Part numbering

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In Gestan, a document (customer documents = invoices, quotes, etc. or supplier document = price requests, receipt notes, etc.) carries an internal identifier, a number automatically incremented from 1 or another starting number. This is the internal identifier of the part.

Gestan can print this number in a more elaborate format: for example, you may prefer that your invoice 123 of March 15, 2024 be referenced under the number FC-2024-123.

The internal identifier is incremented by 1 for each creation: a record created after record 77 will take the identifier 78, and so on.

This is the unique reference by which the document is identified, in all Gestan screens (accounting, report editing, statistics).

An internal number is never reused: for example, if you delete quote 77, the next quote will not be a new quote 77, but quote 78.

The number printed on the part may be formatted differently than the simple ID number.

For example, your invoice 123 of March 15, 2024 could be printed under the number FAC LYON EN/MAB 2024 123-3, in which FAC represents an invoice, SZ represents your Lyon agency, EN the one who created the invoice, MAB the one which follows the invoice, 2024 the year, 123 the invoice ID, and 3 because it is the customer's 3rd invoice.

Via the general Gestan settings screen, you have many numbering options, for example:

You can change it as you want, because the numbering option does not change the part ID in any way. However, avoid changing it as soon as you have issued at least one invoice, because your customer, if you resend the same invoice with a different number, would be able to refuse it.

The default numbering type is: [customer number - part ID number - part number for customer]. So, for example, invoice with printed number 560-78-22 is the twenty-second invoice in creation date order for customer #560, and it has internal ID number 78.

When the part numbering option does not include the ID, it is still printed at the bottom of the invoice, which makes it easy and reliable to find.

Numbering options not including the internal ID should be used with caution. For example, if you number your quotes with the [Year - part number in year] option (the quote 2018000077 would be the 77th quote produced in 2018), the printed numbering will shift if you delete a quote. We must therefore be clear on the procedures before adopting such a numbering! Although this option was developed following requests from individual customers, we do not recommend its use in the general case.

When creating your first invoice in Gestan, the software asks you from which number you want to start.

If you are just starting your professional activity, start with number 1.

On the other hand, if you started your invoicing from another software, start with the following one (for example, if you were at invoice 125 on the old software, start at 126 under Gestan.

Do not under any circumstances start with the vintage of the year, for example 2024001 under the pretext that we are on your first invoice for 2024. Indeed, this will no longer work the following year! But choose a numbering option that includes the vintage of the year.

If you delete a part, the number of this part will not be reused by Gestan. By default, it is not possible to delete an invoice. However, in certain cases (crash, error, etc.), it may be necessary to force a number.

This operation is only possible for Gestan users:

• having administration rights on the base;
• and having the forcing privilege.

If these two conditions are met, the menu Tools → Administration → Processing bulk data → Parts → Force a part number allows you to create a record with a predetermined number, which must then be modified.

This operation is prohibited in France for invoices. In all cases, it will be archived in the application operations log.

In France, legally, your biller must include a succession of numbers “without gaps”: invoice 2 must follow invoice 1, and so on. This obligation only concerns invoices (not orders, quotes, price requests, etc.). It is also accepted that you can have several different times (for example one timer for your Paris store and another for your Lyon store).

By default, the invoice list screen does not have a delete button.

The data audit program allows you to verify that your biller is “without holes” (via Tools → Administration → Maintenance → Data audit.)

Deleting an invoice is prohibited in France. In all cases, it will be archived in the application operations log.

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