FAQ - Accounting Integrations and Common Issues: Sync Errors, Etc.

See below for a list of issues that may arise from your accounting software integration, and how to troubleshoot them.

In this article:

How to Troubleshoot Syncing Errors

Managing Duplicate Contacts, Staff Members, etc.

Managing "404" Errors (Contacts)

General Troubleshooting

Xero Troubleshooting

MYOB Troubleshooting

QBO Troubleshooting

Which Features Are Supported in My Accounting Software/Region? (External Article)

How to Troubleshoot Syncing Errors

If you have enabled automatic syncing of contacts, staff, and/or invoices, Jobman will attempt to sync with your accounting software hundreds of times per day.

It is normal for accounting syncs to fail or show warnings from time to time, and often the problem will fix itself in a subsequent sync.

When you see a failed sync, we suggest checking other syncs to see if others have failed with the same error. If subsequent syncs have succeeded, it is likely that the issue was temporary. You can retry the failed sync manually by clicking Start, or you can wait, and the sync will retry automatically after 24 hours.

However, if you have received repeating emails about a syncing error and/or are having difficulty moving forwards with your accounting processes, here are some steps you can take to try to solve the problem:

1. Click on the link in the email or click into the failed sync to view the error message:

   

   

2. Read the error message carefully. Look for keywords such as "Contact", "Invoice", "TaxType", etc. These will generally indicate which part of your software is causing the problem.

   
   

   Examples:

   

   

   

   

3. Read any other text contained in the message. Most error messages will explain the kind of problem that is occurring. In our examples above, the problems were:

• - "The resource you're looking for cannot be found." - Since this relates to contacts, this message indicates that either Jobman or the accounting software has tried to sync a contact and hasn't been able to find it.

  - "The contact name [name] is already assigned to another contact. The contact name must be unique across all active contacts." - This indicates that you have more than one active contact in your software with the same name.

  - "The TaxType code [code] does not exist or cannot be used for this type of transaction." - This indicates EITHER that you have a Tax Type code in Jobman which does not exist/is not recognised in your accounting software, OR vice versa, you have a Tax Type code in your accounting software which does not exist/is not recognised in Jobman. (Please note: tax types or tax codes may be region specific.)

  - "Unable to sync tax type [Tax Type Name] code [code name] is not found" - indicates that you have a tax type set up in Jobman that either doesn't exist or doesn't match in your accounting software.

1. Narrow down the possibilities. The issue will either be in Jobman, or your accounting software, or both. Generally, syncing errors come down to one of four possibilities:

   - A duplicate piece of information exists in either Jobman or your accounting software.

   - A piece of information is missing in either Jobman or your accounting software.

   - A piece of information doesn't match between Jobman and your accounting software.

   - An internal error has occurred in either Jobman or your accounting software.

   If you can eliminate these possibilities one by one, you can most likely work out how to solve the problem. If duplicate information exists, you will need to merge or archive it. If information is missing, you will need to recreate it. If information doesn't match, you will need to update it to match. And if an internal error has occurred, you will need to report it and wait for it to be fixed.

2. Look for the specific information in your software that is causing the problem. The error message may give you a specific contact name or ID, or a specific invoice number, or a Tax Type code, or other information that you can use to investigate the error.

   Look for the information in both Jobman and your accounting software, and see if you can find any specific details that are duplicated, missing or mismatching. Look for deleted or archived information. Check any relevant settings or codes.

   The key is to make sure there is only one set of active information (e.g. one unique contact, staff member, or invoice), and that all the details match between Jobman and your accounting software.

3. If you have tried all of the above, and either your error message is too vague, or you've tried matching up all the information and you are still receiving the error message on subsequent syncs, please gather as many details about the problem as possible, including screenshots of the error message, and email them to help@jobman.com.

Managing Duplicate Contacts, Staff Members, etc.

Jobman and/or your accounting software do not allow you to have duplicate contacts or staff members, or other duplicate information such as invoices with the same number.

Occasionally a sync will fail because one or other of the software has detected or created duplicate information. For example, you might have the same staff member sign up to Jobman twice, using two different email addresses.

Here are some tips for how you can manage duplicate information inside Jobman:

• Edit the name of one contact/staff member/invoice/etc., so that you have two entries with two different names.
• Merge (contacts only) - if you have two contacts with the same name and information, you can merge them into one.

• Unlink and archive/deactivate (contacts or staff) - if you have two of the same contact or staff member, you can archive or deactivate the one you aren't using. First, make sure the contact/staff member you want to archive or deactivate is not linked to your accounting software.

  To check this, click into your contact or staff member, and at the top left, click the three dots (next to the contact's name) or the More button (next to the staff member's name). If you see the option to Unlink from [accounting software], that means this contact/staff member is currently synced to your accounting software. Click Unlink, then click either Archive (contacts) or Deactivate (staff).

  

  

Managing "404" Errors (Contacts)

What is a "404" error?

A "404" error means the software was looking for a piece of information and couldn't find it.

Example:

In this example, Jobman is looking for a contact in Xero with the ID 9f265a0b-c635-4fea-8335-dcf18550a408 , but this contact doesn't exist.

This might be because the contact has been archived in Xero, and therefore Jobman cannot find it (because Jobman does not have access to archived information in Xero).

An error like this is safe to ignore. However, if you wish to find the contact in Xero and determine whether there is an issue with it, you can follow these steps:

• Open the failed contact sync in Jobman, and copy the URL that is mentioned in the 404 error - in this example: https://api.xero.com/api.xro/2.0/Contacts/9f265a0b-c635-4fea-8335-dcf18550a408
• Open a new tab in your browser and log into Xero
• Paste the URL into your browser, but replace https://api.xero.com/api.xro/2.0/Contacts/   with https://go.xero.com/Contacts/View/
• The URL in this example would look like:  https://go.xero.com/Contacts/View/9f265a0b-c635-4fea-8335-dcf18550a408
•  This should take you to the contact in Xero that is failing to sync, where you can determine if it's an issue that it isn't able to sync, or not.

General Troubleshooting

Q. I have deleted a contact in Jobman but it is still showing in my accounting software?

A: Make sure you have unlinked the contact in Jobman. Click on the 3-dot menu inside your contact, and click Unlink from [accounting software].

Jobman does not delete information from your accounting software, so if you want to permanently delete from Xero/MYOB/QBO/etc., you will need to do this inside the accounting software itself.

Q. What if my invoice doesn't show up as "PAID" in my accounting software?

A. Your "Paid" invoice status may not be set up correctly in Jobman. If this is the case, Jobman will be unable to find the correct status to set when your accounting software tells it there is no balance remaining on the invoice.

Go to Settings > Accounting > Invoice Statuses and ensured Paid is turned on for the Paid Status:

If you then re-sync the invoice, you should see the status update correctly.

Q. How do I re-sync an invoice?

A. The sync will auto trigger at intervals after changes have been made.

You can trigger a specific invoice to sync by updating it in your accounting software or in Jobman; however, please be aware that the platform you change will determine which direction it syncs.

• If you edit the invoice in your accounting software, it will sync from the accounting software to Jobman.
• If you edit the invoice in Jobman, it will sync from Jobman to your accounting software.

You should be able to open the invoice in your accounting software and hit Save without making any changes, and you should notice a sync triggered shortly after in Jobman. If this doesn't work, try updating a simple field, like the message.

Q. When I create an invoice in Jobman, it creates duplicate invoices in my accounting software. Why?

A. Check to see if your invoice values are exactly the same across Jobman and your accounting software. Sometimes duplicates will be created because the invoice values differ by 1 or 2 cents.

This can happen because each accounting software calculates tax slightly differently, causing rounding differences of a few cents.

Jobman attempts to create a "rounding" adjustment to balance the invoice, but this can only be applied after the invoice is created in your accounting software. If there’s an issue creating this adjustment, the sync doesn’t complete, leaving the invoice unlinked. On the next sync attempt, Jobman creates a new invoice instead of updating the invalid invoice.

If you notice the invoice values are different between Jobman and your accounting software, try searching your sync history to see if any issues have been reported with the Jobman invoice.

Here is an example of an error that was flagged with two Jobman invoices:

The warning in this example is suggesting that a tax type is set up in Jobman with the code BASEXCLUDED which does not exist in the user's accounting software. Because these invoices did not sync properly, duplicate versions then appeared in the accounting software.

To resolve this issue, the tax type needed to be removed or changed in Jobman so that the invoices would sync with the correct balance, and then the user would be able to archive the invalid duplicates.

Xero Troubleshooting

Q: I have submitted an invoice in Jobman, it has been authorised in Xero, but I now need to make a change to that invoice. How do I do this?

A: To make a change to an authorised invoice, adjust it in Xero. These changes will automatically reflect in Jobman.

Q: The invoice has been created and saved in Jobman, but it hasn’t come into Xero. Why?                   

A: Make sure the invoice status says Submitted. If it is, check the notes field on the invoice in Jobman. You will see a listed error message, and potentially multiple times.

Some common error messages are:

• Unrecognized Guide Format error – This indicates that the contact person assigned to the invoice in Jobman does not match the default contact person in Xero. Change the selected contact person for the invoice in Jobman so that it matches the contact person in Xero.
• Tax INPUT error – This means you have the incorrect account code assigned to the invoice in Jobman.

MYOB Troubleshooting

QBO Troubleshooting

Q. Does an invoice status change to PAID when it's been paid in QuickBooks?

A. QBO works a little different to other accounting platforms. Rather than "statuses" in the traditional sense, they update based on actions. So in the case of invoices, as you receive payments, QBO will identify this activity. Upon full receipt of payment vs invoice, it changes the "Status" to fully paid, at which point it will also update Jobman.

Q. Does the same work for Partially Paid too?

A. Unfortunately not. Because QBO doesn't have an API status for "partially" it is either fully paid or it isn't. This may change in the future, so please keep an eye out for updates.

Which Features Are Supported in My Accounting Software/Region?

To find out which features are supported for you, see Accounting Integrations: List of Supported Features by Country/Region