Using Physical Inventory｜Inventory Manual
Physical Inventory verifies the actual stock in a warehouse and reconciles it against book quantity. It can auto-generate a count list, let you enter actual counts, and process the differences.
📖 Overview: See the Inventory overview as well.
What you can do
Section titled “What you can do”- Auto-generate a count list
- Enter actual (counted) quantities
- Show book-vs-actual differences
- Auto-adjust differences (stock corrected on completion)
- Count by locator or product category
Window layout
Section titled “Window layout”🖥️ Interactive layout: View the full tab/field layout of the Physical Inventory window (HTML), auto-generated from AD metadata. Note: on a Japanese iDempiere instance the on-screen field labels are in Japanese.
graph TD
T1["Physical Inventory (M_Inventory) - 22 fields"]
T2["Inventory Line (M_InventoryLine) - 12 fields"]
T2a["Attribute (M_InventoryLineMA)"]
T1 --> T2
T2 --> T2a
📌 Note: Use Generate Inventory Count Lines to create lines in bulk. You can filter by warehouse, locator or product category for a partial count.
| Tab | Table | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Inventory | M_Inventory | Header (warehouse, date, description) |
| Inventory Line | M_InventoryLine | Book qty / actual / difference per product |
| Attribute | M_InventoryLineMA | Lot / serial assignment |
Basic procedure
Section titled “Basic procedure”graph TD
A["1. Plan count (warehouse, date)"] --> B["2. Create document: warehouse, date, description"]
B --> C["3. Generate lines (book qty loads)"]
C --> D["4. Physical count on site"]
D --> E["5. Enter actual qty (difference auto-calc)"]
E --> F{Difference?}
F -->|Yes| G["6. Investigate / approve"]
F -->|No| H["7. Complete"]
G --> H
H --> I["Book stock updated, difference journal posted"]
⚠️ Note: Completing overwrites book stock with the actual count and posts a difference journal. For large differences, investigate and approve before completing.
💡 Tip: Because the book quantity as of the count date is loaded, you can still compare even if movements occur during counting. Still, minimize movements during the count to keep difference analysis simple.
How to access
Section titled “How to access”Open Inventory > Physical Inventory from the menu.
Performing a count
Section titled “Performing a count”- Click New.
- Enter the header: Warehouse, Movement Date (count date), Description (e.g., “FY2026 year-end count”).
- Click Save.
- Click Generate Inventory Count Lines to auto-create the count list; stocked products load as lines with their Book Quantity.
- On the Inventory Line tab, enter each product’s actual quantity:
- Quantity Count: the counted quantity
- The difference (actual − book) auto-calculates.
- After entering all counts, use Document Action → Complete.
Completing performs, automatically:
- Book stock corrected to the actual count
- Inventory-adjustment journal for the difference
Field reference
Section titled “Field reference”Physical Inventory tab
Section titled “Physical Inventory tab”| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Warehouse | Select | Warehouse to count |
| Movement Date | Date | Count date |
| Description | Text | Purpose / notes |
Inventory Line tab
Section titled “Inventory Line tab”| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Locator | Select | Storage location |
| Product | Search | Product |
| Book Quantity | Quantity | System stock (auto) |
| Quantity Count | Quantity | Counted quantity (input) |
| Difference | Quantity | Actual − book (auto) |
| Attribute Set Instance | Select | Lot / serial number |
Q. Can I add count lines manually?
Section titled “Q. Can I add count lines manually?”Yes. After auto-generation you can add lines — useful for products with zero book quantity that physically exist.
Q. What about accounting for differences?
Section titled “Q. What about accounting for differences?”On completion, a journal is posted to the inventory-difference account, set in the product category’s accounting parameters.
Q. Must I stop shipping/receiving during the count?
Section titled “Q. Must I stop shipping/receiving during the count?”Ideally yes, but iDempiere uses the book quantity as of the count date, so a strict freeze is not mandatory — though differences can be harder to analyze.
Q. How does this differ from an inventory adjustment?
Section titled “Q. How does this differ from an inventory adjustment?”- Physical Inventory: compare book vs actual and adjust the difference.
- Inventory Adjustment: record increases/decreases with a clear reason (internal use, scrap, etc.).
Related pages
Section titled “Related pages”About OSS ERP adoption
Section titled “About OSS ERP adoption”As-Link Inc. provides iDempiere implementation support and customization development.