Year End Checklist

This article outlines the process for closing a year end in Connected.  

• Things to do Prior to Closing a Year
  • Complete Reconciliations 
  • Enter Year End Entries from the Auditor
  • Backup Data
    • Backing up a Connected on Demand Data File
    • Backing up a Connected Data File using the ODBA
  • Close all Periods
  • Print Reports in Hard Copy or PDF
• Closing an Accounting Year

Things to do Prior to Closing a Year

When a user is preparing for a year end, there are are items that need to be completed prior to starting the final year end process.

Complete Reconciliations 

Making sure reconciliations are completed is a key part to a year end going smoothly.  Completing all bank reconciliations, verifying the Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable listings against control accounts, and making sure Inventory is reconciled against un-invoiced Purchase Orders are the main areas of focus.

Enter Year End Entries from the Auditor

To prepare for year end processing it is important to verify all of your auditors entries have been entered and posted. Printing the Connected financials and ensuring they match your auditors is a good check and balance before closing the year.

Backup Data

Closing the Year is a permanent process and cannot be undone. Therefore, it is essential to back up your Connected data before beginning this process. Some helpful backup tips:

• A back up could be stored on a separate hard drive, flash drive, or cloud space, with both an on-site and off-site copy available.
• It also recommend users include the words "year-end" in the file name along with the year end date so it is clear what the backup is.
• If the data set is a multi-segment Connected file, ensure that all segments are backed up or the backup will not be valid.
• Finally, the most important part of the backup process, is to verify that it works by logging into the backup file.

Backing up a Connected on Demand Data File
This article is not applicable when the Connected ODB Admin server software (macOS or PC Desktop) is being used.

>>> How to Manually Back Up a Connected File Manually

Backing up a Connected Data File using the ODBA
The ODBA application allows users to make a spot backup of a Connected data file. Below are the instructions on how to create a manual backup:

>>> How to Create a Manual Back Up File Using the ODBA Application

Close all Periods

To prepare for the actual process of closing the year, all periods within the fiscal year must be closed. A year end can't be processed without closing all periods first. Although Connected allows the period to be closed in the Inventory, Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, and Job Costing modules, only the periods in the General Ledger need to be closed prior to closing the year. Closing the periods in the General Ledger will close the periods everywhere else.

How to Close Accounting Periods in Connected

Print Reports in Hard Copy or PDF

Print the final year end reports to a digital (PDF or Spreadsheet) or hard copy.  Reports such as Trial Balance, Income Statement, Balance Sheet, Customer Aged Listing, and Vendor Aged listing are some of the key reports. Printing/saving purchase or sales histories may also be a consideration.

Closing an Accounting Year

The process for closing a year in Connected can be found in this article:

Closing an Accounting Year in Connected