Are you a partner and using the Accountant's Edition?  If so, the only reason I can think of is that you have a data entry window open.

I would suspect you are not using the Accountant's Edition and therefore you can only change numbers of accounts that have not been used.

Thanks for your response Richard, I am a partner and I use the accountants version, but this client does not have the accountants version.  There is no other data window open just the chart of accounts, there are some of the account #'s that I am able to change but not all of them as they are grayed out (eg. 5685 Insurance)

Your client shouldn't have the AE unless they are also a partner.  Open the file in your version from your computer and it should allow you to change the numbering on all accounts.  You will still need to make sure any data entry windows are closed and open in single-user mode if applicable.

Perfect, I will try that. Thank you Richard

When I try to open their account in my program, it wants me to upgrade their program to  (they are running 2012 version of Quantum). If I continue ahead with this will it mess up their program or will I be able to put it back to their computer afterwards (it says I won't be able to)?  Can I not just somehow open the file and do my thing then save it for them and put it back on their computer with all the changes???   Someone please help :(

NthnBlle said:

When I try to open their account in my program, it wants me to upgrade their program to  (they are running 2012 version of Quantum)

I assume you mean the SA2012 Enterprise version and that you are prompted to upgrade it to the Sage 50 2015.1 version.  Whenever you are working with clients on older versions of the program, you must also open it in the EXACT same version they are using.  I have a client on SA 2008D so I must have SA2008D on my system and I have a client on SA2008F, so I have to be able to work with that version as well.

NthnBlle said:

Can I not just somehow open the file and do my thing then save it for them and put it back on their computer with all the changes???

Only if you open it in their version of the program.

Please be aware that by "their version" I am referring to the program (eg. Simply Accounting), the year (2012) and the level (Enterprise) and release (A, B, C, D....)

You use the Accountant's Edition which is not regarded as a data entry version like Pro, Premium, Enterprise/Quantum.  When you open their file in the Accountant's Edition it will open in Enterprise mode.  You can see that by looking at the status bar at the bottom of the Home Screen.  However, if they are running 2012D, you can't be running 2012E, you must be running 2012D as well to be able to open, do work and send the file back to them.

Do not attempt to take a clients file running in any Pro version and upgrade it to Premium and send it back either, even if it is in the same year and release.  It will not work at their end and they will be very unhappy with you.

There are other ways that you could go with the need for more expense and revenue detail, such as to use Departments, Projects, and / or Service Item codes.

The G/L may not be the right place to separately track utilities as telephone, alarm monitoring, internet, heat, light, water, sewer, and garbage pickup.  If the client wants that detail, using a separate 'Service Item' code for each thing will allow detailed purchase reports without cluttering the G/L with trivial detail.

For another example, we use a separate service item for each unit's billable milage, and fuel use, and allocate all costs to a project for that unit.  It makes it fairly easy to assemble a report of maintenance and fuel cost vs. revenue by unit.