Purge and Masterfile Deletions
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Use this screen to delete transaction records from the database which then allows:-
deletion of inactive master records
optimisation of the database
Skip to the description of the screen elements
Backup your database before starting the Purge process.
If the Purge fails for any reason it is highly probable the database will be corrupt and there is no way back other than restoring from your backup.
New Information
From V3.15.0.0 the precursor Archive program has been changed and this Purge program can no longer delete transactions from periods which have not been archived.
Transactions are still deleted from the system in "period blocks" with all transactions prior to and including the period selected in this screen being removed from the system.
Discussion
Over time any database will contain many records which are no longer relevant, at least on a day to day basis. In the Aspect Property Manager database this will consist of landlords whose properties are no longer managed or were one time casual lets, the properties owned by these landlords and of course the tenants in those properties; there will be properties which have been on-sold and are no longer managed and of course the tenants who rented those properties. There will also be Suppliers which are no longer used. Associated with each of these "dead" landlords, properties, tenants and suppliers are the transaction records covering the financial activity as well as other records, photos, notes and so on. There are also old transaction records for "live" landlords, properties, tenants and suppliers which now have little relevance and can safely be removed from the system too providing there is access to these historical transactions.
Removing these irrelevant records has a number of benefits:-
Clutter is removed from screens and reports
The reduced database size means backups are smaller and faster
There will be an increase in the overall speed of the Aspect Property Manager but whether you will notice it will be arguable in many situations.
However, if these records are no longer in your database, how do you refer to old data when there may be a dispute about something which happened in those removed records? One way is to print and store reports which are seldom if ever used, occupy space and are difficult to access.
The Aspect Property Manager has a different approach. The old records are kept in a "time-frozen" copy of the database created using the Archive program. Information in the archived databases may be viewed but not changed and reports produced.
Once the current "live" database has been archived old transaction records can be deleted using the Purge program. See here for examples of the relationship between the Archive and Purge dates. Then unwanted master records may be removed subject to the rules associated with deleting records and by using the Admin menu > Utilities > Print and Delete ... functions covered later in this topic. The final step is to run the Admin menu > Utilities > Database Optimise program which reorganises the internal structure of the database and reduces the physical disk space required.
It is impossible to give indicative timings for the Purge because of the huge variables which exist. However, as it will take some time, plan to do it when there is time to spare. Experience suggests that most users with relatively new computers will take anything between 15 minutes and an hour.
The Purge should only be run when no other users are logged into the Aspect Property Manager and on Client/Server systems the server should be stopped and the Purge run in Peer-to-Peer mode.
Backup your database when the Purge process has completed.
Description of Purge screen
Location... Administration menu > Utilities > Purge.
View the screen being discussed from the location shown above. Just do not click [OK] until you are certain you wish to proceed.
Period Selection
Select the last period for which transactions are to be deleted.
4 By default this will be the oldest period in the database
4 The latest period which could be purged is the last period which has been archived but the end of an earlier tax year is most likely to be chosen
Steps Times and Progress
As each step starts the system start time is displayed.
A tick and the elapsed time displays as each step is complete and the Progress Bar also indicates progress.
If you want to know if you can disappear for a cup of tea etc you can roughly calculate the time remaining by the elapsed time on each step and the number of blue "squares" in the progress bar. There are approximately 25 progress squares on the default sized screen.
The step Deleting from TransReg(2) will take the longest time to perform.
Deleting master file records
When the Purge has finished and you have backed up the database you can move on to deleting the unwanted master records. It is not essential to do this immediately if other work needs to be done.
These next steps automate the deletion of tenants, properties, landlords and suppliers.
You will not be able to delete any master file record where the account has a balance or any transaction record exists. B/Fwd records are not considered transactions. For this reason, if no other, you should keep on top of your housekeeping and get accounts cleared up as soon as possible, in particular those of vacating tenants.
Because of the hierarchy requirements the following steps need to be executed in the order given when deleting landlords, properties and tenants. The supplier records have no such restriction and may be done at any time.
1. Run the Administration menu > Utilities > Print and Delete Unused Tenants.
This function requires you to choose a date after which you do not want to delete any vacated tenant whether or not their account is cleared.
Use the Date Picker to select this vacate date.
4 This date will usually be the same date as you chose when creating the archive or may be a later date to pick up tenants entered into the Aspect Property Manager but who never started their tenancy and have not been manually deleted.
A grid of vacated tenants who have no transactions (only B/Fwd records) and have a zero balance** will be displayed.
4 **The account of a tenant which has amounts of Rent, Debt, Letting Fee or Bond which have positive and negative values but which total zero is not considered to be cleared and will not be able to be deleted.
4 Print the grid and locate any tenants you do not wish to have removed from the system then double click the grid line so the text is no longer bold. When only the tenants to be deleted are left in bold text press the [Delete Selected] button.
2. Run the Administration menu > Utilities > Print and Delete Unused Properties.
A grid of deletable properties will be displayed.
4 Print the grid and locate any properties you do not wish to have removed from the system.
4 Locate those properties in the grid and double click the grid line so the text is no longer bold.
4 When only the properties to be deleted are left in bold text press the "[Delete Selected]" button.
3. Run the Administration menu > Utilities > Print and Delete Unused Landlords.
A grid of deletable landlords will be displayed.
4 Print the grid and locate any landlords you do not wish to have removed from the system.
4 Locate those landlords in the grid and double click the grid line so the text is no longer bold.
4 When only the landlords to be deleted are left in bold text press the "[Delete Selected]" button.
3. Run the Administration menu > Utilities > Print and Delete Unused Suppliers.
A grid of deletable suppliers will be displayed.
4 Print the grid and locate any suppliers you do not wish to have removed from the system.
4 Locate those suppliers in the grid and double click the grid line so the text is no longer bold.
4 When only the suppliers to be deleted are left in bold text press the "[Delete Selected]" button.
Final Step
Once the purge process is complete run Administration menu > Utilities > Database Optimise. This will reduce the disk space occupied by the database by compacting the files. This must be done when no other users are logged into the system. After this step the physical size of your backup will normally be reduced and depending upon your equipment you may also notice a generally faster response.
Related Topics
Archive
Database Optimise
Housekeeping
Clearing a Tenant Account
Clearing a Landlord Account
Clearing a Supplier Account
Adding, Changing and Deleting Records