# How to Generate Flux Reports Flux reports compare an account's balance between two periods and flag material changes that require explanation. You use them during the close process to document why key accounts moved and to satisfy reviewer sign-off requirements. ## Open a Flux Report Navigate to **Reporting → Flux Analysis**. You select the entity (or consolidated view) and the account range to analyze. DualEntry loads the account balances for the periods you configure in the next step. You can scope the report to a narrow range of accounts - for example, only operating expense accounts - or run it across the full chart of accounts. Narrowing the scope reduces noise and focuses the analysis on the accounts most relevant to the current review. You also select the reporting level: natural account, sub-account, or classification. The level determines the granularity of the variance rows DualEntry produces. ## Configure the Comparison Choose a base period and a comparison period. Common pairings include: - Current month vs. prior month - Current quarter vs. prior quarter - Current month vs. same month prior year - Current period vs. [budget](/accountants/platform-configuration/budgeting-and-forecasting) DualEntry computes the dollar change and percentage change for every account in the selected range. You can also run multiple comparisons simultaneously - for example, compare the current month to both the prior month and the same month in the prior year. Each comparison appears as a separate set of columns, so you can evaluate short-term and long-term trends in a single view. ## Set Materiality Thresholds You define when a variance is material enough to require commentary. Set a dollar threshold and a percentage threshold. DualEntry flags an account when the change exceeds **either** threshold - for example, greater than $5,000 or greater than 10%. You can save threshold profiles for reuse. A single entity might use a lower threshold than a consolidated view, or operating expense accounts might use a tighter threshold than balance sheet accounts. Each profile stores both the dollar and percentage thresholds, and you assign profiles at the entity or account-range level. When you open a flux report, DualEntry applies the matching profile automatically, though you can override the thresholds for any individual run. ## Provide Commentary For each flagged variance, the flux report requires an explanation. You type commentary directly into the report row. The commentary is saved with the report and is fully auditable - DualEntry records who entered it and when. If you update a prior explanation, the original text is preserved in the audit trail. Reviewers can read the full history of commentary changes for any line. You can also attach supporting documents - such as contracts, purchase orders, or email confirmations - to individual commentary entries. Attachments are stored with the flux report and are included in exports, giving reviewers full context alongside the narrative explanation. ## AI-Assisted Commentary If the [AI copilot](/accountants/ai-automation/ai-accounting-copilot) is enabled, you can click **Suggest explanation** on any flagged line. DualEntry analyzes the individual transactions driving the variance and drafts commentary for your review. You accept, edit, or discard the suggestion before saving. The AI copilot examines the transaction-level detail behind the variance - individual journal entries, invoices, bills, and payments - and summarizes the key drivers in plain language. For example, if revenue increased due to three large invoices to a single customer, the suggestion identifies that customer and the invoice amounts. You remain responsible for reviewing and approving the final text, and every AI-generated suggestion is tagged in the audit trail so reviewers can distinguish human-authored commentary from AI-drafted commentary. AI-suggested commentary is always presented as a draft. You are responsible for reviewing and approving the final text. ## Drill Down into Variances Click any variance line to expand the transactions that drove the change. DualEntry shows the individual journal entries, invoices, bills, and payments that contributed to the period-over-period movement. You can sort and filter the transaction list to isolate specific drivers. The drill-down view shows both the base period and comparison period transactions side by side, so you can identify which specific items are new, which increased, and which dropped off. You navigate from any transaction in the drill-down directly to its source document - the invoice, bill, or journal entry - for further investigation. This makes the flux report a starting point for root-cause analysis, not just a summary of changes. ## Export the Flux Report Export the completed flux report - including commentary - to PDF or Excel. The export is formatted for inclusion in the close binder. You can also add the flux report to a [report group](/accountants/reporting-analytics/exporting-and-report-groups) so it exports alongside other close deliverables. The PDF export preserves the variance layout, commentary text, and any attachments you added during the review. The Excel export includes the same data in a workbook format, with separate sheets for the variance summary and the transaction-level detail. Both formats reflect the current filter and threshold settings, so the exported report matches what you reviewed on screen. ## Integration with Close Management The flux report integrates with the [close management checklist](/accountants/core-financials/close-management/month-end-close-checklist). Completing all required flux commentary can satisfy a close task automatically. When every flagged line has approved commentary, DualEntry marks the corresponding checklist item as complete. You configure which close tasks are linked to flux completion in the close management settings. DualEntry monitors the flux report status in real time - as you enter and approve commentary, the linked close task's progress updates automatically. This eliminates the need to manually check off flux review tasks and ensures the close checklist reflects the actual state of your variance analysis work. For variance detection outside of the close workflow, see [anomaly detection](/accountants/ai-automation/anomaly-detection).