Information Code
Information Codes are the building blocks of the Master Data Information app. They define the categories of structured data — such as specifications, attributes, texts, or file attachments — that can be added to any master data record in Business Central. By setting up Information Codes, you create a consistent, company-wide framework for capturing and managing product, customer, vendor, and other master data in a structured and reusable way.
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Feature Overview
An Information Code represents a specific type of information you want to track — for example, "Colour", "Material", "Country of Origin", or "Safety Data Sheet". Once defined, these codes can be assigned to items, customers, vendors, lot numbers, and many other master data records across Business Central. Each code can carry one or more Information Values, a free-text Description, a numeric or typed Value, and even a file attachment. You can also control how each code behaves: whether it contributes to automatically generated item descriptions, how it sorts on screen, whether it can hold multiple values at once, and whether data entry is validated against a specific data type such as a decimal, date, or boolean. The result is a structured, consistent, and auditable layer of information on top of your standard Business Central master data — without requiring any custom fields or development.
Typical Use Cases
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As a product manager, I want to define a "Technical Specifications" Information Code for items so that engineers and sales staff can record structured product attributes — like voltage, weight, or material grade — in a consistent format across all items in our catalogue.
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As a quality manager, I want to create a "Certificate of Conformity" Information Code with a file attachment subtype, so that quality documents can be linked directly to lot numbers and are always retrievable from the relevant master data record.
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As a sales administrator, I want to set up a "Customer Segment" Information Code on customer records, so that our CRM-related classifications are stored in Business Central and can be used to filter customers and drive document behaviour.
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As a data steward, I want to configure the Validation Datatype on an Information Code to "Decimal", so that users entering measurement values are always forced to enter a valid number, protecting data quality across the entire item catalogue.
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As a business analyst, I want to enable the Long Description merge setting on relevant Information Codes, so that the item's description field is automatically populated from its structured specifications — eliminating manual copy-pasting and keeping descriptions consistent and up to date.
Key Concepts
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Information Code — the category or label for a type of information, such as "Colour" or "Net Weight". It is the top-level definition that all related values and entries are built on.
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Subtype — each Information Code has a subtype that indicates its intended purpose: Specification (for structured attribute values), Text (for longer free-form descriptions), or File (for attaching documents or images).
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Information Value — a predefined list of acceptable values for an Information Code, for example "Red", "Blue", and "Green" for a "Colour" code. Values can be free-form or constrained to a predefined list.
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Validation Datatype — an optional setting that enforces a specific data format when entering values, such as Decimal, Integer, Date, Boolean, or Date Formula. This ensures data quality and enables numeric sorting and searching.
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Sorting Level — controls the display order of Information Codes on the Information Setup page and related pages, making it easy to present the most important information first.
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Merge Descriptions — settings that control whether and how an Information Code contributes to automatically generated descriptions on the item card (Long Description, Item Description) or on documents (Report Description).
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Table restriction — an Information Code can optionally be limited to a specific table (such as Items or Customers), ensuring it only appears where it is relevant.
Relations to Other Features or Apps
Within the Master Data Information app, Information Codes are the foundation for almost every other feature. They are used in the Information Setup (where values are assigned to master data records), in Master Data on Documents (where codes flow onto sales, purchase, and production documents), in Specification Search (where codes enable filtering and matching items by their attributes), in Archive Entries (where changes to specific codes are logged), in Logical Dependencies (where relationships between codes govern which values are valid together), and in Master Data Extended Texts (where additional language-specific text is linked to a code).
Within standard Business Central, Information Codes can be linked to standard Item Attributes, enabling synchronisation between the two systems. Information Codes also integrate with Business Central's language framework, allowing translated descriptions to be stored per language code and used automatically on customer- or vendor-facing documents.
When This Feature Adds Value
- When your business needs to capture structured, consistent product or master data attributes that go beyond the standard fields available in Business Central — without custom development.
- When data quality is important and you want to enforce specific data types (numbers, dates, booleans) on entered values, preventing incorrect or inconsistent entries.
- When you want item descriptions, long descriptions, or document texts to be generated automatically from structured data, rather than typed manually by users.
- When compliance, quality, or regulatory requirements mean that specific information — such as certificates, material declarations, or safety data — must be consistently linked to master data records and traceable through the document flow.