Prepare and Review Ledger Imports and Exports

Move journal-entry data into or out of SPRK from the Ledger page, with an accountant review path for templates, account matching, preview totals, and post-import report checks.

Journal Entry Import Template modal showing accepted file formats, required columns, recommended columns, and Download Template

Journal Entry Import Template modal showing required and recommended columns

When To Use This

Use this article when you need to import journal-entry activity into SPRK, export journal-entry data for review outside the app, or prepare ledger data for migration cleanup.

Before You Start

  • An active company is selected.
  • For imports, you have a source file in .csv or .xlsx format that matches the ledger workflow you intend to use.
  • You understand which existing accounts should receive imported lines.

Accountant Review Sequence

  1. Confirm the active company.
  2. Confirm the import belongs in Ledger, not Banking, invoices, bills, checks, or payments.
  3. Download the current template if you are preparing a spreadsheet.
  4. Match account labels to the accounts you intend to use.
  5. Check that each journal entry balances before upload.
  6. Preview the file in SPRK.
  7. Compare preview totals and dates to the source file.
  8. Confirm only when the preview matches your accounting intent.
  9. Run Trial Balance or General Ledger after import to review the posted result.

Steps

  1. Open Ledger.
  2. Choose the action that matches your goal:
  • Export to download the currently filtered journal-entry data.
  • Import to open the current starter modal before you pick a file.
  1. In the current Import start modal, review the template guidance before continuing:
  • accepted formats are .csv and .xlsx
  • visible template columns include Entry #, Date, Entry Memo, Account, Description, Debit, and Credit
  • required columns are Account, Debit, and Credit
  • recommended columns include Entry #, Date, Entry Memo, and Description
  • Download Template gives you the starter file before upload
  • Import File continues to file selection after you review the requirements
  1. For exports, review your current filters first because the export uses the rows visible in the ledger view.
  2. For imports, select your file and review the server-generated preview before confirming.
  3. Review preview columns and diagnostics. The current import path can surface entry number, date, entry memo, account, resolved account ID, description, debit, credit, and vendor information when those fields are present and resolved.
  4. Match Account labels to the accounts you intend to use.
  • Account labels can resolve from readable code-plus-name labels as well as direct account IDs, but unknown accounts still block posting.
  1. If a source row omits Date, review the previewed date before confirming. The current import path can fill a default run-date value instead of failing immediately for a blank date.
  2. If SPRK detects missing account labels during import, resolve or create the accounts through the import flow, then let SPRK re-preview the same file before commit.
  3. Confirm the import only after you have reviewed the preview totals, dates, descriptions, accounts, vendors, and validation messages.
  4. After import completes, refresh the ledger if needed and review the newly created entries.

What Happens Next

You can move journal-entry data in or out of the product with the current supported tools.

  • Export creates a download file only. It does not create, edit, or reverse any ledger entries.
  • Previewing a ledger import does not post.
  • A valid confirmed ledger import commits as a batch. Do not treat previewed rows as partially posted unless the app confirms the batch.
  • Import can create new accounts during account-resolution steps before the journal entries are posted, but those account creations do not affect balances on their own.
  • Import is blocked when the file has validation errors, no usable journal lines, unresolved or ambiguous account labels, invalid vendors, out-of-balance entries, duplicate-batch conflicts, posting-cutoff conflicts, or other journal validation failures.
  • Preview failures remain visible in the import modal, and confirmation stays blocked until SPRK has a valid preview.
  • If the same completed batch is retried, SPRK can return the existing journal entries instead of creating duplicates; if only part of a prior batch exists, the retry should be blocked rather than posting the remainder.

If Something Looks Wrong

What You See What To Check What To Do Next
The result looks ready, but a key check is unresolved Assuming export includes every journal entry in the company even when the ledger view is filtered Verify the visible SPRK state before continuing
A needed review step is missing Skipping the starter modal and preparing a file without checking the current required and recommended columns Go back to that check before continuing
The result does not match what you expected Confirming import before reviewing missing-account warnings Review the visible state and use the related workflow before continuing
The result does not match what you expected Preparing import files with account labels that do not match available accounts or the chosen resolution mapping Review the visible state and use the related workflow before continuing
The result looks ready, but a key check is unresolved Assuming only raw account IDs work Use the current template and review code-plus-name account labels in preview
The result does not match the intended workflow Ignoring a blank source date just because the preview filled one Confirm the defaulted date belongs in the intended posting period
The result looks ready, but a key check is unresolved Assuming vendor matching is fuzzy Import vendor references should match active vendor IDs or unique active vendor names/company/print-as values
The result looks ready, but a key check is unresolved Assuming QuickBooks-style or trial-balance-style source files bypass preview They still need review before commit