If you are running Sage Fixed Assets, it is important to make sure you stay up to date with the latest version of the product. At the moment, the current version is 2017.1, which was released in January. We recommend that, if you haven’t already upgraded to 2017 this year, that you do so before the end of the year.
The main reason to move to the new version of Sage Fixed Assets is to address tax law changes, including:
- The Section 179 limits were increased for assets placed in service in 2017.
- The depreciation limits for Property Type T-Light Trucks and Vans were increased for vehicles placed in service in 2017.
- Form 4562 was updated to generate the 2016 Form 4562-Depreciation and Amortization.
- For Canadian organizations, two tax classes are added for Eligible Capital Property (ECP).
About the Upgrade Process
One thing to know about Sage Fixed Assets is that it is one of the few products that require each sequential version to be installed before the next one is applied. Therefore, if you are still using Sage Fixed Assets 2015, you need to upgrade to 2016 before you can upgrade to the 2017 version. As you might imagine, the further back you are on the product, the longer and more challenging the upgrade. To facilitate that, we'll always try to let you know when a new version is released, as we did in October of last year.
Many of our clients upgrade Fixed Assets themselves via a download from the Sage Customer Portal. Please contact us if you would like our assistance with your Fixed Assets upgrade.
Release Features of Fixed Assets 2017.0 and 2017.1
New Enhancements
- Asset List Customization - In Depreciation, the Asset List can now be customized to display book information.
- Auto Update Notification and Download - The Sage Advisor update notification has been added. This program lets you know when new Fixed Assets updates are available for download. You can also check for product updates through the Help menu.
- Installation Changes - When installing Sage Fixed Assets, all products (Depreciation, Tracking, and Planning) will be installed. Each un-purchased product comes with a free 30-day trial period.
- Transfer Report - The Transfer Report can now be run for a specified period.
- Submit or View Product Ideas - Go to Help > Contact Us and Submit or View Product Ideas.
- Easier Import to Sage 100 Premium - The GL posting export is now importable without editing.
- Copy Customized Reports - Through a Copy Company Setup dialog box, you can now easily see a list of the customized reports in a company and choose specific ones to copy.
Help Menu Changes - The Help Menu has been updated and organized for easier searches of help topics. Additionally, PDF documents, such as the User's Guide and Depreciation Fundamentals, are now available in one convenient location on the internet. Access them from the Help menu, or bookmark the site in your browser for quick reference. - Group Manager - When editing or creating a group, you now have the option to retain the last selected “Look in” field when adding selection criteria to groups. Simply uncheck the option to “Reset ‘Look in’ field to Description when criterion is added”.
Program Fixes for the Following Issues
- Ghost connections block valid users from accessing the program.
- Headers on reports are blacked out when printing to PDF printer on Citrix network.
- Reports are not printing from Global Task Manager on Citrix network.
- Depreciation Expense Report is blank when using ‘other date’ through Global Task Manager Sage 100 and SFA Depreciation with custom Crystal Reports.
- Annual Projection shows inconsistent amounts for Tax Book (Premier Depreciation only).
- Bar Code Reader Description Field is Truncated to 39 characters (Tracking product only).
- Asset Detail multiple copies of same image appearing on assets' image tab (Premier, Standard, and Network)
- Edits to critical fields not saving.
- In-place conversion process - help file not found.
- Fully depreciated assets not on the Depreciation Expense Report for companies with AAP calendars (Premier Depreciation only).
- Property Tax Summary Report - Number required error.
- 100 Asset Limit error: When the application is registered with planning and depreciation codes it would produce an error: "This product is a limited version -- You cannot create more than 100 assets".