Cloud-based ERP platforms like Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations offer scalable and flexible data storage, enabling businesses to manage operations efficiently from anywhere. However, this flexibility comes with a limitation: storage is not unlimited and is closely monitored by Microsoft.
As organizations grow, so does their data. Invoices, logs, attachments, and telemetry accumulate quickly, making proactive storage management essential. According to the Forbes Technology Council, global data storage reached 120 zettabytes in 2023 and is projected to hit 180 zettabytes by the end of 2025, highlighting the urgency for businesses to stay ahead of capacity issues.
Adding to this, Microsoft’s updated licensing model now meters database, file, and log storage more granularly. Understanding how Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations data storage works is no longer optional. It is critical for controlling costs, maintaining system performance, and complying with Microsoft’s capacity limits.
Refer to Microsoft’s official documentation for the latest guidelines.
What Does Storage in D365 FO Include?
In Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations, storage is divided into three main categories. Each type contributes to your overall usage and may impact licensing costs, depending on how it is managed.
1. Database Storage
This includes core business data such as:
- Transaction records (e.g., journal entries, invoices, purchase orders)
- Master data (e.g., customers, vendors, products)
- System configurations and metadata
Database storage is the most tightly monitored and is typically the first area where businesses hit their entitlements. Overages in this area can result in additional licensing costs.
2. File Storage
This category covers binary data files such as:
- Document attachments (e.g., scanned receipts, contracts)
- Exported reports and templates
- Images or other media linked to products or transactions
File storage is less expensive compared to database storage but can grow rapidly if attachments and media files are not offloaded to external storage platforms like SharePoint or Azure Blob.
3. Log Storage
Log storage includes system-generated data like:
- Batch job execution logs
- Monitoring and telemetry data
- Audit logs and diagnostic records
While these logs are essential for system health and troubleshooting, they often go unchecked and accumulate over time, consuming significant space without directly contributing to business operations.
Each of these storage types is tracked individually by Microsoft, and businesses are expected to stay within their allocated limits or purchase additional capacity as needed. Failing to monitor all three can lead to unexpected overages and performance degradation. Now that we’ve defined the types of storage, let’s explore how much capacity Microsoft provides by default and what happens when your usage exceeds those limits.
Default Storage Entitlements and Licensing Implications
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations environments come with predefined storage entitlements. These allocations are based on the number of licensed users and are split into database, file, and log storage.
What You Get by Default
According to Microsoft’s licensing model:
- 10 GB of database storage is included per tenant
- An additional 2.5 GB of database capacity is granted for each full (non-light) user license
- File and log storage each include 20 GB by default
- Extra capacity for any category can be purchased through the Microsoft 365 admin center
What Happens When You Exceed Limits
If your usage surpasses the default allocation:
- Microsoft charges for additional capacity on a per-GB basis
- You may receive notifications or alerts through the Power Platform Admin Center
- Overages can impact environment performance or delay provisioning
Sandbox and production environments share the same storage pool. Poor data management in one environment can affect the overall capacity available across the tenant.
Why Monitoring Matters
Staying within storage limits helps avoid surprise billing and supports consistent system performance. Oversized environments may also face issues during updates or data migration.
The next section explores how to monitor your usage effectively and stay in control of your capacity.
How to Monitor Your Storage Usage
Understanding how much storage your Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations environment is consuming, and where it is being used, is key to avoiding overages and maintaining performance.
1. Lifecycle Services (LCS) Capacity Monitoring
The most accessible way to track storage is through Microsoft Lifecycle Services (LCS).
Steps to access:
- Go to the LCS portal and select your environment
- Click on the “Capacity” tab
- Review usage broken down by database, file, and log storage
- Download detailed reports to identify trends and anomalies
LCS also offers historical data to help you monitor how storage usage changes over time.
2. Environment Monitoring Tools
Within the Environment Monitoring workspace in LCS, you can identify specific tables or components using the most storage. For example:
- Tables like CustTrans, InventTrans, or BatchJobHistory tend to grow quickly in transaction-heavy systems
- Telemetry and error logs can silently accumulate without regular cleanups
These insights are useful when planning cleanup or archiving strategies.
3. Power Platform Admin Center (If Integrated)
If your environment is integrated with Dataverse or other Power Platform services, the Power Platform Admin Center provides another layer of visibility.
- Navigate to Resources > Capacity
- Filter by environment and storage type
- Set up usage alerts based on thresholds
This is helpful for businesses using both Finance and Operations and other Dynamics 365 apps under the same tenant.
4. Automation and Alerts
You can configure alerts using:
- Azure Monitor
- Power Automate
- Third-party monitoring tools
These tools notify you ahead of time, giving you space to act before breaching your storage limits. Once you’ve identified where storage is being consumed, the next step is taking action to reduce unnecessary usage and keep your system efficient.
Strategies to Optimize Storage and Reduce Waste
Reducing excess storage in Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations involves making informed decisions about data retention, storage locations, and regular maintenance.
1. Archive Infrequently Used Data
Move inactive records to external systems or cost-effective storage solutions like Azure Data Lake. This approach helps decrease database size while maintaining access to essential historical data for audits or reporting purposes. Azure Data Lake Storage offers scalable and secure storage options suitable for big data analytics.
You can explore Azure Data Lake’s cost-saving benefits to see how it can offload historical data efficiently.
2. Clean Up Execution and Batch Logs
Execution logs and batch histories can accumulate over time, consuming significant storage space. Implement scheduled cleanups for tables such as BatchJobHistory, SysTraceTable, and EventInbox to manage and reduce unnecessary data.
3. Utilize Lifecycle Services (LCS) Tools
Leverage LCS diagnostic tools to pinpoint unusually large tables or environments. Tools like SQL Insights and Environment Monitoring can help detect storage anomalies early, allowing for timely interventions.
4. Offload Attachments
Attachments, including documents and images, can occupy substantial file storage. Consider transferring them to external storage systems or integrating with document management tools like SharePoint to optimize storage usage.
5. Optimize Extensions and Custom Code
Custom solutions may introduce inefficient data storage practices. Regularly audit extensions to ensure they adhere to Microsoft’s best practices and do not contribute to unnecessary storage consumption.
6. Implement Data Retention Policies
Apply built-in retention policies across various modules. For instance, configure the system to retain sales order history for a specific duration, such as the last three years, unless longer retention is mandated by regulatory requirements.
To put these strategies into action, you need the right tools.
Tools for Managing and Optimizing Storage
Microsoft provides several tools to help businesses monitor and optimize their Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations storage usage effectively.
- Power Platform Admin Center: This is the central hub for monitoring database, file, and log storage usage across environments. It provides visual breakdowns of capacity and helps track entitlements versus actual usage.
Also read: Power Platform Admin Center Documentation
- Lifecycle Services (LCS): LCS offers diagnostic tools like SQL insights and database size analysis to identify abnormal growth in tables and pinpoint optimization opportunities.
- Azure Monitor: Integrate D365 FO with Azure Monitor for advanced logging, alerting, and diagnostics across your cloud services and infrastructure.
- Storage Capacity Reports: Regular reports provide trends and detailed metrics that help forecast when you’re nearing capacity thresholds. These can be configured for automatic delivery.
- WaferWire’s Custom Monitoring Dashboards: WaferWire helps extend built-in monitoring capabilities by developing customized dashboards tailored to your business needs. These dashboards offer real-time insights into table growth, system health, and usage spikes.
Also read: How to Create and Customize Dynamics 365 Dashboards
Despite best efforts, growing organizations might still need more storage. Here’s how to assess that need and acquire extra capacity efficiently.
Acquiring Additional Storage
Once you cross the default entitlements defined by Microsoft, additional storage can be purchased as required. This process is straightforward but should be backed by a proper usage review to avoid unnecessary costs.
Where to Buy
Additional storage capacity can be procured via the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. Charges apply on a per-GB-per-month basis, with pricing varying across storage types like Database, File, or Log.
When to Buy
Before initiating a purchase, it is important to:
- Use the Power Platform Admin Center to identify abnormal spikes or inefficient data growth.
- Clean up unused environments or test instances.
- Run diagnostics using LCS or WaferWire’s dashboards to evaluate if old logs, audit tables, or binary files can be removed or archived.
External Storage Options
In some cases, shifting large binary objects such as documents or product images to Azure Blob, SharePoint, or OneDrive can significantly cut down database usage, especially if those files do not require frequent in-app processing.
Long-term efficiency depends on putting proactive practices in place.
Best Practices for Storage Management
Proactive management is key to maintaining cost efficiency and performance as your data grows. Below are proven practices that businesses using D365 FO can adopt:
- Monthly Storage Audits: Use Lifecycle Services or Admin Center reports to review top consuming tables, sudden spikes, or redundant data entries. Build a baseline for typical growth and set thresholds for anomaly detection.
- Automation for Cleanup: Schedule jobs to purge logs, obsolete transactional data, or workflow histories. Leverage Microsoft’s Data Management Framework (DMF) or third-party tools to streamline this.
- Use External Storage for Binary Files: Product images, customer documents, and file attachments can be stored in Azure Blob Storage or SharePoint. This offloads unnecessary burden from your database quota.
- Data Hygiene Protocols: Train teams on responsible data usage. Discourage duplicate entries, unused custom fields, and redundant environment creation.
- Set Alerts: Implement Azure Monitor alerts for unexpected data spikes. This ensures you are notified of rapid growth before it leads to overages.
- Review and Archive: Periodically review inactive records and archive older data using WaferWire’s tailored archiving solutions that ensure historical insights are retained while freeing up production capacity.
Conclusion
Optimizing Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations data storage is not just about avoiding overage costs. It is about future-proofing your ERP environment. As Microsoft enforces stricter storage policies and data continues to grow at exponential rates, businesses need more than reactive cleanup. They need proactive governance, clear visibility, and a strategic approach to storage management.
That is where WaferWire comes in. With deep expertise in Microsoft Dynamics, cloud architecture, and data estate modernization, WaferWire helps enterprises assess, monitor, and optimize their D365 FO storage environments. From capacity planning and cleanup automation to seamless integration with Azure and cost-effective expansion strategies, we tailor solutions that align with your operational goals.
Our global delivery model and industry-agnostic experience ensure you are not just staying compliant, you are scaling with control.
Want to understand where your storage stands or how to manage it more effectively? Explore our Microsoft Solutions and connect with our experts today.
