versions of GP have a runway extending well into the late 2030s.

The Initiative

What the community already handles — and what it's building

One of the more candid observations from the panel: in practice, most GP customers aren't calling Microsoft for support today. The ecosystem — ISVs, partners, and community knowledge — has always been the primary support layer. That doesn't change after 2031.

What the Knights of GP is actively building on top of that foundation:

What's Being Built

Payroll tax updates. The Knights of GP has committed to continuing payroll tax table updates and maintaining GP payroll compliance with U.S. federal and state law — picking up where Microsoft leaves off. This work begins in 2029.

New features, sourced from the ISV community. Member ISVs will have the opportunity to contribute new features directly into the GP ecosystem through the cooperative structure.

A community knowledge base. The team is actively archiving GP knowledge currently housed on Microsoft and partner sites, building a permanent, community-owned resource hub.

A cooperative structure — not a corporation. The Knights of GP is being formed as a nonprofit cooperative. Like REI, it exists to serve its members, not shareholders. Members have agency over the direction it takes.

A vetted partner and ISV network. Preferred partners listed on the Knights of GP website have made documented, public commitments to supporting GP customers — no hedging, no "we support GP and five other platforms."

A Real Story

What the NewStar story tells us

Mike Biwer shared the story of NewStar Sourcing — a company that moved off GP under partner pressure, spent six figures and months in a Business Central implementation, and ultimately reversed course back to GP within seven weeks of go-live. Tony, the executive who led the project, described it himself as Microsoft pushing loyal GP customers into a system that didn't fit.

"I can't tell you the number of times I've talked to CFOs of our customers who actually did make the change and didn't know they didn't have to — and you can tell they're visibly irritated."

— Mike Biwer, CEO, Cavallo

The panel's message wasn't anti-migration. If a company has a genuine, documented business case for a platform change, that's a legitimate decision. What the Knights of GP is built to counter is a change made purely out of manufactured urgency — a decision driven by partner incentives or inflated fear rather than business need.

Mark was direct: what the market calls "migration" from GP is actually a full reimplementation. There are no automated paths. Any partner claiming otherwise deserves hard questions.

Due Diligence

Questions to ask your partner

If you're in conversations with a GP partner and sensing pressure to move, the panel suggested asking directly: What is your commitment to GP specifically? Where have you seen your recommended platform succeed — and where has it failed? If they say it works for everyone, walk.

The Knights of GP website maintains a growing list of vetted Preferred Partners and ISVs who have made documented, long-term commitments. It's a free resource with no commitment required to browse.

The Bottom Line

Key takeaways from the session

Three Things to Remember

1

End of support is not end of life. GP will not stop working in 2031. The platform you've built your business on continues running.

2

The ecosystem is already your primary support layer. ISVs, the community, and the Knights of GP framework are building everything needed to carry GP forward — payroll updates, new features, and ongoing knowledge resources.

3

Your ERP decisions belong to you. The timeline, the options, the priorities — those should be driven by your business, not by a publisher's roadmap or a partner's incentive structure.

Join the Community

Join the Knights of GP

Joining the Knights of GP engagement list is free and doesn't commit you to anything. It brings you into the conversation as this community takes shape.

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