> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.batchlane.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How Batchlane works

> The operating model behind receiving, inventory, production, traceability, and accounting handoff.

Batchlane is built around one idea: every operational action should leave a connected record. When the records stay connected, teams can answer inventory, QA, customer, and finance questions without rebuilding history in spreadsheets.

## The source-record chain

1. [Settings and roles](/settings-and-roles) define workspace rules: locations, units, roles, team access, and production signoff policy.
2. [Address book](/address-book) stores customers and suppliers.
3. [CSV imports](/imports) can seed items, lots, recipes, orders, customers, suppliers, and addresses.
4. [Receiving](/receiving) creates supplier lots and receive movements.
5. [Inventory](/inventory) holds the current lot ledger and movement history.
6. [Recipes](/recipes) define what production should consume and produce.
7. [Production](/production) consumes input lots, records actuals, creates output lots, and signs the batch record.
8. [Orders](/orders) reserve and ship finished lots to customers.
9. [Documents and QA](/documents-qa) attach COAs, batch attachments, supplier files, export evidence, and audit files to the source record they support.
10. [Traceability](/traceability), [Reports](/reports), and [QuickBooks handoff](/quickbooks-handoff) summarize the source records.

## The ledger rule

Inventory quantity should change through movements, not silent edits. Receive, consume, produce, ship, adjust, transfer, correct, return, and scrap events create movement history. This lets [Reports](/reports), [Traceability](/traceability), and [QuickBooks handoff](/quickbooks-handoff) explain why a balance changed.

## The document rule

Documents are not a folder system. A COA belongs to a lot, a batch attachment belongs to a run, and a generated export belongs to the export or report that produced it. If a document is missing or rejected, the work appears in [Documents and QA](/documents-qa) and often on the Today dashboard.

## The status rule

Statuses control what can happen next.

* A held, quarantined, consumed, shipped, scrapped, or returned lot should not behave like available inventory. See [Inventory](/inventory).
* A draft or archived recipe should not be scheduled for live production. See [Recipes](/recipes).
* A completed or signed-off production run should preserve its history. See [Production](/production).
* A shipped or canceled order should not be edited like a draft. See [Orders](/orders).
* A retired document should not be reviewed until it is restored. See [Documents and QA](/documents-qa).

## Where to troubleshoot

* Import did not queue or failed: [CSV imports](/imports), then [Common errors](/common-errors).
* A lot cannot be found or scanned: [Inventory](/inventory), [Traceability](/traceability), then [Common errors](/common-errors).
* Production is blocked: [Recipes](/recipes), [Inventory](/inventory), [Production](/production).
* Shipment cannot post: [Orders](/orders), [Inventory](/inventory), [Common errors](/common-errors).
* QuickBooks sync fails: [QuickBooks setup](/quickbooks-setup), [QuickBooks handoff](/quickbooks-handoff), [Common errors](/common-errors).