To Purge or Not to Purge

Kathy Baker, Consultant, Juris Professional Services, LexisNexis: 

That is the Question! 

And the answer is NO!

There’s been a considerable amount of discussion from Juris users about purging transaction batches or not, and what happens if I purge transaction batches.   Some users think that if they purge old batches, it will improve the overall system performance and reduce the size of the Juris database, thus freeing up disk space on the server.   Purging batches does not improve system performance, and the space freed from purging transaction batches is minimal!   

There is no need to purge any transaction batch in Juris.

In the early days of Juris, when storage space on servers and storage devices was limited and expensive, purging was a way to free up minimal disk space.  However, technology has advanced making purging obsolete, unnecessary, and even dangerous!

While purging Posted transaction batches adds no value, you’re removing an important troubleshooting tool…the ability to get all details of the transaction.  This makes auditing and analysis difficult, if not impossible.

I’ve also worked with some Juris clients that don’t like seeing zero batches, i.e., batches with nothing in them.  The users dislike seeing those batches so much that they choose to delete them.  Then they discover that the batch is still there, only the Status has changed to “Deleted”.   Users will then spend even more time purging those Deleted batches so that they don’t have to look at them. 

Purging transaction zero batches is not a good use of your time.  Before wasting time deleting empty zero batches, you could perform other more importing tasks, such as making sure everything on your Month-End Checklist is completed.   Are your Bank Reconciliations up-to-date?  Are there stale checks or items in the Bank Reconciliation Tool that need follow-up?  Let’s make sure we’re prioritizing work properly.

In addition, there are reports in Juris and Juris Suite that will not return results (or correct results) if transaction batches are purged.  Two examples would be:

  • Timekeeper Diary
  • Daily Time Summary

To prevent users from accidentally purging a batch, take away that menu right from all core Juris users except for users with System Manager rights.  Make sure you are limiting the number of people with System Manager permissions.

The most common accidental purging is when someone is trying to print a Deposit Slip in Cash Receipts.  Print is directly below the Purge, and if they accidentally move the mouse while clicking . . . BAM! . . . . Cash Receipt Batch is gone.  There is NO warning message prompting the user…” Are you sure you want to purge this batch?”.

Other Important Things to Know About Purging Transaction Batches

  • Only transaction batches with a status of Posted or Deleted can be purged.
  • Only Administrative users, i.e. SMGR and those users with SMGR rights granted should have permission to Purge batches.
  • Permission to purge batches is granted on the Menu Rights panel of the User’s ID.
  • Any batches that are locked or unposted cannot be purged.
  • If you’re still determined to purge transaction batches, ALWAYS make a backup first, so that you can get the details back later if needed.
  • A “Purge Log” report will print listing all batches purged.
  • Journal Entry batches created via the Billing process with Trust or Prepaid funds applied will NOT purge.
  • You will no longer be able to print Batch Audit reports for purged batches.
  • Remember…once you purge the batch you cannot un-purge!