Editing General ledger (section)

==Process==
Posting is the process of recording amounts as credits (right side), and amounts as debits (left side), in the pages of the general ledger. Additional columns to the right hold a running activity total (similar to a chequebook).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://highered.mheducation.com/sites/dl/free/007471340x/100328/sample_ch08.pdf|title=Posting to general ledger accounts |access-date=26 February 2017}}</ref>

The general ledger should include the date, description and balance or total amount for each account.

Because each bookkeeping entry debits one account and credits another account in an equal amount, the [[double-entry bookkeeping system]] helps ensure that the general ledger is always in balance, thus maintaining the [[accounting equation]]:

: {{math|1= Assets = Liabilities + (Shareholder's or Owner's equity).}}<ref name="meigs">Meigs and Meigs. ''Financial Accounting, Fourth Edition''. McGraw-Hill, 1983. pp.19-20.</ref><ref name=accountingscholar/>

The accounting equation is the mathematical structure of the [[balance sheet]]. Although a general ledger appears to be fairly simple, in large or complex organizations or organizations with various subsidiaries, the general ledger can grow to be quite large and take several hours or days to audit or balance. 
In a manual or non-computerized system, the general ledger may be a large book. Organizations may instead employ one or more [[spreadsheet]]s for their ledgers, including the general ledger, or may utilize [[Accounting software|specialized software]] to automate ledger entry and handling. When a business uses [[Enterprise resource planning|enterprise resource planning (ERP)]] software, a financial-features module produces subledgers and the general ledger, with entries drawn from a database that is shared with other processes managed through the ERP.