Chart Reporter

Why does an automatic MT5 journal need the terminal running?

By Chart Reporter Reviewed 2 min read

The short answer

Chart Reporter receives data pushed by its EA inside MT5. The terminal is therefore part of the capture system: if it is stopped or disconnected, current reporting can stop too. Keeping a dashboard open does not take over that responsibility.

Trace the path of one event

A trade is executed in the broker environment. The reporter running in your connected terminal observes relevant activity and sends journal data to Chart Reporter. Your browser then reads the resulting journal. These steps explain why a healthy website cannot compensate for an offline reporting terminal.

This design avoids asking the journal service to sign into the broker using your investor or trading credentials. That boundary also creates an operational responsibility: you need a place for the reporter to run. Decide whether your usual desktop session is sufficient or whether a suitable hosted terminal better fits your hours.

Recognise common interruptions

Laptop sleep, a closed MT5 application, a disconnected broker session, a removed EA or a network problem can all interrupt the reporting environment. Look at the actual terminal state before treating a quiet journal as a product calculation error.

For example, if you leave MT5 open on Friday and find it offline on Monday, first establish whether the computer slept or restarted. The relevant question is whether the reporter was active during the period, not whether the journal browser tab stayed open. Keep any restart or maintenance notes alongside the dates you are checking.

Separate recovery from a guarantee

Reconnecting the terminal is a sensible first step, but it is not a promise that every missing historical detail will be reconstructed. Broker history, captured candles and the reporter version influence what can be recovered. A trade-history import can finish while chart uploads are still pending.

Use terminal last-seen status to establish current contact, then reconcile known trades under the correct date range and account. For replay gaps, check candle availability and the supported recovery guidance separately. Record the affected symbol, ticket, dates and EA version if you need support. Never create a new live trade solely to test whether the reporting connection has recovered.

Sources and further reading

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