Upgrading has caused serious issues

1

Just upgraded from version 16.03 or thereabouts (not really sure but must be at least 6 - 8 months old) and noticed that all my non-inventory items account codes have gone reverted to the default. I’ll explain - say I have an item called widgets - the default account code for these is “Sales - Widgets” but sometimes I need to put the entry to “Prepaid Income” which is then journaled to “Deposits received” when the money is actually received. Once the sale is actually made, the entry is journaled to “Sales - Widgets”. What has happened now is that all the entries I changed to “Prepaid Income” when setting up the Invoice have reverted to “Sales - Widgets” which was the default code in the Non-Inventory Item. One used to be able to change the default account code when creating an Invoice.

What I have now is all entries are in “Sales - Widgets” with only the debit entries in “Prepaid Income” - its a real mess. . . If someone can help I would appreciate it.

I have a backup just prior to the upgrade. . . how can I revert to an earlier version of Manager or is there a fix for this? - (just tried to reinstall an earlier version and it came up with error messages - didn’t seem to like it al all).

Many thanks
Eric

2

First, once you have used a data file with a newer version, you should never use it with an older version, as newer versions sometimes convert the data structure to accommodate new features. There is no source for older versions of the program unless you saved it when you updated. All versions of Manager and its data files are backwards compatible, but not necessarily forward compatible.

Second, your post is unclear in some respects. You mentionnon-inventory items, but write about selling widgets. The exact situation may not matter, since inventory and non-inventory items are now handled the same and appear in commingled lists for selection.

Third, as for why the restriction you are experiencing happens, it was always meant to be this way, but people were misusing the program. Inventory accounts are built-in control accounts, made up of subaccounts for individual inventory items. When things are parceled out on a random basis, many internal problems crop up. So the ability to do that unexpected thing was removed. Since non-inventory items are handled in very similar fashion, they are subject to similar restrictions.

But the bigger problem is you are following unorthodox procedures. You should not be using sales invoices in connection with advance deposits or prepaid income. A sales invoice records transfer of ownership of an inventory item or signifies completion or delivery of goods or services for non-inventory items. In other words, for either inventory or non-inventory items, you should not be raising a sales invoice unless the income has actually been earned. If you are requesting a deposit, you should use a sales quote, which might be renamed as a pro forma invoice. You might look at these Guides:

https://forum.manager.io/t/creating-sales-quotes/7238

https://forum.manager.io/t/customer-deposits-and-advances/7093

Once actual delivery has occurred, then you can convert the quote to a sales invoice, which creates an account receivable. If there have been advance deposits by that customer, they will be applied to the invoice automatically, lowering the balance due. Final payment is recorded by receiving money against the account receivable. For what you have described, there should be no journal entries involved. In fact, journal entries cannot be used to record money coming into the business.

3

Thank you so much Tut . . that answers my question brilliantly. I grant you
that what I was doing is unorthodox, my business was very much set up on the
fly and it was a workaround that I set up to achieve an end. Now that I
understand the way that sales quotes operate, I can review my procedures.
If I sent you the manager file, are you able to identify what version I was
using? It was around December 2015 that I installed it which might help
also. . . I think it may have been 9.33.something . . does this make any
sense in terms of the timing?

Best Regards,

Eric

1 Like
4

You can’t send me anything. Although I’m a moderator of the forum, I’m a user like you. I don’t actually know if a data file identifies the latest version of the program that produced it, but I don’t think so. And it really does matter. Remember, Manager is only a tool. You need to know how double-entry accounting works before you can use any tool to do it. Manager follows very standard conventions for terminology and usage…it’s just easier than most alternatives.

No. Version numbers are YY.MM.xx. The program wasn’t around in 2009. Again, any problems you are having are not related to the version so far as I can tell, but to the procedures you were following.

5

Hi again Tut,

It would appear that I was using version 16.2.54 or possibly a march version
16.3.something. Could you please direct me as to where I can get a copy of
these?

Many thanks,

Eric

6

Hi Tut,

I now realise that it was a March version of Manager I was using as I tried
to load my backup into dad’s version which was the 16.2.54 and it failed to
load. Therefore my question is where can I get hold of the March versions
of Manager? I thought I would start with the earliest and progressively
work through them until I can load my file.

Many thanks,

Eric

7

@Jaghire, as I said earlier, there is no source for outdated versions of Manager. Nor should you need them, as any version of Manager can call and use a data file from an earlier version. That is what I meant in my first response about backwards compatibility. But trouble will arise if you try to import your backup file, apparently made with version 16.10.xx, into an older version. You cannot regress.

If I understand you though, your only problem is that Manager now refuses to post transactions to improper accounts. The answer is not to go backwards to a version that allowed you to enter such unexpected mistakes, but to fix the mistakes. You should do this in the order of transaction dates. You may have to delete entries, especially those journal entries, that were unnecessary to begin with.

Depending on how much business you have done, you may find it easier to create a new business (you can have as many as you want in Manager) and start from scratch. I will not pretend this will be pleasant, but those erroneous entries must be corrected or cleared or you will never have meaningful accounting records.

8

Thanks Tut,

No the backup file was made in version 16.3.something so I am hoping that I
can reload it in that version. Somewhere someone must have earlier
versions. . . surely. I take what you are saying in terms of my procedures
but I would hope that I can work with the procedures until the end of the
financial year. . or some cut off point and then transfer the balances to a
new file and start off afresh. . . I really appreciate your describing
proforma invoices which I had not thought of. . . just had a closer look at the situation and found that by editing the invoices I have been able to remove the Non-Inventory items and the account code has reverted to prepaid income - I should be able to work with it for the time being - would still love to have the earlier version though.

Best Regards,

Eric

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A post was split to a new topic: Suggestion for change on entering customers