Leaving PDI without losing a day
Leaving PDI is a books project as much as a software one. History has to be saved, a clean cutover date chosen, and the opening balances in the new system set from real numbers. This page walks through what to keep, what to check and how to close out PDI cleanly.
Works with your POS, back-office & accounting stack
Read your agreement, ask PDI in writing what you can export and for how long, then save daily reports, fuel and lottery history, vendor lists and deposits before switching. Pick a clean cutover date, set opening balances from final numbers, and reconcile the first month in the new system.
By the FuelCFO team. Where this page describes a vendor's product, the details come from the vendor's own public descriptions and can change, so confirm them with the vendor. Figures in diagrams are illustrative.
Owners move off PDI for many reasons: cost, a change of register, a new owner or a new fuel brand. Whatever the reason, the books carry the risk. PDI describes its Enterprise product as holding accounting, inventory and reporting in one central database, so when it goes, a lot of history goes with it. We are not part of PDI. What you can export, in what form and for how long depends on your agreement, so ask PDI in writing.
Look for the term, the notice period and what happens to your data after you leave. Do this before telling anyone you are leaving, because a missed notice date can cost another term. Check also for any fee at cancellation or for returning equipment. Those costs belong in your plan for the move.
What can I export, in what format, and for how long after cancelling can I still get it? A written answer is worth more than a phone call. Keep the reply with your records, since it is your proof if the data turns out to be missing later.
Daily reports, fuel inventory history, lottery history and the last lottery balance, vendor and item lists, deposit history and the list of users. These are what you will need for an audit, a tax question or a sale. Save them as files you hold, not only as screens you can reach today.
The start of a month is easiest, because the last PDI report and the first report from the new system line up with a book period. A cutover in the middle of a month works but needs two sets of reports for that month. Tell your bookkeeper the date early.
Fuel on hand, the lottery liability and vendor balances in the new system should come from the final PDI reports and your bank, not from guesses. A wrong opening balance carries into every report that follows, and it is tedious to find later. Write down where each starting number came from, so anyone can check it.
To see what to keep, go to the keep list. To see what goes wrong, go to where it goes wrong. If you want a team to handle the books through the move, what we do covers it. Still choosing? See PDI competitors and alternatives.
We list what to export and who in your team does it.
The final month is reconciled to the bank and saved.
Deposits and totals from the new system are tied to the bank.
Your QuickBooks accounts are mapped to the new reports so nothing drops out.
Choose the last day on PDI and the first day on the new system.
Choose the last day on PDI and the first day on the new system.
A clean midnight boundary avoids a day counted twice.
Everything on the keep list goes into one archive.
Everything on the keep list goes into one archive.
Do this before access ends, since old reports are hard to recover later.
The last period is reconciled and locked.
The last period is reconciled and locked.
It then serves as the opening point for the new system.
Opening balances come from the final PDI numbers.
Opening balances come from the final PDI numbers.
Fuel, lottery and vendor balances are carried across.
We reconcile it against the bank before you relax.
We reconcile it against the bank before you relax.
The first month is where hidden mapping problems show.
Report names and export options vary by modules and version. Ask PDI what yours are called and what can be exported.
Data is not exported before access ends.
Neither or both systems report the cutover day.
Fuel on hand in the new system is a guess.
The liability starts again from zero.
New report lines have no QuickBooks account to land in.
A notice date was missed and PDI keeps billing.
You have chosen a replacement and want a clean move.
You inherited PDI and plan to replace it.
The change forces a new system.
Have not set a date yet? Tell us your options and we will suggest the cleanest one for the books.
A 30-minute call and about 48 hours of review, free, so you know the starting position.
We write down what to keep and who saves it.
We reconcile the last PDI month and the first new one.
Opening fuel inventory in the new system set from the final PDI numbers.
5 services →Item and vendor lists carried over, and the lottery balance with them.
9 services →Tax periods that span the cutover reported correctly.
4 services →Staged moves across several stores, and records for a sale or purchase.
3 services →FAQ
More guides on the same system, or send us a day or a month for a free review.
Monthly bookkeeping for stores that run PDI: daily reconciliation, month-end close and PDI totals posted into QuickBooks Online.
Read more →How we find the first bad day, fix the map and close the months.
Read more →What to export, how to pick a cutover date and how to close out cleanly.
Read more →Send us a day or a month and we'll show you where the three systems disagree.
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