First Launch & Journal Setup in Forgalis TradingJournal

Forgalis TradingJournal is a local-first Windows desktop trading journal built for structured trade review.

This tutorial shows what to do the first time you open FTJ: understand the local journal database, create your first account, find the manual trade and import entry points, and read the first Dashboard view.

This is a product walkthrough, not trading advice.

Watch the walkthrough first, then use the written steps below as a reference while setting up your own journal.

After installation, open Forgalis TradingJournal from Windows.

On a fresh user profile, FTJ creates a local journal database and shows the Terms of Use disclaimer. You need to accept the disclaimer before the rest of the app becomes available.

The app then opens to the main workspace: the Dashboard.

FTJ stores your journal in a local SQLite database file on your own Windows computer.

That database stores journal data such as trades, accounts, notes, screenshots, strategies, confluences, exit reasons, exchange rates and related journal structure.

For the Microsoft Store version, the default database path is:

%USERPROFILE%\Forgalis TradingJournal\TradingJournal.db

You can see the active database path inside Settings → Database.

This matters because FTJ is not a cloud trading journal. Your journal database stays local unless you choose to copy, back up, export or move it yourself.

Before you add trades, create at least one account.

Open Account from the left sidebar and create a new account.

For the tutorial example, the account is:

Account name: Demo CFD Account

Base currency: USD - US Dollar

Starting balance: 10000

Account type: Demo

Description: Tutorial demo account

Use values that match your own setup when you create your real journal.

The important part is the structure: every trade in FTJ belongs to one account. The account base currency and starting balance are used for reporting, balance tracking and review context.

After the account exists, you have a place to store trades.

Use + New Trade when you want to enter one trade manually.

Manual entry is useful when you want to record a trade with details such as instrument, direction, entry, exit, account, screenshots, notes and review structure.

Video 1 only shows where manual trade entry starts. The full manual trade workflow is covered in the next tutorial.

Use Settings → Import Data when you want to bring in existing trade history from a CSV or Excel file.

Import is useful when you already have trade history from a broker, platform or exported spreadsheet.

FTJ supports CSV and Excel import workflows, including template selection and custom mapping for imported files.

Video 1 does not open the import dialog. The full import workflow is covered in a separate tutorial.

The Dashboard is the home screen for review.

Once trades exist in the journal, the Dashboard can show:

• Total P&L
• Win rate
• Total trades
• Average R/R
• Max drawdown
• Recent trades
• Charts
• Account filters
• Reporting currency
• Next Steps guidance

These numbers are review context. They are not trading advice.

Before reading the Dashboard, check the selected account, account filter and reporting currency. Those controls decide what the Dashboard is showing.

The Dashboard includes a Next Steps panel.

It can point out setup and data-quality items such as:

• Add your first trade
• Fix missing exchange rates
• Define strategies and confluences
• Add exit reasons to closed trades
• Complete key trade fields
• Review lot sizes or contract sizes
• Back up your database

Use this as a practical checklist for keeping the journal clean.

Open Settings → Database to check the current database path and backup options.

FTJ supports local database backups, including full backups and lightweight backups. The Microsoft Store version also uses local auto-backups on startup by default.

A simple first setup is enough:

1. Create one account.
2. Add or import a few trades.
3. Check the Dashboard.
4. Back up the database.
   
   

A trading journal is only useful if the data is structured enough to review later.

Starting with one clean account gives FTJ the foundation it needs for trade history, reporting, filters, account-level review and Dashboard analytics.

The goal is not to make the first setup complicated. The goal is to avoid messy data from the start.

Start with one account, a small number of trades, and a review workflow you can actually maintain.

Use demo or anonymized data when testing workflows.

Trades need an account. Create the account before manual entry or import.

The account base currency affects reporting and analytics. Pick the currency that matches the account you are journaling.

Dashboard numbers depend on the selected account, account filter and reporting currency.

Example trades in tutorials are demo data. They are used to show the product workflow.

FTJ is local-first. That gives you control, but it also means you should keep your own backups.