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GL Journal Transaction Entry

GL Journal Transaction Entry enters miscellaneous and adjusting journal batches. Most GL activity comes from AP, AR, Payroll, and other modules. Mid-year go-live often uses this form to post net activity by account for each month before other apps go live (use the correct month).

You can post into any open month (max open months is set in GL Company Parameters). Validate and post through GL Batch Process (File > Process Batch from this form, or from the main menu).

Before you start​

Hard rule (journal choice): use General for standard permanent entries; use Accruals for reversible entries meant to reverse next period (auto reverse / reversal journal on GL Journals). Do not put permanent adjustments on Accruals.

Hard rule: any unposted GL Journal Transaction Entry batches for the period block Close General Ledger until posted or cleared.

Steps​

  1. Open GL Journal Transaction Entry and start or open a batch. On Batch Selection, Adj Pd Entries (if checked) marks the whole batch as adjustment-period entries — only for the last month of the fiscal year, and it applies to all lines or none.
  2. Enter Seq #: N, New, or + for a new transaction, or an existing batch sequence to display it. Each entry gets a unique transaction number within the period; the journal is locked while you post so numbers stay sequential.
  3. Enter Date (date of the transactions in this session).
  4. Choose Journal (from GL Journals). For permanent vs reversible work, prefer General vs Accruals as above. Intercompany: the same intercompany journal must exist in every referenced company (a separate intercompany journal per company is recommended).
  5. Optional To Co — only if Allow Intercompany GL Journal Entries is on in GL Company Parameters. At least one line’s To Co must be the posting company; offsets go to another company.
  6. Enter Reference (up to 10 characters, or F4 to GL Journal References). Groups related lines. All lines sharing the same reference within a journal and month must balance (unless Allow Unbalanced Entries is on). Same reference can be reused each month. Intercompany lines must use the same reference. References are not validated up front; they are added when entries post.
  7. Enter Description (up to 60 characters). Defaults from the reference description for that month/journal/reference if one exists.
  8. Enter GL Account, Amount, and Dr/Cr (Debit = D, 1, or +; Credit = C, 2, or –). Amounts are positive; side is Dr/Cr. Memo accounts are allowed (for example payroll hours); memo amounts are excluded from journal balancing and standard reports.
  9. Add lines until the entry balances. Batch, journal, and reference net totals show in the non-tab area — they typically must be zero to validate and post. Multiple journals and references can sit in one batch.
  10. File > Process Batch (GL Batch Process): confirm Month and Batch #, then Validate. Fix errors (Error List), revalidate. Print audit lists before post (Batch List, GL Account Distribution, Error List) — they are not available after post. Enter Posting Date (defaults today), then Post. On success the batch clears and closes.

Balancing and intercompany​

  • Default: every reference must balance unless Allow Unbalanced Entries is marked in GL Company Parameters (one-sided entries only to bring GL into balance — turn it off afterward).
  • Intercompany lines must balance to zero even if Allow Unbalanced Entries is on. Do not key offsetting intercompany AP/AR; Vista inserts them at post. Intercompany distributions (and any non-intercompany lines processed with them) get source GL JrnlXCo; balancing non-intercompany groups get source GL Jrnl. Use a different journal and/or reference to keep them distinct.
  • After post, lines cannot be edited or deleted — use compensating entries.
  • You cannot edit or delete reversing transactions posted via GL Auto Reversal Entry from this form.

Add posted lines back / clear batch​

  • File > Add Transaction: pull posted lines by GL Transaction # (F4) or by Journal + Reference (pulls every posted transaction for that journal and reference). If you delete a transaction that was added back, also delete the Reference in GL Journal References — it is not removed automatically.
  • File > Clear Batch on GL Batch Process removes unposted batch data. Transactions that had already been posted and were pulled back in are only cleared from the batch, not deleted. Disabled while status is Posting in Progress.

Batch Process status​

  • Open — ready for validation
  • Validated — ready to post
  • Errors — correct and revalidate
  • Updated — posted

Validate is required before post. Switching batches or closing the form before post resets status. Interrupted post cannot be revalidated — reprint remaining audit lists and Post again. If Attach Batch Report to HQ Batch Control is on and the user lacks report security, posting is blocked.

Notes​