AN Guard Lite: Comprehensive EA Trade Journal and Reporting Tool

Related: Prop Guard Lite: Daily and Max Loss Protection for Prop Firm Accounts - another powerful expert for MetaTrader 5 traders.

AN Guard Lite

Also recommended: Account Guard: EA Account Locking for MT5 - similar expert with strong performance on MetaTrader 5.

A robust journal and reporting tool designed for any Expert Advisor (EA) or manual trading activities. This utility exclusively monitors trades; it does not open, modify, or close positions.

Functionality:

- CSV Journal: Records each trade event on a per-line basis, including position openings, closings, and the reason for closure (e.g., stop loss, take profit, broker closure, program closure, manual closure), along with the net result.

- Text Report: Generated upon removal from the chart, this report details key performance metrics such as net profit, win rate, profit factor, average win and loss amounts, expectancy per trade, drawdown, monthly performance summaries, and the extent of each trade's movement before closure.

Significance of Trade Movement Measurement:

Standard reports often equate trades with the same final profit, regardless of their potential. This tool measures trades based on their peak performance in R (multiples of initial risk). This allows you to identify if your break-even or trailing stop strategies are prematurely closing profitable trades. For example, two trades closing at a +2 profit are reported identically in a basic system. However, if one reached +0.2 R and the other +3 R, this report highlights that discrepancy, enabling you to refine your exit strategies.

Additional Features:

- Stop Loss Alerts: Notifies you when a position is traded without a stop loss.

User Inputs:

- Scope: Choose to monitor trades for the current chart's symbol only, or for all account positions.
- Magic Number: Filter trades by a specific magic number (0 for all).
- File Naming: Specify base names for the journal and report files.
- CSV Journal Output: Enable or disable CSV journal logging.
- Stop Loss Alert: Enable or disable the alert for positions without a stop loss.

Important Notes:

- Installation: Attach the indicator to a single chart and let it run.
- Independence: Operates on any symbol and timeframe without dependency on chart specifics.
- Risk (R) Calculation: The initial risk (R) is determined by the first stop loss detected for a position. If an EA sets a stop loss shortly after entry, that stop is used and logged. Positions without a stop loss cannot have their best gain measured, and this will be indicated in the report.
- Trade Results: All trade results are net, including profit, swaps, commissions, and fees.
- File Location: Output files are saved in the MQL5\Files folder of your trading terminal.
- Netting Accounts: On netting accounts, position additions adjust the average entry price. 'R' is calculated based on the price observed when the position was first identified.
- Time Reference: All recorded times are server times.

AN Guard Lite serves as a precursor to AN Guard Pro, currently under development. The Pro version will include automated trade management, such as closing positions and deleting pending orders when daily loss or maximum drawdown limits are reached, along with a live status panel on the chart. Feedback on desired rules for the Pro version is welcome in the comments.

You may also like: Prop Firm Guard: Daily Loss and Max Drawdown Protection - excellent alternative for expert users on MetaTrader 5.

#property copyright "RobotFX"
#property version   "1.00"
#property description "This code is educational. Feel free to use, modify and upgrade as you wish. Visit ROBOTFX.ORG for professional trading tools"
enum ENUM_WATCH_SCOPE
  {
   SCOPE_SYMBOL = 0,
   SCOPE_ALL    = 1
  };
input group "What to watch"
input ENUM_WATCH_SCOPE InpScope       = SCOPE_SYMBOL;

.......

• This tool is provided for educational and testing purposes only.
• Past performance does not guarantee future results.
• Trading involves substantial risk of loss. Use on a demo account first.
• Results may vary depending on market conditions, broker, and settings.
• We recommend thorough backtesting and forward testing before using with real funds.