If you chose a Mac instead of a PC when you purchased a new computer, you may need to make some adjustments to import your files. If you want to transfer your Quicken files from your PC to your new Mac, you need to prepare the old files for that process. The Mac version of Quicken offers a different set of options and abilities than the PC version but Quicken does support exporting your PC files so you can import them on a Mac. Quicken supports transferring your accounts, securities, transactions and categories to Mac.
Actually, by default, when you select 'Save a Backup' from the file menu, this is where Quicken stores the backup. I would change that default location to someplace like your iCloud drive or Dropbox so you know the backup is safe rather than on the same drive as your data file.
Prepare PC Files
Step 1
Go to your account list by clicking the 'Tools' menu and selecting 'Account List.' Click the 'Options' drop-down list and click 'View Hidden Accounts.' On the 'Manage Accounts' tab, remove checks from all of the checked 'Hide in Quicken' check boxes. For any account that has a name with more than 15 characters, right-click and select 'Edit.' Rename it with fewer than 15 characters and click 'OK.' Repeat this process with any other account name that has more than 15 characters.
Step 2
Click an account in your account list and click the 'Accept All' button under the Downloaded Transactions tab. Go to the scheduled bills and deposits and click the 'Cancel' button for each one with a repeating or pending status.
Step 3
Click the 'Tools' menu and click 'Category List.' For any category with a name with more than 15 characters, right-click and select 'Edit.' Rename it with fewer than 15 characters and click 'OK.' Repeat this process with any other category with a name longer than 15 characters.
Step 4
Click 'Investing Menu' and then 'Security List' to go to the Security List. For any security with a name that has special symbols, right-click and select 'Edit.' Adjust the name so there are no special symbols and repeat this process with any other securities with special symbols in their names. Use this same process to adjust ticker symbols so they all only have uppercase letters.
Step 1
Click the 'File' menu, then click the 'Export' sub-menu. Click 'QIF File.'
Step 2
Click the 'Browse' button and navigate to the folder in which you want to use to store your QIF files. Enter 'Security List.QIF' in the File Name field. Click the 'OK' button.
Step 3
Select 'All Accounts' from the drop-down list and check 'Security Lists.' Uncheck every other box. Leave the default date range and click the 'OK' button. Repeat these steps for an Accounts.QIF file, Transactions.QIF file and a Categories.QIF file. Check only the Accounts box, Transactions box, or Categories box, correlating to the QIF file you are creating.
Step 4
Connect some form of removable drive that is compatible with both Windows and Mac to your PC and transfer the QIF files onto it. Disconnect or eject it after the transfer is completed.
Step 1
Launch Quicken on your Mac.
Step 2
Click the 'File' menu, hover over the 'New' sub-menu and select 'File.' In the window that comes up, click 'New Quicken File' and click 'OK.' Enter the name of your file in the 'Save As' field. Select the location to save your file from the drop-down list labeled 'Where.' Check the category you use these Quicken files for, either home or business, and click 'Create.'
Step 3
Click 'Cancel' and 'Close' in the New Account Assistant when the window pops up. Connect the removable media with your QIF files on it. Click the 'File' menu, hover over 'Import' and click 'From QIF.' Navigate to the Security List.QIF file on your removable media and click 'Open.' Repeat this process with your Accounts.QIF, Transactions.QIF and Categories.QIF files.
Tip
- If you want to use Quicken Essentials for Mac instead of Quicken for Mac, check out the article on Quicken's website detailing how to prepare and transfer your Windows files (see link in Resources).
Resources
About the Author
Marissa Robert graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in English language and literature. She has extensive experience writing marketing campaigns and business handbooks and manuals, as well as doing freelance writing, proofreading and editing. While living in France she translated manuscripts into English. She has published articles on various websites and also periodically maintains two blogs.
Photo Credits
- Sean Gallup/Getty Images News/Getty Images
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Losing a years' worth of financial data can cause significant distress and make you immediately reach for the Restore option. However, using System Restore won't help you recover your data. System Restore only keeps system data to repair problems with new installations and the operating system. Other methods do exist to help you recover your data short of manually inputting the last year of data, but in the end that may be what you have to do.
Automated Backups
Failing to make a manual backup doesn't necessarily mean you have nothing to restore. Quicken usually alerts you that you haven't made a recent backup and the auto-backup feature may store backups you don't know about. Select the 'File' menu, choose 'Backup and Restore' and then click 'Restore From Backup File...' from the list of options. Look for a backup file on your computer with the 'QDF-Backup' extension. When you select the option to Restore From Backup File, you should automatically direct to the location where Quicken stores your backups.
Create Current Backup
Before attempting any repairs or a system restoration, you should create a manual back up to ensure against further loss so that you can revert any changes made during a validate or system restore process. Save the backup file to an external drive so that if you do decide to restore your system you don't lose your data. Select the 'File' menu, click 'Backup and Restore' and choose 'Backup Quicken File...' to create a backup of your current data.
Rebuild Files
Sometimes, you haven't actually lost any data at all. Quicken may have the ability to restore your files from transaction log files that you can't normally view. Accept any pending transactions located on the register screen and then attempt to validate and repair your file. Select the 'File' menu, choose 'File Operations' and then select 'Validate & Repair.' Check the 'Validate File' option and then click 'OK.' If you have investments, select the check box for 'Rebuild Investing Lots' and 'Delete Investing Price History' option.
File History
Before manually entering all of your lost transactions into the register, check to see if you have an automatic backup running on your machine. Launch File History to see if an older version of your Quicken files exists. Access the Charms bar and select the 'Search' option. Type 'Restore Your Files' and press 'Enter.' Search for '.QDF' to locate past versions of your Quicken file. Select the latest, previous version of your file and click the 'Restore' button.
Disclaimer
Information in this article applies to Windows 8 and Quicken 2014. It may vary slightly or significantly with other versions or products.
References (1)
About the Author
Avery Martin holds a Bachelor of Music in opera performance and a Bachelor of Arts in East Asian studies. As a professional writer, she has written for Education.com, Samsung and IBM. Martin contributed English translations for a collection of Japanese poems by Misuzu Kaneko. She has worked as an educator in Japan, and she runs a private voice studio out of her home. She writes about education, music and travel.
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Martin, Avery. 'I Forgot to Back Up Quicken & Now I Lost One Year of Records: Should I Restore the Computer?' Small Business - Chron.com, http://smallbusiness.chron.com/forgot-back-up-quicken-now-lost-one-year-records-should-restore-computer-77720.html. Accessed 18 November 2019.
Martin, Avery. (n.d.). I Forgot to Back Up Quicken & Now I Lost One Year of Records: Should I Restore the Computer? Small Business - Chron.com. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/forgot-back-up-quicken-now-lost-one-year-records-should-restore-computer-77720.html
Martin, Avery. 'I Forgot to Back Up Quicken & Now I Lost One Year of Records: Should I Restore the Computer?' accessed November 18, 2019. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/forgot-back-up-quicken-now-lost-one-year-records-should-restore-computer-77720.html
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