Attach Images to Warehouse Documents in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
A photo taken at the right moment is evidence. A photo taken after the fact is a reconstruction. Warehouse Insight lets workers take photos directly from their camera-enabled Android handheld at any point in the warehouse workflow — receiving, picking, shipping, and inventory — and automatically attach them to the relevant Business Central record. The purchaser sees the damage photo on the purchase order. The shipping manager sees the pallet condition photo on the warehouse shipment. No desktop. No emailing images around. No chasing documentation after the fact.
At a Glance
- Take photos from any camera-enabled Android handheld device during receiving, shipping, picking, or inventory workflows
- Photos attach automatically to the corresponding Business Central record: purchase order, warehouse shipment, sales order, or inventory document
- Multiple photos per record supported, using the device’s standard Android camera
- Configurable per workflow: enable photo capture on receiving, shipping, or any other stage independently
Have a Question about Attaching Images?
Key Capabilities
Damage documentation at receiving. When a worker receives damaged goods or a vendor’s misshipment, they take photos directly from the receiving application on their device. Those photos are uploaded and attached to the purchase orderhttps://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/business-central/purchasing-manage-purchasing in Business Central immediately. The purchaser has everything needed to open a vendor claim without waiting for paperwork, emails, or a follow-up visit to the dock.
Outbound pallet condition at shipping. Before goods leave the dock, workers take photos of pallets and boxes from within the shipping application. Those photos are attached to the warehouse shipment in Business Central. When a carrier damage claim comes back weeks later, the outbound condition of the shipment is already on record, with a timestamp, attached to the shipment document that was processed at the time of pickup.
Item images for pick verification. Item images captured and attached to items in Business Central display on the device during picking, receiving, and other workflows, giving workers a visual confirmation of the correct item before scanning. This reduces misidentification errors in high-SKU environments where similar-looking items are located in nearby bins.
Standard Android camera, no additional hardware. Photo capture in Warehouse Insight uses the device’s built-in Android camera. No dedicated camera hardware, scanning accessories, or additional applications are required. Any camera-enabled Android handheld running Warehouse Insight can take and attach photos.
Multiple photos per record. Workers can take as many photos as needed against a single document. All photos are attached to the same Business Central record. Warehouse Insight does not enforce a limit on the number of images per transaction.
Configurable per workflow. Photo capture can be enabled independently for receiving, shipping, picking, and other applications. Operations that want photos on receiving and shipping but not on picks configure that distinction in Business Central’s device menus. Workers only see the photo option when it has been enabled.
Existing images from the device. In addition to taking a new photo with the camera, workers can select an existing image from the device’s photo library to attach to a document. This supports scenarios where a photo was taken before the application was opened, or where an image from another source needs to be attached to a BC record.
How the Attach Image Works in Warehouse Insight
Photo capture is available as a menu action within any Warehouse Insight application where it has been configured. During an active receiving, shipping, pick, or inventory workflow, the worker presses Take Picture from the document menu. The device camera opens immediately. The worker takes one or more photos and confirms. Images are uploaded automatically and attached to the Business Central record associated with the active document, whether it is a purchase order, warehouse shipment, warehouse pick, or inventory document.
The attachment appears in Business Central’s standard document attachments and is visible to anyone with access to the record. No separate image management system is involved. The photo is part of the document record from the moment it is taken, with the timestamp of the transaction in which it was captured.
Photo capture is enabled per application from Business Central’s device menu configuration. Adding or removing the Take Picture menu option from a specific application requires no code changes. The same configuration controls whether workers can attach existing images from the device library in addition to taking new photos.
The Four Scenarios Where Attach Image Delivers the Most Value
Inbound Damage Claims
A worker unloads a pallet and finds crushed cartons or missing items. They take photos from within the receiving application before the receipt is posted. Those photos are attached to the purchase order in Business Central while the worker is still at the dock. The purchasing team can see the evidence on the PO record immediately, with the exact receipt it was associated with. Vendor claims are opened the same day, with timestamped photographic evidence already attached to the source document.
Mis-shipment Documentation
When a vendor ships the wrong item, and the barcode does not match anything on the purchase order, the worker has a record of exactly what arrived. A photo taken at that moment and attached to the PO gives the purchasing team and the vendor a clear, timestamped visual reference for the discrepancy, without any manual follow-up required on the warehouse floor.
Outbound Shipment Condition
For operations shipping via LTL carriers, carrier damage claims are a recurring cost. When a consignee reports damage and the carrier disputes responsibility, the question is always whether the damage occurred before or after pickup. Workers who photograph pallets and boxes before they leave the dock — from within the Warehouse Insight shipping application — create a timestamped record of outbound condition attached to the warehouse shipment in Business Central. That record can be retrieved in seconds when a claim arrives.
Item image creation during receiving
When a new item arrives at the dock for the first time, a worker can photograph it and attach the image to the item record in Business Central. That image then displays on the device during subsequent picking, receiving, and counting workflows, providing all workers with a visual reference for the item going forward.
Who Uses Attach Image
Receiving clerks use it to document inbound damage and vendor mis-shipments at the moment of discovery, attaching evidence to the purchase order before the receipt is posted. Shipping staff use it to photograph outbound pallets and boxes before goods leave the dock, creating a condition record for the warehouse shipment to support carrier claim defense. Purchasing managers and customer service teams benefit from having timestamped photographic evidence attached directly to source documents in Business Central, which can be retrieved without requesting files from the warehouse floor. Warehouse supervisors use it to create item images during receiving for new items that do not yet have photos in Business Central.
Frequently Asked Questions
Photos taken from Warehouse Insight are attached to the Business Central record associated with the active workflow document. This includes purchase orders during receiving, warehouse shipments during shipping, warehouse picks during picking, and inventory documents during count or adjustment workflows. The attachment appears in Business Central’s standard document attachments on the relevant record and is visible to anyone with access to that record.
No. Photo capture uses the Android device’s built-in camera running Warehouse Insight. No dedicated camera hardware or additional accessories are required. Any Android handheld or mobile computer running Warehouse Insight that has a working camera can take and attach photos. The standard Android camera interface is used, so workers already familiar with the device do not need additional training.
Yes. The License Plates menu option within the Bin Content application lists all license plates currently assigned to the bin. Selecting a plate and pressing Show License Plate opens the full plate detail, showing every item and quantity on the plate. This allows workers to verify pallet contents without unpacking or scanning individual items.
Yes. The Take Picture menu action is configured per application in Business Central’s device menus. Enabling or disabling photo capture for a specific workflow, such as receiving or shipping, is a BC configuration change that requires no code modification. Workers see the photo option only in applications where it has been enabled, and it can be restricted so that only specific user groups or device configurations can access it.
Yes. In addition to the Take Picture option that opens the device camera directly, Warehouse Insight also supports a Choose Picture option that lets workers select an existing image from the device’s photo library. This supports scenarios where a photo was taken before the application was opened, or where an image received from another source needs to be attached to a Business Central document.