Exam MB-700: Microsoft Dynamics 365: Finance and Operations Apps Solution Architect

The MB-700 certification exam is tailored for professionals who specialize in Microsoft Dynamics 365 and operate in the role of a Solution Architect. These individuals serve as strategic advisors to stakeholders, with the responsibility of converting complex business requirements into effective, secure, scalable, and reliable solutions within the Dynamics 365 landscape.

Candidates for this certification are expected to take ownership of solution design and implementation strategies across the Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations applications. Their role involves:

Collaborating with business decision-makers and technical teams
Ensuring architectural decisions align with business goals
Leading the implementation of integrated solutions that are robust and sustainable
Overseeing the interconnection of various Dynamics 365 applications and services

– Required Knowledge and Expertise

To succeed in this role, candidates must demonstrate a well-rounded and in-depth skill set, including:

Comprehensive understanding of the Microsoft Dynamics 365 ecosystem, including core applications and services
Proficiency with Microsoft Power Platform, including Power Apps, Power Automate, and Dataverse
Expertise in AI capabilities and copilots embedded within Dynamics 365 apps to enhance automation and intelligence
Strong domain knowledge in one or more industry verticals (e.g., manufacturing, retail, finance, supply chain)
Insight into strategic impact, understanding how each technical or functional decision influences the overall enterprise solution

– Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate for the MB-700 exam is an experienced Dynamics 365 consultant, functional expert, or architect who:

Plays a critical role in planning and delivering enterprise-grade solutions
Has a holistic view of the platform, its integrations, and its alignment with business strategy
Is capable of balancing functional needs, compliance, scalability, performance, and long-term maintainability of solutions

Exam Details

Exam MB-700: Microsoft Dynamics 365: Finance and Operations Apps Solution Architect is available in both English and Japanese. To successfully pass the exam, candidates must achieve a minimum score of 700. Microsoft provides accommodations for individuals who use assistive technologies, require additional time, or need other modifications to ensure a fair testing experience. Candidates can request these accommodations in advance through the official Microsoft certification support channels.

Course Outline

The exam covers the following topics:

1. Learn about architecting solutions (20–25%)

Gathering requirements

Identifying operational and organizational challenges that may affect a business
Identifying existing business processes and opportunities to optimize business processes (Microsoft Documentation: Optimize your business processes with Dynamics 365)
Gather data migration requirements and expected data migration volumes
Categorizing business requirements and performing gap fit analyses (Microsoft Documentation: Optimize your implementation with a fit-to-standard and fit-gap analysis)
Reviewing and validating business requirements throughout the solution lifecycle (Microsoft Documentation: Bring successful solutions to customers with application lifecycle management (ALM) strategies)

Defining the solution architecture

Map business requirements to functional components and business process catalog
Evaluating whether to build versus buy for selected business requirements
Identify solution components including other Microsoft and independent software vendor (ISV) technologies based on customer requirements
Describing the Success by Design framework (Microsoft Documentation: Introduction to Success by Design)
Creating solution architecture diagrams

Describing and documenting the solution blueprint

Reviewing an organization including company information, locations, and organizational hierarchy in Dynamics 365
Documenting the implementation timeline including roll-out strategies (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Intune planning guide)
Defining the business process catalog and document solution gaps (Microsoft Documentation: About and how to use the business process catalog for Dynamics 365 apps and services)
Defining instances, environments, and solution components (Microsoft Documentation: Power Platform environments overview)
Identify required security roles (Microsoft Documentation: Security roles and privileges)

2. Defining solution strategies (40–45%)

Selecting a deployment strategy

Reviewing a process to manage solution code and deployment (Microsoft Documentation: How to manage development process and deployment process at CRM dynamics 365 solutions)
Selecting a deployment model and identify instances and environments required for the selected deployment model (Microsoft Documentation: Deploy and access development environments)
Planning the One Version strategy and release process for service updates (Microsoft Documentation: One Version service updates FAQ)
Segmenting solution development and delivery into logical phases
Providing alternative methodologies and approaches for deploying modifications (Microsoft Documentation: Deployment technologies in Azure Functions)
Determining solution maintenance cadence and timelines (Microsoft Documentation: Service health and continuity)
Identifying upgrade scenarios and select appropriate tools

Defining an application lifecycle management (ALM) strategy

Defining a code management and data flow strategy (Microsoft Documentation: Data flows in Azure Synapse Analytics)
Defining a Microsoft Power Platform solution management strategy (Microsoft Documentation: Solutions overview)
Determining which build automation capabilities to implement (Microsoft Documentation: Build automation that uses Microsoft-hosted agents and Azure Pipelines)
Defining a roll-back strategy for solution code and data

Determining a data management strategy

Differentiating between transactional and historical data (Microsoft Documentation: Online transaction processing (OLTP))
Defining data quality and data validation process
Defining data cleansing and transformation strategies (Microsoft Documentation: Data Cleansing)
Defining data dependencies
Developing a data migration strategy for master, transactional, reference, parameter, and document data entities (Microsoft Documentation: Data entities overview, Data management overview)
Developing data cut-over, verification and data retention plans (Microsoft Documentation: Transition to new solutions successfully with the cutover process)

Defining the security architecture

Differentiating between Azure, Dynamics 365, and infrastructure security (Microsoft Documentation: What are the key differences between Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365?)
Describing Azure and infrastructure security-related elements (Microsoft Documentation: Introduction to Azure security)
Review security design and performance implications of record-level security in Dynamics 365
Reviewing security design and license implications of custom and standard role-based security in Dynamics 365
Identify use cases for segregation of duties

Defining the integration architecture

Select an integration pattern including OData, Microsoft Power Platform, Batch Data API, custom services, external web services, office integrations, business events, Synapse Link, and dual-write with Microsoft Dynamics 365 apps (Microsoft Documentation: Integration between finance and operations apps and third-party services)
Identifying required integration and interface details
Designing integrations
Defining an integration testing strategy
Define error handling and troubleshooting strategy for integrations
Define use cases for integration requirements with Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations

Defining the business intelligence and reporting architecture

Defining data sources required to meet business intelligence and reporting requirements (Microsoft Documentation: Data sources for the Power BI service)
Selecting appropriate business intelligence and reporting tools including Power BI, organizational workspaces, financial reports, SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS), and the Electronic Reporting tool (Microsoft Documentation: Analysis and reporting with Microsoft business intelligence (BI) tools)
Define printing requirements including, Document Routing Agent (DRA), modern report design layout templates, check printing, and label printing (Microsoft Documentation: Print labels using an external service, Install the Document Routing Agent to enable network printing)

3. Managing implementations (15-20%)

Managing interactions with FastTrack

Identifying the requirements for FastTrack eligibility
Identify FastTrack engagement types and personnel roles (Microsoft Documentation: Process and Expectations)
Describing typical types of FastTrack workshops and the inputs for each workshop across the phases
Describing go-live checklist elements (Microsoft Documentation: Use the go-live checklist to make sure your solution is ready for go-live)
Utilizing Dynamics 365 Implementation Portal

Determining support options

Developing a support plan and strategy (Microsoft Documentation: Create a support strategy for your Dynamics 365 solution)
Defining post-go-live support plans including response times and service-level agreements (SLAs) (Microsoft Documentation: Overview of service-level agreements)
Describing use cases and capabilities for the LCS Support tool (Microsoft Documentation: Monitoring and diagnostics tools in Lifecycle Services (LCS))

Determining licensing requirements

Determining the types of licenses required (Microsoft Documentation: How to determine the license type of your Microsoft Office product)
Estimating the number of licenses required by using the License Sizing estimator (Microsoft Documentation: License sizing estimator in Lifecycle Services (LCS))
Describing the process for estimating ongoing software licensing costs

4. Managing testing (10-15%)

Defining a testing strategy

Defining a testing strategy that includes all required types of testing (Microsoft Documentation: Test your Dynamics 365 solution before deployment)
Defining a regression testing strategy
Identifying opportunities for automated testing
Reviewing use cases and test coverage for business scenarios (Microsoft Documentation: Create a test plan)
Determine when to use RSAT, SysTest, Postman, ATL, Azure DevOps Test Plans, Leapworks, and other tools (Microsoft Documentation: Regression suite automation tool (RSAT), Use the Regression suite automation tool (RSAT))

Defining a performance testing strategy

Defining performance goals and requirements (Microsoft Documentation: Performance management)
Identifying performance monitoring and testing tools (Microsoft Documentation: Performance Monitoring and Tuning Tools)
Defining performance benchmarks and success criteria (Microsoft Documentation: Recommendations for defining performance targets)
Designing a performance and load testing strategy (Microsoft Documentation: Develop a performance testing strategy)
Troubleshooting performance issues (Microsoft Documentation: Troubleshoot performance issues related to real-time protection)

Microsoft MB-700 Exam FAQs

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Microsoft Certification Exam Policies

Microsoft maintains a comprehensive and transparent set of certification exam policies designed to uphold fairness, consistency, and the overall integrity of the certification process. These policies apply uniformly across all exam delivery formats, including both online proctored exams and those administered at authorized testing centers.

– Exam Retake Policy

Candidates who do not pass an exam on their first attempt must wait at least 24 hours before retaking it. For all subsequent attempts, a 14-day waiting period is required between each retake. Microsoft permits a maximum of five attempts for any given exam within a 12-month timeframe. Once a candidate passes an exam, further retakes are not allowed unless the associated certification has expired and requires renewal. Each retake is subject to the standard exam fee.

– Rescheduling and Cancellation Policy

Candidates may reschedule or cancel their exam appointments at no cost, provided the changes are made at least six business days prior to the scheduled exam date. If changes are made within five business days, a rescheduling or cancellation fee may apply. Cancellations made within 24 hours of the exam or failure to appear will result in the forfeiture of the entire exam fee.

Microsoft MB-700 Exam Study Guide

Step 1: Understand the Exam Objectives Thoroughly

Begin your preparation by carefully reviewing the official MB-700 exam skills outline provided by Microsoft. This document outlines the key functional areas, competencies, and topics that the exam will assess. It serves as a blueprint for your study plan, helping you understand exactly what knowledge and skills are expected of a Dynamics 365 Solution Architect. Pay close attention to areas such as solution design, application architecture, integration strategies, and alignment of technical solutions with business goals. Knowing the weightage and coverage of each domain allows you to prioritize your learning efforts more effectively.

Step 2: Use Official Microsoft Learning Resources

Microsoft offers robust training content through its Microsoft Learn platform, which is ideal for both beginners and experienced professionals. The self-paced learning paths allow you to explore MB-700 topics at your own pace, offering interactive modules, real-world examples, and hands-on labs to reinforce learning. The modules include:

Furthermore, for those who prefer a more guided experience, an instructor-led training (ILT) course is also available through Microsoft Learning Partners. This course prepares aspiring Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations Solution Architects to design and deliver effective, scalable business solutions. It covers core responsibilities, including translating business needs, guiding implementations, and ensuring solution integrity across the project lifecycle. Learners will gain expertise in Dynamics 365 apps, Power Platform, and industry-specific scenarios. Ideal for professionals with functional or technical experience in Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations who are aiming to become or grow as solution architects.

Step 3: Participate in Study Groups and Community Forums

Joining a study group or online community can significantly enrich your preparation experience. Platforms like Microsoft Tech Community, LinkedIn groups, and specialized forums such as Reddit and ExamTopics allow you to connect with other candidates and certified professionals. These communities are great places to exchange study materials, ask questions, clarify doubts, and learn from others’ experiences with the MB-700 exam. Engaging in group discussions can also help reinforce your understanding and expose you to different solution strategies and viewpoints.

Step 4: Take Practice Tests to Assess Your Readiness

Once you’ve covered the exam objectives through study and training, it’s essential to validate your knowledge using MB-700 practice exams. Practice tests simulate the actual exam environment and help you identify areas where you may need further review. They also enhance your time management skills and boost your confidence by familiarizing you with the question format and difficulty level. Use these assessments to track your progress, review explanations for each answer, and focus your revision on weaker areas.

Step 5: Review and Refine Your Preparation Strategy

As your exam date approaches, revisit the skills outline to ensure you’ve covered all required areas. Use your performance on practice tests and feedback from study groups to tailor your final review sessions. Re-read complex topics, revisit modules in Microsoft Learn, and clarify remaining doubts. Stay updated with any recent changes to Dynamics 365 features or the Power Platform, as these updates could be reflected in the exam. Lastly, ensure you’re familiar with how architectural decisions impact solution scalability, security, and maintainability—critical topics for a solution architect role.