Posting Setup
Posting setup controls how incoming electronic documents are translated into Business Central purchase documents. The centerpiece is the Vendor Posting Setup — a smart routing engine that maps incoming invoice lines to the correct G/L accounts, dimensions, and posting groups based on a combination of vendor, item, and cost centre rules.
This is one of eMessaging’s key differentiators. Where most solutions offer simple vendor-level defaults, Vendor Posting Setup provides granular, line-level control with conditional rules and percentage-based line splitting.
Vendor Posting Setup (Smart Routing Engine)
The Vendor Posting Setup determines how each line on an incoming invoice is coded. It uses a composite primary key and supports conditional rules, templates, and line splitting.
To manage it, search for Centara Vendor Posting Setup in Business Central.
Primary key
Each Vendor Posting Setup entry is identified by a composite key of three fields:
| Key field | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor No. | The vendor this rule applies to | V10000 |
| Item Sellers ID | The vendor’s item/product identifier from the electronic document | CONSULT-HR, ITEM-4567, or blank for a default rule |
| Accounting Cost | The cost centre or accounting cost code from the document | DEPT-FINANCE, CC-200, or blank for a default rule |
The system finds the most specific match first:
- Vendor + Item Sellers ID + Accounting Cost — exact match on all three fields
- Vendor + Item Sellers ID — match on vendor and item, any cost centre
- Vendor + Accounting Cost — match on vendor and cost centre, any item
- Vendor only — fallback default for this vendor
- Global default — if no vendor-specific rule exists
Posting fields
Each Vendor Posting Setup entry maps to these posting fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| G/L Account No. | The general ledger account to post to |
| VAT Prod. Posting Group | VAT product posting group for the line |
| Gen. Prod. Posting Group | General product posting group for the line |
| Dimension Code 1 | First dimension code (e.g., Department) |
| Dimension Value 1 | Value for the first dimension |
| Dimension Code 2 | Second dimension code (e.g., Project) |
| Dimension Value 2 | Value for the second dimension |
| Description Template | Pattern for generating line descriptions |
| Auto-Post | Automatically post the document after approval (vendor-level override) |
Conditional rules
Beyond the primary key match, you can define additional conditional rules that further refine how lines are coded:
| Condition | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| VAT Category | Apply different rules based on the VAT category code from the document | Standard rate (S) vs. reverse charge (AE) |
| Commodity Code | Route based on commodity or product classification codes | UNSPSC codes, CPV codes |
| Document Reference Type | Different coding for invoice vs. credit memo vs. prepayment | 380 = commercial invoice, 381 = credit note |
| Amount Range | Apply rules based on line amount thresholds | Lines over 10,000 EUR route to a different account |
| Currency Code | Different rules for foreign currency invoices | EUR vs. ISK transactions |
Line splitting
A powerful feature for invoices that need to be distributed across multiple G/L accounts or dimensions. You can split a single incoming line into multiple purchase invoice lines based on percentage distribution.
Example: An incoming invoice line for “Office Services — Q4” at 10,000 EUR can be automatically split:
| Split | G/L Account | Dimension | Percentage | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Split 1 | 6100 (Administration) | DEPT-ADMIN | 40% | 4,000 EUR |
| Split 2 | 6200 (IT) | DEPT-IT | 35% | 3,500 EUR |
| Split 3 | 6300 (Facilities) | DEPT-FAC | 25% | 2,500 EUR |
To configure line splitting:
- Open the Vendor Posting Setup entry.
- Select Line Splits from the action bar.
- Add split lines with G/L Account, Dimensions, and Percentage.
- Percentages must total 100%.
When a line matches a Vendor Posting Setup entry that has splits configured, eMessaging creates multiple purchase invoice lines automatically.
Template-based configuration
For vendors with consistent posting patterns, you can create a Vendor Posting Template with default G/L accounts, posting groups, dimensions, and automation settings. Templates also support Advanced Templates with conditional routing based on Accounting Cost codes, VAT categories, and other document fields.
See Vendor Posting Templates for full details.
Creating a Vendor Posting Setup entry
- Open Centara Vendor Posting Setup.
- Select New.
- Enter the Vendor No.
- Enter the Item Sellers ID (or leave blank for a vendor-level default).
- Enter the Accounting Cost (or leave blank for any cost centre).
- Configure the posting fields (G/L account, posting groups, dimensions).
- Optionally configure line splits and conditional rules.
- Close the page to save.
Best practices
- Always create a vendor-level default (blank Item Sellers ID and Accounting Cost) for each vendor. This catches any lines that do not match more specific rules.
- Use line splitting for shared-service invoices that span multiple departments.
- Use templates when onboarding vendors with consistent but large product catalogs.
- Test with a sandbox document before going live with new rules.
GL account mapping (legacy)
The GL account mapping page provides a simpler, item-code-based mapping as an alternative to the full Vendor Posting Setup. It is retained for backward compatibility.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| External Item Code | The item identifier from the electronic document |
| G/L Account No. | The Business Central GL account to post to |
| VAT Prod. Posting Group | Override VAT product posting group for this mapping |
| Gen. Prod. Posting Group | Override general product posting group |
When a line on an incoming document matches an external item code in the mapping, the corresponding GL account and posting groups are used. However, for new implementations, the Vendor Posting Setup is recommended as it provides more control.
Line descriptions
You can customize how purchase line descriptions are generated using description templates. Templates support the following placeholders:
| Placeholder | Replaced with |
|---|---|
{Name} | Item name from the electronic document |
{Description} | Line description from the electronic document |
{OrderRef} | Purchase order reference |
{VendorItemNo} | Vendor’s item number (Item Sellers ID) |
{ExternalDocNo} | External document number |
{AccountingCost} | Accounting cost code from the document |
{Period} | Invoicing period (if present in the document) |
Example: A template of {Name} - {OrderRef} ({AccountingCost}) on a line with item name “Consulting Services”, order reference “PO-1234”, and accounting cost “DEPT-IT” produces: Consulting Services - PO-1234 (DEPT-IT).
Posting controls
These settings affect how all incoming documents are posted, regardless of vendor-specific rules.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Allow Posting Date Override | Use the document’s date instead of the work date | Yes |
| Validate VAT Registration | Check the sender’s VAT number before posting | Yes |
| Require Approval Before Post | Documents must be approved before they can be posted | No |
| Default Document Date Source | Use the invoice date or the receiving date | Invoice Date |
| Duplicate Invoice Check | Block posting if an invoice with the same external document number exists for this vendor | Yes |
| Allow Zero-Amount Lines | Whether lines with zero amount are created on the purchase invoice | No |
Related pages
- Approval Setup — approval workflows and line-level routing
- General Setup — overall configuration and master data mappings
- Purchase Documents Overview — the full purchase document processing flow