The Month-End Close module in Datarails helps finance teams streamline the close process by managing reconciliations, workflows, and reviews in one place. With Month-End Close, you can:

• Set and manage monthly close dates.
• Reconcile accounts and track differences.
• Upload supporting items and adjustments.
• Assign preparers and reviewers with clear due dates.
• Create automated workflows for processes.
• Configure frequency and threshold settings for reconciliation.

This article provides a step-by-step guide to using the Month-End Close module.

Getting started with the Month-End Close Module

From your Datarails workspace, navigate to the Summary Page of Month-End Close. The summary page is divided into three sections:

• Workflow Tasks – tasks assigned for the current month.
• Reconciliation Summary – overview of accounts pending reconciliation, amounts reconciled, and items pending review.
• Workflow Cycles – manage and monitor workflows within the Month-End Close module.

Use the month selector to toggle between different months view.

Note: For reconciliation summary - you can view data for all entities combined or drill down into a specific entity to see its reconciliation status in its local currency.

Managing Close Dates

Close dates are central to the Month-End Close process. All workflow tasks and reconciliation due dates are set relative to the close date.

1. Navigate to the Settings Page.
2. Under Close Dates, set the cutoff date for each month. Example: August 29, September 30, October 28.
3. All tasks will automatically align to this close date (e.g., '5 days after close date').

Tip: Clearly define close dates in advance so that preparers and reviewers have consistent timelines.

Frequency and Threshold Settings

Frequency and threshold settings define how often accounts appear for reconciliation and what level of difference is acceptable to sign-off for account reconciliation.

1. Navigate to Settings > Frequency & Threshold.
2. Choose the reconciliation frequency for each account:
   • Monthly
   • Quarterly
   • Yearly
   • Exclude
3. Define acceptable thresholds (e.g., -100 to +100). If the account difference falls within this range, it can still be signed off.

Note: Settings apply per entity and only affect the current and future months.

Reconciliation Module

The Reconciliation module displays accounts grouped by your chosen hierarchy (e.g., AP, AR, Cash). Each account shows:

• Trial Balance
• Sum of Supporting items
• Sum of Adjustments
  • Difference (Trial balance-Supporting items-Adjustments)
  • Assignees
• Due dates
• Sign-offs

Uploading Supporting Items for a Specific Account

1. Open the relevant account card (e.g., AP).
2. Click on Supporting Items next to the specific account
3. Upload the file that relates only to this specific account.
4. The file will now be linked directly to the selected account.
5. Use the auto-detection mechanism (if the file includes the #DR-XXXX pattern) to automatically map amounts to the relevant accounts.
6. If needed, manually add or edit amounts to the file mapping.
7. Save and confirm. The file will then be associated with all relevant account in that month and entity.

Uploading Supporting Items for Multiple Accounts (General Upload)

1. From the reconciliation module click on “supporting items”
2. In Supporting Items Management window, choose Upload New Items.
3. Upload a file that contains data for multiple accounts.
4. Use the auto-detection mechanism (if the file includes the #DR-XXXX pattern) to automatically map amounts to the relevant accounts.
5. If needed, manually add or edit account mappings.
6. Save and confirm. The file will then be associated with all relevant accounts in that month and entity.

💡 Tip: Use general upload when the same working paper covers several accounts. For more precise tracking, upload files at the specific account level.

📌 Note: Supporting items can be uploaded in the following formats:.xlsx, .xlsb, .xlsm, .csv, .pdf, .docx, .png, .jpeg

Auto-Detection Mechanism

The auto-detection mechanism helps speed up reconciliation by automatically identifying account references within uploaded Excel files.

1. When you upload an Excel file as a supporting item, the system scans the file for the pattern:

   #DR-XXXX (where XXXX is the account identifier).

2. Once the system recognizes this pattern, it automatically captures the amount located in the cell immediately to the left of the pattern.
3. The identified amount is then mapped to the corresponding account in the reconciliation module.

💡Tip: To ensure smooth detection, always include the #DR-XXXX pattern in your working papers when preparing supporting files. This minimizes manual mapping and reduces errors.

💡Tip: Add notes to supporting items for additional context.

Adjustments

Add manual adjustments directly in the account view to fix differences without supporting file.

Assigning Preparers & Reviewers

For each account, assign:

• Preparer – responsible for uploading/reconciling.
• Reviewer – responsible for approving.
• Set due dates as days relative to the close date (e.g., 5 days after close).
• Use bulk actions to assign preparers, reviewers, and due dates across multiple accounts.

Sign-Off Process

• Once differences = 0 (or within allowed thresholds), the preparer can sign off.
• Reviewer can then approve the reconciliation.
• Sign-off logs are stored for audit purposes.

Note: If the account difference is outside the threshold, sign-off will be disabled until adjustments are made.

Creating Workflows

Workflows help you automate and manage month-end tasks.

1. From the Summary Page on the bottom-right corner, click New Workflow.
2. Set:
   • Workflow name
   • Frequency (monthly, quarterly, yearly)
   • Automatic Recurrence if needed (e.g., create 15 days before close date)
   • First month the workflow should apply to (in case automatic recurrence is on).

Adding Steps

Each workflow consists of steps. There are three types:

1. Upload/Sync – e.g., uploading trial balances.
2. Update Mapping – e.g., updating chart of accounts.
3. Custom-for any other Filebox type that needs to be handled during the workflow period.
4. Checklist – tasks without files (e.g., post journal entries).

For each step, you can:

• Add tasks (with descriptions).
• Define dependencies (e.g., run after upload is complete).
• Assign preparers/reviewers and due dates.
• Enable auto-send so tasks are delivered when triggered.
• Reconciliation tagging to link workflow tasks to specific reconciliations. This gives visibility across modules.

Monitoring Progress

From the Summary Page, you can track:

• Tasks: Not started, pending review, overdue, completed.
• Accounts: Reconciled, pending review, remaining.
• Workload balance across team members.

Tip: Use the entity view for a detailed breakdown of reconciled vs. pending accounts, including local currency views.

Reconciliation Module Permissions

General Permissions Model

Data displayed in the Reconciliation module is governed by Trial Balance table permissions.

When entering the module, users will only see accounts they have access to in the Trial Balance table.

As with all data in the system, base access is granted via source Filebox permissions. Data visibility can be further restricted by: Removing specific Filebox access, or applying permission filters per user at the table level 

Supporting Document Visibility

Supporting documents follow the same permission model, with one exception.

• Documents Assigned to Trial Balance Accounts
  • Once a supporting document is assigned to one or more TB accounts, only users with access to at least one of those accounts can see it. This applies regardless of where the document originated .
• Unassigned Documents from Fileboxes
  • If a document originates from a Filebox and has not yet been assigned to a TB account, visibility is controlled by the Filebox’s sharing settings. Once the document is assigned to an account, TB account permissions take over and Filebox permissions no longer apply.

Wrap Up

You have now learned how to:

• Set close dates.
• Reconcile accounts with supporting items and adjustments.
• Assign preparers/reviewers and manage sign-offs.
• Create and automate workflows.
• Configure frequency and thresholds.
• Track progress across the team.
• How permissions work with reconciliation module

For related topics, see the Workflow Overview article.
 

Updated February 04, 2026 08:49