Keeping your system clean and your data accurate sometimes means removing records that are no longer needed. Purging lets you permanently delete bookings and booking form fields up to a selected date, helping you maintain performance, meet privacy obligations, and keep your reporting meaningful.
Learn how to permanently delete system records, including bookings and booking form fields.
Accessing the features mentioned in this article
Where can I find this feature using the top menu?
- Manage > System > Database > Admin > Purge System Records
What more do I need to use this feature?
- Admin permissions to manage your account.
Purging System Records Overview
There may be times when you need to delete data from your Checkfront account. You undoubtedly have created a series of test bookings to test the system thoroughly. These bookings affect your stats and reporting, so removing the data from your account is essential.
You need to purge the data from the system via the Purge System Records page (Manage > System > Database > Admin > Purge System Records) in your Checkfront dashboard.
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Full administrative privileges Only accounts with full administrative privileges can purge data to ensure the safety and integrity of your account data. |
Getting started with purging records
To get started with purging records, follow these steps:
- Go to Manage in the main menu.
- Select System from the sub-menu.
- Click the Admin link next to the Database setting to open the Purge System Records page.
Purging system records
You can delete selected data sets from the Purge System Records page. First, check the boxes to the left of the data sets you wish to purge. The available purging data sets depend on the version of Checkfront you're using.
You can also delete past bookings and/or Customer data up to a selected calendar date. Deleting Customer data can improve processing performance and compliance with government data regulations and Customer privacy expectations.
The system selects all data by default. Uncheck the All setting to choose a date from the Before calendar.
The final steps vary depending on how you are signed in:
- If you logged in with a password, you need to re-enter it in the Your Password field to confirm your authority and intentions. You can then click the Purge Records button to confirm deletion of the selected records.
- If you are logged in using SSO (Single Sign-On), you don't need to enter a password. Clicking the Purge Records button prompts you to enter [DELETE] to confirm your deletion of the selected records.
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Purged data cannot be restored Once you have purged data, you cannot restore it. Please use caution and take a backup (Manage > System > Database > Export) or via the Export Backup option on the Purge System Records page before you continue. Your data cannot be reimported into your account or any other Checkfront account, but you will have the information for external use, should you need it. |
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Counter after a purge doesn't reset Note that, in the case of Booking Form Fields and Email & SMS Notifications, the counter to the right of the record label does not reset to zero after a purge. It does not reset because the counter total includes system and custom fields. System fields cannot be deleted. For example, if the Booking Form Fields total is 25, there are 15 system and 10 custom fields. After a purge, the custom fields no longer exist, and the system resets system fields to their default state. Therefore, the total shows 15. |
Deleting an individual booking
If you need to remove an individual booking rather than all bookings in your system, please see Cancelling or Voiding Bookings via Booking Invoices.