Using ContractNest

Contracts and deadlines

Only a title is required. For deadlines, enter the end date (for auto-renewing contracts: the end of the first term), the renewal type and the notice period. ContractNest shows the last day to cancel and, for automatic renewals, the next renewal date.

Fixed term	Ends on the end date. After it, the contract shows as Expired.
Renews automatically	When a term ends, the next term is projected using the renewal period. The stored end date is not changed; projected dates are labelled “auto”.
Renewal by agreement	Nothing happens by itself. Use “Record renewal” on the contract once a renewal was agreed.
Open-ended	No end date; runs until terminated.

Notice rule “Exact calendar date” subtracts the notice period from the term end (3 months before 31 December = 30 September). “Must arrive by end of a month” moves the deadline to the last day of the previous month.

Reminders

New contracts get recommended reminders: 90, 60, 30, 14, 7 and 1 day before the end, cancellation and renewal dates, and on the day. Change the days and time per rule on the contract's Reminders tab, or add milestones and document expiry dates. Reminders appear as Windows/macOS notifications and in the bell menu. ContractNest keeps running in the system tray when you close the window; quit it from the tray to stop reminders.

Money

The amount and billing frequency on a contract are enough for the reports. For rate changes, use Financial terms: a term in the same series replaces the previous rate from its start date; a different series adds a separate payment line. Amounts in other currencies need an exchange rate under Financials (the rate valid on each payment date is used).

Documents

Drag files onto a contract's Documents tab or use Add files. Files are encrypted on your disk with a key kept in Windows Credential Manager or the macOS Keychain. Save the recovery key (Settings, Backup and recovery) somewhere safe: without it, encrypted attachments cannot be opened after reinstalling the operating system.

Import

Contracts, Import, choose a CSV or Excel file. Download the template to see the expected columns. Rows with errors are skipped and listed; possible duplicates are flagged. Nothing is saved until you confirm, and if saving fails nothing is saved at all.

Backups

Settings, Backup and recovery, Create backup writes one .zip with the database and the encrypted attachments. Restore replaces the current data and keeps a safety copy of the previous database in the data folder.

Licensing

The trial runs 30 days. After buying, activate the key under Settings, License & Activation. The license file is signed by our server and bound to your workspace. When online, ContractNest checks it once a day. After expiry, the app becomes read-only: you can still open everything, download attachments and export your data. Renew with the button on the same screen; no reinstall is needed.

Using ContractNest for the same company on another computer? Activate the same key there and choose “Use the licensed workspace on this device” (fair use up to 25 devices). Data is not synchronised between computers in this version.

Keyboard shortcuts

Ctrl/Cmd + K	Search
Ctrl/Cmd + N	New contract
Ctrl/Cmd + 1…9	Go to a section