Process Templates

Status: 02.09.2025 • Reading time: ~15 minutes

Process templates control how data extracted from documents is processed. They define which workflows are triggered and which documents are created in Business Central. Due to the dynamic structure, process templates can be freely configured – from classic invoice processing to individual, complex automations.

This article explains how to create a new template, which options are available, and how to configure it optimally.

Prerequisites

Access to Business Central with permissions to set up Smart Processing.
The Document Category is known or already created.
Optional: Knowledge of No. Series, table and field structure in Business Central.

Create Process Template

Open Business Central.
Search for Process Templates or open the Smart Processing Setup page.
Select the Create action from the menu to start the wizard.
Fill in the fields in the wizard as described below.
Save the template to use it in Smart Processing workflows.

General Settings

Field	Description
Template Code	Unique code of the template. Serves as a technical identifier.
Template Description	Free text description of the purpose or use case of the template.
Document Category	Links the template to a Document Category. This determines the target table/page of the processing. Required field – only then can fields be added.
Activate Document Matching	Activates Document Matching within this template. For more information: see Configure Document Matching.
Use Smart Field Matching	Activates Smart Matching (AI-supported mapping of extracted document data to template fields). Default: Enabled.

Document Processing Settings

Field	Description
Allow Process With Remark	Specifies whether a document can be processed despite remarks (errors): • Allow with Confirmation – processing after confirmation. • Allow without Confirmation – processing without inquiry. • Do not Allow – processing is blocked if remarks are present.
Allow Deletion of Remark	Allows the deletion of remarks in the process.
Open Document After Processing	Automatically opens the created document after processing.
Display Processed Message	Displays a notification after processing. Available when Open Document After Processing is disabled.
Archive Document	Timing of archiving: • Never – no archiving. • Always – always archive after processing. • After Processing – archive after the process is completed. • After Matching – archive after matching is completed.
Archive Content Type	Defines the content type in Document Central for archiving.

Set Up Fields

The heart of a process template is the field setup. You define which fields are used in the template and how they are filled. All fields configured here will later be used when posting the document – you determine how a record is created with which values.

There are two areas:

Document Header Fields – fields of the header record.
Document Line Fields – fields of the lines.

The source tables are determined by the Document Category. If no line table is defined in the category, no Document Line Fields will be offered.

To start, first configure the table keys, then add the fields.

Configure Table Keys

Set up the table keys. Smart Processing is completely dynamic and can work with any tables. To ensure records are created correctly, the key fields (Primary Keys) must be linked with appropriate value sources.

Open the action Configure Table Keys in the field list (Header or Lines).
Note: The action always refers to the current table (Header and Lines must be configured separately).
Open the Table Key Setup. Here you will see the primary key fields of the table.
Set the Value Option for each key.

Value Option – available options

Option	Scope	Description
None	Header & Lines	No explicit value is set. The default logic of the target table fills the field (e.g., standard No. Series in the header).
Fixed Value	Header & Lines	Fixed value. Useful, for example, in the Sales Header to define the document type (Invoice, Order, etc.) explicitly.
Document Header Field	Lines only	Links a Line-Key with a Header field. Select the appropriate header field to be used for the line key under Document Field Reference.
No. Series	Header & Lines	Generates values via a number series (No. Series (308)). Select the series to be used.
Auto Increment	Mainly Lines	Automatically increments numeric keys (e.g., Line No. in steps of 1,000). Each line receives a unique number.

Tip

If certain header fields are automatically filled by default (e.g., No.), leave the Value Option set to None. Then the default logic of the table applies.

Add Fields

After the keys are defined, add the required fields in the Header or in the Lines. Only add fields that are important for your setup.

Open the action Add Field – the wizard will guide you step by step through the setup.
The following sections describe the individual configuration steps in detail.

Field Details

Field	Description
Field Name	Technical field name from the target table in Business Central. Select the field you want to fill.
Field Display Name	Display name for workflows and the UI. Can be more descriptive than the technical name.
Field Type	Data type (Text, Integer, Decimal, Boolean, etc.). Not changeable.
Mandatory Field	Marks the field as mandatory. If active, a value must be present for the process to be successfully completed. The status can also be toggled in the field list.

Field Capture Setup

Field	Description
Capture Option	Source for the field value: • Document – value is automatically read from the document. • Fixed Value – constant value for all processes.
Alternative Search Names	Alternative search terms increase the hit rate during document matching. Here, enter extracted field labels from documents (normalized strings; case sensitivity and special characters are ignored). You can view and adopt the last extracted fields of a document via the ⋯ (lookup) action.
Purpose Description	Short description of the purpose of the field to improve AI-supported matching if the automatic mapping is unclear.
Fixed Value	Constant value when Capture Option = Fixed Value.

Numeric Fields (Integer/Decimal)

Fields that contain the types Integer or Decimal have additional options:

Field	Description
No. of Digits After Decimal	Maximum number of decimal places for decimal values. Default: 2.
Negative Value Handling	Handling of negative values: • None – no adjustment. • Error – blocks negative values and generates a warning. • Zero Value – sets negative values to 0. • Absolute Value – converts negative to positive values.
Convert Always to Number	Forces conversion to a numeric representation (non-numeric characters are removed).

Date Fields

For fields of type Date, extended configuration options are now available to improve the recognition and processing of date values.

Field	Description
Convert Calendar Week to Date	Enable this option if fields may contain calendar weeks (e.g., “41/25”). If the option is enabled, the system automatically recognizes calendar weeks and converts them into a valid date. The conversion is based on the set calendar week day rule.
Calendar Week Day	Specifies the day of the week to be used when converting a calendar week into a date. Example: If Monday is selected, the date will be set to the Monday of the specified calendar week. Default value: Friday.

!!! tip Note:

If you are using **Content Understanding**, the **capture type** within the schema should **not be "Date"** to avoid conflicts when converting calendar weeks.

Field Rules

Field Rules extend the functionality of a field. They allow values to be checked, transformed, enriched, or automated. The integrated Field Rule Wizard assists you step by step.

Note

A rule is always assigned to a specific field. However, you can define multiple rules for the same field.

1) General Settings

Rule Code: Define a unique, short code that identifies this rule within the template.
Rule Description: Optionally add a description that explains the purpose or logic of the rule.

2) Define Input Source

Choose where the input value comes from:

Template Field: The value is taken from another field of the same template.
Document Field: The value is read directly from a field in the captured document.

If you choose Document Field:

Define a keyword or synonym in the Document Search Text field that will be searched for in the document.

If you choose Template Field:

Input Field Doc. Type: Choose whether the field comes from the Header or the Lines.
Input Template Field: Select the specific field whose value should be used.

3) Define Processing Method

Define how the input value is processed:

Regular Expression: Checks the value using a regex pattern. Example: ^[0-9]{8}$ checks if it is an eight-digit number.
Record Search: Searches for the input value in a specific table, e.g., in customers, items, or vendors. Specify the table number and the search field.
Custom Codeunit: Uses custom logic stored in a codeunit. Specify the number of the codeunit (details see section Development).

4) Evaluation Method

Determine how the result of the rule is interpreted:

Is Match: The rule is triggered if the condition is met.
Is Not Match: The rule is triggered if the condition is not met.

5) Actions When the Rule is Triggered

Define what happens when the rule is triggered:

Add Remark: Adds a remark to the document.
Remark Text: Enter the text of the remark.
Remark Type: Choose the type of remark:
Error: Blocks processing.
Warning: Displays a warning but does not block.
Info: Just an information, without impact on the process.
Replace Field Value: Replaces the existing field value.
Replace Via Template Field: Defines whether the field's value should be replaced by another template field.
To Template Field: (When Replace Via Template Field is active) Defines the template field whose value should be used.
To Field Value: (When Replace Via Template Field is inactive) Specifies the new value to be set. When using a Custom Codeunit, the value is automatically provided by the codeunit.

Date Calculation Rule

For date fields, you can automatically calculate date values based on other fields or predefined date formulas. This rule allows, for example, the calculation of a delivery date by adding a certain number of days to the shipping date or automatically setting a due date based on the posting date.

If you want to exclude certain days like Saturday and Sunday from the calculation, you must have set up a Base Calendar in Business Central and select it under Company Information -> Shipping -> Base Calendar.

Intelligent Line Type Detection

With Field Rules, you can automatically detect the Line Type. Use the custom codeunit 5673302 "SIM_DI Smart Line Type Match" and pass the Input Value as the Line Description. The OpenAI service searches for a matching element in the following record collections: Allocation Account (G/L Allocation Account), Fixed Asset, G/L Account, Resource, Item. Example: If the line description contains “IT Workshop”, the AI might find the G/L Account 1009; the Line Type and the No. will be set accordingly.

Note on combining with other rules: If you use this detection, do not configure a lookup on Description that overrides the No..

Smart Line Type Match Rule

Lookup Validation

The Lookup Validation is a powerful option to check field values against master data. This ensures that only existing records are used.

Field	Description
Use Lookup Validation	Activates validation: • No – no validation. • Yes – standard lookup validation (recommended method). • Custom Codeunit – validation via codeunit.

Additional Options with Active Lookup Validation

Field

Description

Lookup Table No.

Reference to the table in which the check is performed (e.g., Customer, Item).

Lookup Filters

Define at least one filter for searching the record. Use the field list to select the filter fields and the Lookup Filter Type:
• None – no filter.
• Search Text – uses search texts from the captured fields of the document (the found value serves as a filter).
• Template Field – uses the value of a template field.
• Fixed Value – constant filter value.
• Allow Null Value – controls whether empty values are also filtered.

Return Fields

Use the found lookup records to fill template fields. In the list, you will see – depending on the context (Header/Lines) – all template fields.

Return Field: Field of the target table whose value is returned.
Example: You validate Customer and fill the currently selected template field (bold) with the value Name; additionally, you fill Customer Id with No. – thus the field No. is referenced with Name.
Return Empty Value: Returns the value even if it is empty.

Custom Codeunit (Validation)

Field	Description
Custom Codeunit	Number of the codeunit for validation when Use Lookup Validation = Custom Codeunit.

The Simova GmbH provides the standard codeunit 5673300 "SIM_DI LookUp Description". It can be used in Lines on fields like No. or Description. The codeunit dynamically validates against the appropriate tables (e.g., Item) depending on the Line Type. If the type changes, the validation adjusts automatically.

Intelligent Master Data Creation

If a record does not exist, you can offer AI-supported creation (only with active lookup validation). In the Smart Process Worksheet, an action appears in the remarks to start the creation.

Field	Description
Allow Smart Master Data Creation	Enables automated master data creation. If no match is found during validation, AI-supported creation of master data can be offered.

Field Translations

With Field Translations, you can replace unwanted strings, translate abbreviations, or clean up texts. Regular expressions (Regex) are also supported, allowing you to define complex search and replacement patterns.

You can find the settings in the Template Field Card in the Field Translation section.

Field	Description
From Value	Text to be replaced. Example: "," – removes commas from „Amazon GmbH,“.
To Value	Replacement value. Leave the field empty to remove the text.
Case Sensitive	If enabled, replacement occurs only if case sensitivity matches exactly.

Template Field Blacklist

With the new Blacklist action in the template fields, you can define specific values that – if they occur in a record – prevent that record from being further processed. This function allows you to specifically exclude entire lines from processing if they contain unwanted or irrelevant content.

Use Case:

The field blacklist is particularly helpful when:

You want to exclude certain values (e.g., placeholders, test data, or erroneous entries).
You want to ensure that only relevant data enters the processing.
You want to improve efficiency by avoiding unnecessary processing of records.

How it Works:

Open the desired template.
Select the field for which you want to define a blacklist.
Add one or more strings that must not occur in the record.
Once a value is detected in any blacklist field, the entire line is automatically excluded from further processing.