Overview of Journal Posting
Journal posting is a process that updates balances in general ledger accounts to reflect an entity's business transactions and provides data for financial reporting.
Two aspects to consider in journal posting are:
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Functionally
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Timing
Functionality
Posting is done from the journals pages by selecting journal entries and clicking the Post button. Automate your posting process by scheduling an automatic posting process to periodically select and post batches. You can start posting from the Oracle ADF Desktop Integration journal creation spreadsheet. You can also start posting through the Import and Post option, which imports the data in the spreadsheet and then runs the posting process. Once you post a journal batch, you cannot modify its contents, including additional descriptive information. You cannot delete posted journals but you can copy or reverse them. To reverse a posted journal, modify the reversal fields in on a posted journal or use the automatic reversal functionality. You can only reverse a journal once.
Timing
Journal entries can be posted to a current or prior accounting period, or to an open prior fiscal year. When you post to a prior period, the general ledger automatically updates the beginning balances of all subsequent periods, even if the period is closed. If you post a journal entry into a prior year, the retained earnings balance is adjusted for the effect on the income and expense accounts. When you finalize the activity for an accounting period, close the period to prevent the entry or posting of additional journal entries.