FAQ
Questions that come up most often when getting set up.
Where does my data actually live?
Entirely on your own computer, in the .ldesk company file you choose a location for at setup. LedgerDesk does not require an account, does not phone home, and has no server component holding your accounting data. Backups, moves, and copies are your responsibility — see Backups & Company Doctor.
Is LedgerDesk open source?
No. LedgerDesk is private, proprietary software. No permission is granted to copy, modify, redistribute, sublicense, or publish its source code except under a separate written agreement from the owner. All rights are reserved.
Does LedgerDesk handle payroll?
No — payroll processing is intentionally excluded from LedgerDesk. It's built for the accounting side of the business: chart of accounts, invoicing, bills, banking, and reporting.
Can more than one person work in the same company file at once?
By default, no — a company file is single-user and can't be opened in two LedgerDesk processes at the same time, which protects the encrypted file from corruption. An Administrator can turn on shared mode, which allows one editing session plus additional read-only viewers concurrently. See Users & security.
What happens if I forget my administrator password?
Use the recovery key generated when the company was created. Keep it somewhere separate from the company file itself — a password manager or a printed copy in a locked drawer. There is no other way back into an encrypted company file; this is a deliberate security tradeoff, not an oversight.
Which countries does LedgerDesk support?
United States and Australia, chosen when a company is created. This sets currency, date format, a starting Chart of Accounts, and the relevant tax framework — including GST/BAS tax codes for Australian companies. See Multi-country & tax.
Can I run books on a cash basis instead of accrual?
Yes. Applicable reports include an Accounting Basis toggle between Accrual and Cash, computed from the same underlying transactions — there's no need to keep a second set of books for cash-basis filing.
Will an application update ever touch my company file?
No. Application files and company data are kept in separate locations, and updates are designed not to overwrite .ldesk files or linked attachments. Every update also requires two separate approvals — to download, and to install — nothing installs itself while you're working.
What's the difference between a portable company file and a full backup?
A portable company file copies only the database and keeps attachment links, but not the attachment files themselves — useful for a fast, lightweight copy. A full backup optionally includes the attachments folder and a manifest, and runs an integrity check before writing. See Backups & Company Doctor.
Does LedgerDesk support multiple locations or divisions inside one company?
Yes, through the Branch dimension — an optional, permission-scoped dimension with its own report group (Profit & Loss by Branch, Balance Sheet by Branch, and others) and its own visibility controls, so a location manager can be limited to their own branch's numbers. See Dimensions & Branches.
Can I move a company file to a different computer?
Yes — a .ldesk file is self-contained. Copy it (and its attachments folder, if you want attachments to travel with it) to the new machine and open it from there. Just make sure it isn't open on the original machine at the same time.
How do I check whether my books are structurally healthy?
Run Company Doctor (Accountant → Company Doctor, or the Dashboard widget). It checks database integrity, whether debits equal credits company-wide, missing or broken record links, duplicates, and whether linked attachment files actually exist — worth a look before closing a period or handing files to your accountant.