GL3000ADVANCED GENERAL LEDGER--REPORTING AND USING

OPTIONAL CHARTFIELDS
OUTLINE
Introduction: Accounting Basics
Retrieving Departmental/Project account balances :
Part I-Using OMNI Reporting Tools from GL 2000. (Review)
A.
B.
C.
D.

LEDGER INQUIRY
USING QUERY VIEWER
USING REPORT SEARCH PAGE
1.
Departmental Summary Ledger
2.
Detail Reports
USING ORACLE (OBIEE) REPORTS

Part 2-Using General Ledger Reports

I. General Ledger Reports:
A.
TRIAL BALANCE
1. Basic Trial Balance Reports
2. Customizing Reports
B.
GL SUMMARY REPORT
C.
ACTIVITY REPORT
Part 3- Using Optional Chartfields
A.
Establishing Optional ChartfieldsSet up Guidelines
1. Naming and labeling formats
2. Field size limitations
B.
Using General Ledger to retrieve Information
1. Viewing info using GL>REVIEW FINANCIAL INFORMATION>LEDGERS
2. Making Customized GL reports using:
a. Trial Balance Report
b. Ledger Summary Report

INTRODUCTION

General Ledger vs. Budgetary LedgersWhats the difference and why? Budgetary
Ledgers track anticipated expenses (encumbrances) plus actual expenses against a budget
(spending authority) to prevent over-spending. The fund source determines whether
spending is based on Budget (e.g., E&G & C&G) or Cash (e.g., Aux. & Quasi-Auxlike
Activities, Athletics). The General Ledger tracks actual expenses only (hence the Ledger
name Actuals) and is used to prepare the Universitys Financial Statements (annual
reports required by law which disclose how the University obtained and utilized its
financial resources during the preceding fiscal period i.e., financial year).
Accounting Basics (Attachment)

PART I: OMNI REPORTING TOOLS REVIEW

Retrieving Departmental/Project account balances:
A.

LEDGER INQUIRY

Navigation: General Ledger>Review Financial Information>Ledgers

Advantages for this formatFast; Real-time data; drill down capability. Good for
viewing up to date information quickly. Provides Monthly totals and YTD
Totalscan drill down to view journal and transaction detail. Can be
downloaded into Excel format for printing/saving to file.
Process: Add (first time only), or find existing search name.
Inquiry Criteria:
Business Unit =FSU01
Ledger=Actuals
Fiscal Year
From Period 1 to Period 12 (or specified period)must use from period 1
to get Y -T_D balances. To period 12 will always provide the most current
data.
Mark Show YTD Balance.
Leave Account blank for all values, but check Sum By. Input the
dept./fund/project numbers in the appropriate fields. (Example I-A)
Click on SEARCH. You may get the message Maximum Rows exceeds
300. This increases chance of experiencing database time-out. Do you
want to continue? Click OK.
When information appears, it will display totals by periods, current and YT-D. Look at Y-T-D for the most recent period to get current account
balances. You can click on the Activity hyperlink next to any
period/account to view the journal activity for that period. By clicking on
the journal, you can view additional journal information. You can then
drill further into the journal lines for additional detail (i.e., drill to source
for Voucher/invoice detail in AP journals or Expense Report information
in EXA journals). Period 0 indicates balances brought forward from prior
year, (no Activity hyperlink available for these.)
To print, print-screen or use the download to Excel icon (hold Control key
down while clicking on icon (blue and white checked box with red square
in upper left- hand corner, on blue heading bar.

B. USING QUERY VIEWER

Queries have been set up to help departments review their financial activity on a day-to-

day basis. They may be used to review the departments purchases, travel activity,
journals, and also some definitions and crosswalks.
NAVIGATION TO QUERIES:
1. From the menu, find and click: Reporting Tools>Query>Query Viewer.
2. In the Search field (following begins with), enter FSU_DPT. Click on Search.
This will display department-based queries that will assist you
in managing requisitions, payments, travel, and other related processes.
4. You can then choose to run to HTML or Excel. If you run to Excel, you can save it
as an Excel file, and adjust as needed as with an Excel spreadsheet.
QUERY TRIAL BALANCE EQUIVILENT (Example I-B)
FSU_DPT_TRIAL_BALANCE gives users the ability to run a trial balance for
their departments at any time. Or you can use query:
FSU_DPT_LEDGER_SUM_W_CF to get account balance totals. The second
query includes prompts for project and account whereas the first query only
prompts by dept./fund. FSU_DPT_TRIAL_BALANCE requires only the dept.
and fund IDs with the period/fiscal year, and BU. If using
FSU_DPT_LEDGER_SUM_W_CF, you must input fiscal year, beginning and
ending periods--use 0 to 12 for To Date balances enter dept #, fund, project,
account as applicablethe wildcard (%) will bring back all values. However,
avoid using the wildcard too freely as there must be some specified criteria in
order to keep from timing out or even tying up the system while it searches the
entire database. For instance, specify a dept., fund and project, but use the
wildcard on the account chartfield to view all account balances. All prompts must
have something in themif no value applicable, fill in the prompt with %. For
example, you are running the query on a dept. without a projectproject prompt
must still have a wildcard in it. Query can be run in either HTML (good for
viewing data) or Excel format (good for printing or saving to file)
C. USING REPORT SEARCH PAGE

OMNI Report Search Page is used to deliver the departments month-end financial
Reports. This includes the Department Ledger Summary, as well as the detail reports,
such as the Revenue, Expense, and Outstanding Encumbrance reports.
1. Navigation: From the OMNI financial menu, find and click: Reporting
Tools>Report Search Page.
Enter the fiscal year and period you wish to view; for non C&G reports, enter your
department number. Leaving the fund code blank will bring up all ledger summary
reports for your department. For C&G reports, enter your six digit project number.
Leaving the dept and fund code blank will bring up all ledger summary reports for your
project. Click on SEARCH. A menu of available reports will appear. Those that end in

DLS are departmental ledger SUMMARY reports (balances only). This is a good
opportunity to make sure only valid dept/fund/project combinations appear. If you notice
an invalid combination, open the report to find out where (under what account) there is
any activityresearch the account through the detail reports (below ), through the
queries, or GL>Review Financial Information. Submit an Expenditure Transfer form to
General Accounting to move the transaction to the correct budget combination.
Month-end reports consist of detail reports and the departmental ledger summary.
To display reports, click on the green arrow icon on the left side of the report name. You
may have to hold down the Control key while clicking the icon.
1. Department Summary Ledger
The departmental ledger summaries (DLS) (monthly ledgers) are Excel-based, and can
be saved to your computer. The Department Ledger Summary will contain beginning,
current month, and ending balances for expenses, revenues, cash and accounts payable,
summarized by account.
2. Detail Reports
Following the DLS reports you will see the Detail reports .The revenue, expense, AP
(Liability), cash, and encumbrance detail reports will be listed. For each report, there is a
C&G version (by project) and a non-C&G version (by dept). The detail reports are
University-wide data in PDF format. To view your dept or project data, use the
find/search (binoculars icon) option and input your dept or project number in the search
field. The search will take you to the corresponding page(s) within the report. The detail
reports will display current month activity, sub-totaled by account, which will tie to the
amount shown on the Department Summary Ledger. If you want to print the
information, make sure you specify the actual page numbers, otherwise you may print the
information for the entire university which may be several thousand pages.
D. USING BUSINESS OBJECTS (ORACLE OBIEE) REPORTS

Procedure to be determined.

PART 2: GENERAL LEDGER REPORTING TOOLS

GENERAL LEDGER REPORTS
Obtaining information through the GENERAL LEDGER MODULE
Real time dataincludes all posted journals through time run.
I. Navigation: General Ledger>General Reports>Report Name
Advantages for this format-versatility in presentation formatconcise
information in printable PDF format.
A.
Trial Balance:
Add (first time only) or find existing search name,
Report Parameters (criteria):
Ledger=Actuals
Fiscal Year
Period: Use Period 12 or specified periodperiod 12 will always provide
the most current data, Click refresh for chartfield selection.
1. Basic Trial Balance--Mark the chartfields you want to include
(dept/fund/accountproject if applicable, and indicate the order in which
you want them displayed). Input chartfield value info. Mark subtotal by
account. Mark descr if you want the corresponding chartfield description
to show (optional). Leave account numbers blank for all values.
Click RUN. On next screen, Use drop down box to choose Server PSNT-Click OK.
Go to Process Monitor (blue hyperlink at top of page.) Click on
REFRESH until Run Status shows Success and Distribution Status Shows
Posted. Then click Details hyper link.
Click on View Log/Trace hyperlink on next page. Click on Blue hyperlink
for file name ending in PDF. Such as GLS7012_1284700.PDF.
Report will appear in new window in PDF format. (Example 2-I-A-1)
2. Advanced/Customized Trial Balance reports (for example, for
project with multiple funds or depts. (Example 2- I-A-2a), or to view
account balances for a range of depts. (Example 2- I-A-2b)
Same procedure as basic reports above, except you can change the
chartfield display order and subtotal as needed.
B.
Ledger Summary Report:
The Ledger summary Report is similar to the Trial Balance, except it does
not allow for a range of values and provides the detailed journal activity -Since this is a detail report, it may return a large volume of data, so it is
advisable to limit your search to specific accounts/chartfield combinations.
(Example 2-I-B)
Add (first time only) or find existing search name
Report Parameters (criteria):

BU= FSU01;Ledger=Actuals
Fiscal Year; To period (returns Y-T-D data up to specified period)
Click refresh for chartfield selection .Check chartfields you want
included and specify order. Enter chartfield information.
Click RUN. On next screen, Use drop down box to choose Server PSNT-Click OK.
Go to Process Monitor (blue hyperlink at top of page.) Click on
REFRESH until Run Status shows Success and Distribution Status Shows
Posted. Then click Details hyper link.
Click on View Log/Trace hyperlink on next page. Click on Blue hyperlink
for file name ending in PDF. Such as GLS7003_1292317.PDF.
C.

Ledger Activity Report:

The Activity Report contains elements of both the Trial Balance and the
Ledger Summary Report, in that it can return totals only or detail, and can
be run for a range of values or periods.
Add (first time only) or find existing search name.
Report Parameters (criteria):
BU= FSU01;Ledger=Actuals
Fiscal Year, Periods to/from
To include journal information, Check Show Journal Detail (leaving this
unchecked will return opening and closing balances, with total activity
amount for periods specified but no journal detail. Click refresh for
chartfield selection. Again, like the Ledger Summary Report, when
including detail, very active accounts may return a large volume of data,
so it is advisable to limit your search to specific accounts/periods, but you
can include all values by clicking on All Values. Click on Summarize to
have the data subtotaled by selected chartfield. (Example 2-I-C1) Detail
will list all the journal activity chronologically for the specified chartfields
by period, no subtotals. (Example 2-I-C2)
Click RUN. On next screen, Use drop down box to choose Server PSNT-Click OK.
Go to Process Monitor (blue hyperlink at top of page.) Click on
REFRESH until Run Status shows Success and Distribution Status Shows
Posted. Then click Details hyper link.
Click on View Log/Trace hyperlink on next page. Click on Blue hyperlink
for file name ending in PDF. Such as GLS7002_1285185.PDF.
Report will appear in new window in PDF format.

Part 3. USING OPTIONAL CHARTFIELDS

A.

Establishing Optional Chartfields

1.
For naming optional CFs 1, 2, & 3, as a general rule avoid beginning the
CF with numbersprefix them with alpha. (Current exceptions are
NHMFL and CPD). If your chartfield value is a number (like 1004), then
it is better to prefix it with alpha characters (like ALTH1004 or OTI1004).
The Long Description should begin with the first 3 digits of the
department. If you have more than one group of department numbers (like
134 and 135), just enter whichever one is used most often.
Beginning the long description with your department number will help
find the Owner should there be any questions, as well as making it easy
to identify which CFs you have already established. SEARCH using
Description BEGINS WITH189 for example will return a list of CFs 1,
2, or3 set up by dept 189.
2.
The chartfield value name and short description fields are a maximum of
10 alpha/numeric characters (including spaces) The long description is a
maximum of 30. Email to djarriel@admin.fsu.edu in General Accounting
using the attached spreadsheet as a model. (See attachment 3-A-1.)

Keep in mind that anyones CF1, 2, & 3 can be used by anyone else. What
would distinguish the transactions for reporting would be the
accompanying dept., fund, account and project associated with the
chartfield
B. Using the General Ledger for Optional Chartfield reports:
1. Ledger Inquiry:
Navigation: General Ledger>Review Financial Information>Ledgers
Same procedure as in Section A above, but select the optional CF(s) you
want to include and indicate how you want it displayed and subtotaled.
Example 3-B-1a shows costs for a selected chartfield 1 ADMIN, but
does not display the dept/fund numbers associated with the CF. Not
recommended.--Since it does not display the dept/fund number; it is
possible the totals include transactions from another dept which may have
utilized the same optional CF, intentionally or unintentionally. Sum by
dept will display the dept information associated with the use of the CF so
you will know if you are only viewing information for your dept. (See
Example 3-B-1b) Notice that the grand total for CF1 ADMIN is the
same for both, but more than one dept has used the CF. Including specific
dept/project data in the chartfield selection process will eliminate
unwanted data. Example 3-B
-1c shows costs associated with the same CF, but for the Biology and
Chemistry Depts. only (07%). NOTE the grand total has changed since
the transaction(s) associated with dept 189000 have not been included.
As always you can click on the Activity hyperlink next to any
period/account to view the journal activity for that period. By clicking on
the journal, you can view additional journal information. You can then
drill further into the journal lines for additional detail (i.e., drill to source
for Voucher/invoice detail in AP journals or Expense Report information
in EXA journals.
2. General Ledger Reports
a. Trial Balance:
Same procedure as basic reports above except add CF1, 2 and/or 3 for
your criteria as applicable. Rules mentioned above in Ledger Inquiry
apply to the reports as well. Including specific chartfield information will
help to eliminate unwanted data. Use chartfields/subtotals as necessary to
derive and present the information you require (can be as simple or
detailed as you need.) Example 3-B-2-a1 shows a good example of
information that can be obtained using CF1s in conjunction with CF2s
Theater Production Into the Woods(CF2) broken down into production
cost centers (CF1s) further detailed by account number. The user can
easily identify how much was spent/earned and on what. Example 3-B-2a2 provides a simpler version, i.e. CF1 cost centers, but no account data.

Example 3-2-a3 shows costs associated with a range of chartfields by

account for a specific department.
b. Ledger Summary Report:
Same procedure as basic reports above except add CF1, 2 and/or 3 for
your criteria as applicable. Example 3-B-2-b1 used the same criteria as
Trial Balance 3-B-2-a1 above, but with the account/chartfield 1 order
reversed. Note the difference in presentation. Also, since this is a detail
report, the specific journal transactions are included.

SCHEDULE OF ATTACHMENTS
1.

EXAMPLE I-A: Ledger Inquiry for departmental Y-T-D account balances.

2.

EXAMPLE I-B Departmental Account Balances using Query

FSU_DPT_LEDGER_SUM_W_CF

3.

EXAMPLE 2-I-A-1: Account Balances using the basic Trial Balance Report

4.

EXAMPLE 2-I-A-2a: Trial Balance report for project with multiple depts.

5.

EXAMPLE 2-I-A-2b: Trial Balance for single account for range of depts.

6.

EXAMPLE 2-I-B:

Ledger Summary Report

7.

EXAMPLE 2-I-C1:

Ledger Activity Report Summarized by account

8.

EXAMPLE 2-I-C2:

Ledger Activity Report (Not Summarized)

9.

ATTACHMENT 3-A-1: Optional Chartfield Sample Set Up Spreadsheet

10.

EXAMPLES 3-B-1a,b,c:

11.

EXAMPLES 3-B-2-a1,2&3: Trial Balance Reports with Optional Chartfields

12.

EXAMPLE3-B-2-b1:Ledger Summary Report with Optional Chartfields

Ledger Inquiries with Optional Chartfields