Private and restricted data in multi-entity companies

In a multi-entity shared company, administrators can restrict data such as accounts. Admins can make data private or restricted, such that only particular users can access the data.

Restricting data or making it private ensures that only users with the right permissions can transact with restricted customers or vendors. Restricting checking accounts to a particular entity, for example, ensures that these accounts are only used for transactions for that entity.

While locations are entity-private, departments are shared among entities. You can limit access to a department by setting individual user permissions.

Intacct categorizes access to data as follows: 

• Shared records are created at the top level and are shared among entities in a company. Shared records include transactions and objects. Shared transactions include: bills, invoices, and journal entries. Shared objects include: customers, vendors, and bank accounts. When you create shared data at the top level, you enable this data to be shared across entities and at the top level. Shared records appear in the lists of records for all entities.

• Entity-level records (formerly known as entity private) are created at the entity level and are accessible only in the entity where the data was created. Users can transact with entity level records using either shared or entity-level objects. For example, you can generate an entity-level invoice for either a shared customer (created at the top level) or an entity-level customer.

• Restricted records relate to customers, vendors, checking accounts, and savings accounts that the administrator can restrict to locations, location groups, departments, and department groups. For example, an administrator can choose to restrict a UK vendor to the UK entity in your company. Administrators can restrict individual vendors to the top level only, or to specific locations, location groups, departments, and department groups.

Private data

When you create an object from within an entity, that object is private. This means that the object is visible to users who can access the entity where the object was created. A private item appears in the list for the entity that owns it. A private item is visible at the top level if Include private is selected for the list.

A private customer or vendor can be used only in transactions that take place within the entity where the private customer or vendor was defined. For example, an office supply vendor that is created for a business entity in Arizona won't appear in the Vendors list for other entities.

The following are private when you create them at the entity level:

• GL accounts
• Bank accounts
• Customers
• Vendors
• Items
• AR/AP Terms
• Employees
• Users
• Locations
• Projects
• Classes
• User-defined dimensions

Enable data visibility restrictions

By default, all data types are visible. You can set data visibility restrictions per data type. For example, you can restrict particular data types while leaving other data types unrestricted and visible to all.

Records that use a data type with a visibility restriction have an additional tab for managing restrictions. You can manage restrictions for each record made with a restricted data type.

You can restrict:

• Vendors
• Customers
• Checking and savings accounts

You can set restrictions after you enable entity restrictions in Multi-Entity Management at the top level.

1. Go toCompany > Admin > Subscriptions.

   The Subscriptions page is shown.

2. Select Multi-Entity Management, then select Configure.
3. In the Entity restrictions section, select any of the following items to restrict them to an entity:
   • Customers
   • Vendors
   • Checking accounts
   • Savings accounts

After saving your changes, a Restrictions tab is shown on the Information page for the data types you decided to restrict.

View and edit customer, vendor, or bank account restrictions

When restriction is enabled for customers and vendors, the system adds a menu item at the top level to provide a list of all customers or vendors with visibility to the restrictions.

For customers, vendors, and bank accounts, the system adds a tab on the individual vendor, customer, checking account, or savings account information.

View customer restrictions

Go to the Customers page to view customer restrictions.

1. From the top level, go to Accounts Receivable > All > Customers.
2. Select Visibility.

   The Customer Visibility page appears.

3. Select Edit next to a customer to edit the restrictions.

View vendor restrictions

Go to the Vendors page to view vendor restrictions.

1. Go to Accounts Payable > All > Vendors.
2. Select Visibility.

   The Vendor Visibility page appear.

3. Select Edit next to a vendor to edit the restrictions for that vendor.

View checking account restrictions

Go to the Accounts page to view checking account restrictions.

1. Go to Cash Management > Setup > Accounts.
2. Select Checking or Savings.
3. Select Edit next to the account whose restrictions you want to edit.
4. Select Restrictions to see or change the restrictions for the account.
5. Save any changes you make.

What does "Not Owned" mean?

In a multi-entity company, shared records such as customers, vendors, and other items can be edited only at the top level of a company. Some journal transactions, for example, recurring journal entries created at the top level, are also owned at the top and can't be edited from within an entity.

If you display the list of shared records (customer, vendor, or entry) within an entity, you can see the shared records in the list. However, these will be listed as Not owned by the entity and the Edit option won't appear. Move to the top level, which owns the record, to make any changes.