The Order Fulfillment Worksheet allocates inventory dynamically every time it runs a calculation. Nothing in that allocation view is written to a permanent table until you take a further action. This is why manually changing a quantity allocated, and then recalculating or closing the page, appears to undo the change. The allocation only exists for as long as that page session is open.
How Dynamic Allocation Works
Each time the worksheet calculates, it walks through open sales orders and transfer orders in whatever sort order is active, typically earliest shipment date first, and soft allocates available inventory to each line in turn. An order earlier in the sort order gets first claim on stock, and later orders see a reduced quantity available. This is intentional. It gives an accurate, moment in time picture of what could be shipped if action were taken right now, without permanently committing any inventory. Because the calculation is dynamic, recalculating with a different sort order, such as switching from ship date to order value, produces a different allocation outcome using the same underlying inventory.
Manual Overrides Are Also Temporary
Users can manually edit the quantity allocated on a line, for example allocating five units to an order instead of the nine the system proposed. That override holds only while the page remains open. If the page is closed or a recalculation is triggered, the override is lost and the system recalculates from scratch based on current inventory and sort criteria. There is no draft or saved state sitting behind the scenes. The worksheet is a planning surface, not a system of record for allocation.
Making an Allocation Permanent
There are two ways to lock an allocation in place so it survives a recalculation. The first is to create a reservation for the item against that order. A reservation is recognized by Business Central and by the worksheet itself, so once inventory is reserved to an order, it is excluded from what other orders can see as available, regardless of how many times the worksheet recalculates. The second, and more common, method is to create the pick. Once a pick has been generated for an order, the required inventory is committed to that pick and that order, and it will not be reallocated elsewhere. Users can create picks in stages as inventory becomes available, generating a pick for a partial quantity now and a second pick later when more stock arrives, though this is typically only necessary in specific backorder scenarios.
Why This Design Makes Sense
Treating allocation as dynamic rather than persistent keeps the worksheet accurate at all times. Inventory positions in a warehouse change constantly, and a stale, saved allocation could quickly become inaccurate or block inventory from being used where it is actually needed. By only recalculating on demand and only committing inventory through a reservation or a pick, the tool avoids holding stock hostage to an outdated plan while still giving users a reliable way to lock in a decision once they are ready to act on it.
Related Tools
Order Fulfillment Worksheet is the tool that performs this dynamic allocation and pick creation directly from sales orders and transfer orders. Warehouse Insight extends the resulting picks to handheld scanning devices for physical execution once they are created.
In short, allocation in the worksheet is intentionally temporary until a reservation or a pick is created, at which point that inventory commitment becomes permanent for that order.