4 THINGS TO NOTE BEFORE CLOSING THE BOOKS

At a high level, here are 4 things to consider as you begin closing the books on 2022 and start fresh in the new year.

1. Backup Your Data

Executing a complete backup of your database is one of the most important things you can do before starting any closing process. You should also test the backup to ensure it was performed successfully and the data is readable.

If you make a mistake, the only way to “reverse” year end processing is to restore data from a backup.

2. Follow the Module Closing Order

A year end process in one module often writes data to another related module. Therefore, closing modules in the proper sequence is important in order to avoid unexpected results or damage to your data.

For more detail and guidance, refer to the Module Closing article on page 3 of this newsletter.

3. Follow the Module Closing Checklists

Step-by-step checklists are available for most modules. These checklists provide guidance on the sequence of detailed tasks and procedures that should be performed within each module.

Detailed checklists for each module can be accessed right from within the Sage 100 Help system.

4. Preview The Process

A video is posted on the Sage Customer Support and Training channel on YouTube that walks you through an overview of period and year-end processes. It provides a nice refresher before starting your live closing process.

CREATING A COPY COMPANY FOR ARCHIVE / BACKUP

At year end, it’s useful to create an archive company using the Copy Company feature. This provides a readily accessible copy (and backup) of the current year’s data even after you perform year end processing in your live company.

To make a copy company, go to:
Library Master > Main Menu > Company Maintenance

1. Create a new company code and company name (description) that’s easy to identify and distinguish from the live/active company that you’re copying.
2. Click the Copy button and enter the Company Code of your current year live (or “Source”) company.
3. Select the modules from the source company you want copied over to your archive company. For a complete archive/backup, you’ll want to copy all modules. Click Proceed. Once the process is finished, click Accept.

Note: For good measure, you might run a trial balance in each module and do a quick spot check to make sure all the data that came over is balanced and accurate.

Video: How to Back Up Data

Head over to YouTube to watch a recorded demonstration of the Copy Company process in action.