Oracle R12 EBS General Ledger – Functional Interview Questions

• Shivmohan Purohit
• Oct 31, 2022

Oracle General  Ledger – Functional Interview Questions

 Hello Friends, As a series to get improve on Financials , here some more General Ledger Questions, I consider these as functional and advance questions.

Can a flexfield qualifier be changed after it has been created?

No. Once a segment qualifier has been designated for a specific segment and has been saved, it will permanently have the attributes with that qualifier.For example, you accidentally designate the cost center segment as the natural account segment. Even though you do not compile this, the system saves the changes. And once it has been saved, it will have all the attributes designated for the natural account qualifier, even after it has been changed back, resaved with the correct qualifier and compiled. This is the inherent functionality of the software.Unfortunately, there is no real easy solution for this issue. The only option is to create a new chart of accounts and attach a new set of books. 

Does the Accounting Flexfield needs one segment flagged with the Intercompany qualifier?

The intercompany segment is an optional Intercompany feature for the Intercompany Segment Balancing.It is not required in order to do intercompany balancing.It is just another way to do the intercompany balancing, instead of using different natural accounts to track intercompany balances, you can use the intercompany segment in the Chart of Accounts to record the same detail.It is more just a matter of preference of how you want to track the intercompany transactions.

Can different Sets of Books share the same Value Set?

If there is a set of books that uses a particular value set and a new book is created, it can use the existing value set.When the Account Flexfield Structure is created, simply choose the existing value set from the List of Values.However,if you use an existing value set, the new structure will also inherit the existing values in the value set. It does not create an empty value set to be populated. 

Can the Accounting Flexfield Segment name be changed?

Nothing about a flexfield structure should be changed since this could seriously impact your existing data and cause inconsistenciesThe LOV (list of values) prompt and window prompt that appear on the segment form can be changed so the users can see the segment with a different name.

1.      Navigate to Setup: Financial: Flexfield: key: segments

2.      Query all

3.      Unfreeze your flexfield

4.      Open the segment summary screen

5.      Choose the segment you wish to change

6.      Change the LOV and window Prompts and insert the new name.

7.      Save your work

8.      Freeze the Flexfield which should launch a concurrent request.

9.      Check the log and make sure the compile worked OK.

How to add a new value to an existing segment?

On the Segment Values form, insert a new row with your new value.Make sure the segment qualifiers are set correctly (Allow Posting and Budgeting).If this is the natural account segment, specify the Account Type also. 

How to delete a segment value?

There is no supported way to delete a segment value. Segment values can only be disabled not deleted.

How to enable an existing Future-Use accounting flexfield segment?

Do the following, on the Key Flexfield Segments form:

Unfreeze the accounting flexfield

Change the Window Prompt name to a valid name (do NOT change the segment name)

Update the Default Type and Default Value (if necessary)

Freeze the accounting flexfield and recompile

How to re-enable an account value?

In order to re-enable an account value or remove an end date, do the following: 

1. Unfreeze the accounting flexfield structure
2. Re-enable the account value or remove the end date of the segment value.
3. Re-freeze the accounting flexfield structure and recompile.
4. Log out of the applications and log back in.

Is there a way to load values for a specific segment outside of the form?iSetup is the Oracle product that provides supported APIs to load values into Oracle Applications flexfields.To load code combinations ADI may be used. Uploading zero amount journals will create new code combinations.In this case Dynamic Insertion should be enabled and all account segment values need to exist before the new account code combinations will be dynamically created.

Which tables store segment values and descriptions? 

FND_FLEX_VALUES_TL

FND_FLEX_VALUES.

What is Recurring Journals?

Answers: Recurring journals uses for that entries which we entered or reported every month. With the Help of Recurring Journals, we don’t need to enter these manually every month but instead off system will do this automatically.

Three Recurring Journals

Skeleton Journal Entries: Skeleton entries affect the same accounts each period, but have different posting amounts.
Standard Recurring Journal Entries: Standard recurring journal entries use the same accounts and amounts each period.
Recurring Journal Formula Entries: Formula entries use formulas to calculate journal amounts that vary from period to period.

https://know-oracle.com/2010/05/26/very-common-oracle-apps-dba-questions/

What is Revaluation in General Ledger ?
Answers : We use Revaluation for the Foreign currency amounts.  This helps to evaluate the exact amount of Liability and revenue for the period During Month End or unrealized gain/loss amount which occurred due to foreign exchange rate fluctuations.

Revaluation happens on the account level. We can choose for which account we need to run the Revaluation. For Example, My Total Liability as per my GL account is 2 Lakh in which many of the invoices are foreign currency. So system has fetch the exchange rate as per the Invoice Date and calculate the Liability but in actual this Liability is Wrong because if now I have to pay this Invoice I have to pay with the Current Exchange rate so that is the same thing Revaluation process does in the General Leger In which It create the Revaluation Journal based on the Current Exchange rate for the difference of the exchange rate price and evaluate the final Profit and Loss so by this way , we do have right figures in the hand about liability and the revenue . Revaluation only do for GL accounts.  

Revaluation process runs during the period end. This process creates the Journal Entry that either Increase or decrease the functional currency amount for that GL account. In the Revolution Process also, this unrealized gain/loss Journal will be auto revered during the beginning of the next period. So, this makes the revaluation process completes.

https://know-oracle.com/2010/05/20/oracle-bi-publisher-xml-publisher-general-questions/

What is Translation in general Ledger ?
Answers :  If you have an Requirment to prepares the Financial ratings in other currency from your functional Leger currency then translation is the best option for this. This helps to convert your GL balances from your Functional Currency to any other currency. The Good part of the Translation is this, you can do the translation for your Actual and Budgeted GL Balances.
Oracle has given the Translation Program to convert the Balances to create financial reporting’s. You need to run this Program once your GL Period has been end.

Difference between Translation and Revaluation in General Ledger?
Answers : Revaluation is used to find the unrealized gain/loss amount which occurred due to foreign exchange rate fluctuations. This only happens for the Foreign Currency transactions

but on the Other Hand Translation is totally different, this is used to convert the Prepared the GL balances in to Other Currency. The helps to prepare the Financials GL reporting’s in other currency from your functional Leger currency. Revaluation happen during the month end but translation happed after Period end activities. Both Revaluation and Translation happens for GL accounts.

https://know-oracle.com/2010/10/19/oracle-apps-interview-questions/

What are the Types of Journal Entries in GL?

Manual Journal Entry: – Most Common Journal entry to create the Basic GL journal Accounting Transactions.
Reverse Journal Entry: – This Journal entry related to the reversal of the Original Manual Journal entry.  We can Post, the Reverse Journal in the Current Open Month or in the Future Opening Periods too.
Recurring Journal entries: – This type of Journal Entries crested only once but it automatically repeats for each Accounting Period or Month as per the rules.
Mass allocation: –Mass Allocations are journal entries that utilize a single journal entry formula to allocate balances across a group of cost centers, departments, divisions or other segments;

What is Balancing segment in the Chart of accounts?

Balancing Segment is one of the Import part of the chart of Accounts or Accounting Flexfield. In Oracle Accounting Flexfield is the combination of Multiple segments values. Each Segment values represent the one of the characteristics of the Chart of Account like (Company, Location, Cost Center, Department, Sub Account, Project like many). But in these GL segments combination we should have one Segment which could be act like Balancing Segments.
Balancing Segments helps to ensure that all journal entries balance for each value of the balancing segment and to ensure that entries that impact more than one balancing segment use the appropriate intercompany Account. Balancing Segments helps to make balancing the GL journals. We can define only one balancing segment for a one chart of account. It is best practice for the balancing segment to equate to company so that the debits and credits in the General Ledger balance by company.

What is Natural Account in Chart of account and What Is the Purpose of this ?
Answers : Natural Account is one of the Important segment of the accounting Flexfield. No char of Account or Accounting KFF can design without using the Natural Account Type. We have to enable one of the Chart of accounts(KFF) segments to Natural Account”.
Natural Account Segment Type represent the Type of accounts Values in the Natural Account Segments (Like Asset, Expense, Liability, Revenue, Ownership). Only one natural account segment can be defined in a chart of accounts.

https://know-oracle.com/2020/02/11/oracle-receivables-ar-interview-questions-technical-and-functional/

What are the Ledger Components in GL?
Answers : Ledger consists of 4C’s. 4 C’s are.
1.Chart of Accounts: Chart of Account is the Accounting Flex Field attached to this ledger.
2.Calendar: – Ledger Financial Year will be based on this Calendar.
3.Currency: – Ledger Functional currency. GL reporting will be based on this Currency. Based on this System Determines the foreign Currency in the Leger.
4.Accounting Method: – This determine the Costing method of this Ledger more about Inventory. Two Costing Methods (Standard Cost and Average cost).

Oracle AME : Approval Management Engine : Questions Answers

How many Business Units we can create under one Ledger?
Answers : We can create any number of BU’s under one Ledger. The Count is not restricted. Each Business Unit under single Ledger will share the share Same Chart of Accounts, currency and the Calendar but If your Business unit have different financial Period or Base Currency then you must create the New Ledger for this BU.

https://know-oracle.com/2011/05/31/oracle-r12-interview-questions-answers-on-gl-subledgers/

Can We close the Accounting Period’s for the Different Business Units under single Ledger separately?
Answers : No, we cannot close the Accounting Period for Different Business units for the same ledger separately. The Reason is We are sharing the Same Ledger so in the Ledger there will be only one Calendar which is shared to both Business Units. So, it means if one Business unit will close the Accounting Period then the period will be close to both Business unit for this Ledger.

https://know-oracle.com/2020/02/07/join-knoworacle-on-different-social-media-channels/

Thanks – Shivmohan Purohit