01 / DECISION
Define the operational decision
A retailer may have a purchasing workbook, promotion export, store copy and POS import file that all appear to be the price master. Protecting the wrong copy creates friction without preserving the published source.
Identify the one authoritative price file, its owner, publish destination and allowed change path before adding restrictions.
02 / PROCEDURE
Run the control sequence
- 01
Name the authoritative master and accountable business owner.
- 02
Record the approved folder, file format and publishing destination.
- 03
Separate drafts, imports, exports and emergency copies from the master.
- 04
List the roles permitted to propose, approve and publish changes.
- 05
Mark the exact handoff where the master becomes a released rate file.
03 / EVIDENCE
Keep a usable release record
Record the master path, accountable owner, working-copy identifier, proposed change, reviewer, approval time, release version, cryptographic hash, backup location, restore result, temporary-access expiry and publication outcome. Keep this evidence outside the protected artifact so it remains available when the file cannot be opened.
Use a consistent release identifier across the approval, published artifact and recovery copy. Never place credentials, customer data or unnecessary commercial detail in the evidence record. Retain prior approved versions according to policy, and verify that the artifact accepted by the downstream POS matches the one that was reviewed.
04 / BOUNDARY
Keep adjacent controls separate
File restrictions do not decide which prices are correct, who may approve a commercial change or whether the POS accepted an import.
Test restrictions with representative roles and a nonproduction file before applying them to the only master. Preserve an independently restorable backup, keep price authorization separate from technical administration, and confirm that automated import services still have the access their documented task requires. After an update, compare the released version and hash, review the POS import result and close any temporary exception. Recheck the workflow after Windows, product, account, folder, storage or POS changes because earlier evidence may no longer describe the current environment.
05 / QUESTIONS
Common questions
Does a protected file prove its prices are approved?
No. Approval evidence, pricing logic and file restrictions solve different problems.
Can the protected master replace a backup?
No. Keep and test a separately controlled recovery copy.
Should administrators remove every restriction during an urgent update?
No. Diagnose the exact required action and grant the smallest approved, time-limited exception.
06 / SOURCES
Primary references
References support specific control concepts and do not imply endorsement.