Coming from GnuCash
What changes if you know GnuCash - no windows, registers or menus, only methods - and GnuCash's words mapped to red-ale's, how the two share books safely, accounts instead of categories, and where the From GnuCash pages are.
GnuCash is personal finance software made to keep track of anything from a checkbook to a business, with investments,
loans and many currencies. red-ale reimplements it without a window. It reads and writes GnuCash's own files, XML or
SQLite, and every operation is a JSON-RPC method, also an MCP tool for AI agents and a command of red-ale exec. There is
no assistant and no register. If you know GnuCash, this is what to expect.
What replaces the windows
| In GnuCash | In red-ale |
|---|---|
| Menus and dialogs | Methods. Each From GnuCash page maps a menu to its methods |
| The Account tree window | account.tree, account.list, account.balance |
| The account register | transaction.list for an Account, transaction.post to enter |
| The Reconcile window | reconcile.start and its siblings; the caller carries the ticks |
| Assistants (Stock Split, Loan, Close Book, Import) | One call, or a proposal call and an apply call, for each |
| Preferences | The Configuration |
| Book options (File > Properties) | book.options, book.setOptions |
| Reports in a window | report.run and report.export |
| Help | help.search, help.get and this Manual |
Nothing is shown or confirmed for you: a method does what it says, completely or not at all. Every change is atomic and leaves every Transaction balanced. There is no "undo" button, so write to a copy while learning.
Sharing a book with GnuCash
- A file is a file. Copy your
.gnucashfile, open the copy withbook.open, and GnuCash opens the result with nothing lost: anything red-ale does not understand is kept and written back unchanged. GUIDs, the order of entities and timestamps are kept as read. - One writer at a time. XML books use a
.LCKfile and SQLite books thegnclocktable. red-ale refuses a book GnuCash holds (book-locked) and always releases its lock. - Backups and the journal are made as GnuCash makes them (Books and files).
- Read-only when unsure. A book that uses a feature red-ale lacks opens read-only (Read-only books).
- It does not repair on its own. GnuCash scrubs a book as it opens it, and runs Since Last Run; red-ale changes nothing until you ask (Imbalance, orphans and scrubs).
- SQL. SQLite books work. MySQL and PostgreSQL books are not supported: save a copy as SQLite or XML in GnuCash first.
Words
red-ale keeps GnuCash's terms and says so where it uses a word differently.
| GnuCash says | red-ale says |
|---|---|
| Chart of accounts | Account tree (The chart of accounts) |
| Category (in other programs) | An INCOME or EXPENSE Account (Double entry) |
| Amount, quantity | Amount is a Split's size in its Account's Commodity; value is its size in the Transaction currency (Value and amount) |
| Preferences | The Configuration; a Book option is something else, kept in the book |
Transaction log, .log | Journal |
| KVP, key-value pairs | Slots and Frames |
| SX | Scheduled transaction |
| Custom report | Saved report configuration; a User report is your own script |
| Invoice (bill, voucher) | Business document, or invoice, bill, expense voucher |
| Red line | The auto read-only threshold |
| Currency, security | Both are Commodities; a currency is a Commodity in the CURRENCY namespace |
| Close Book | book.closeBooks, not book.close (Closing the books) |
| Reverse balanced accounts | A display preference. Methods always use the raw sign: debits positive |
Accounts versus categories
If you come from a program that uses categories, income and expenses are Accounts in GnuCash and in red-ale. Where you would have named a category, name an income or expense Account; everything you could do with a category you can do. See Double entry.
Not in red-ale
GUI windows, registers, autocompletion, the Tip of the Day, online banking, OFX import, Finance::Quote, Python bindings, Guile scripting, the Account templates, the financial calculator, check printing, PDF export, most business reports and the tax reports are not ported. Not in red-ale says what to do instead of each.
Finding your way
Search the Manual in your own words, or by the name of a GnuCash menu item: help.search finds "Stock Split..." and
"Reconcile". The From GnuCash pages are File menu, Accounts and Actions,
Transactions, Business, Tools,
Stock assistants, Import and Export,
Reports, Preferences and book options and
Windows and registers.