WHAT IF: I need to move my QuickBooks Company file to a new computer?

by

If you are using one of the currently supported versions of QuickBooks, the backup you can create from within QuickBooks will save almost everything you need to restore your Company file on a new (different) computer. There are some additional files you may need to manually restore if you are using some related functions, and we will give you a reference for which files, and how to resolve those issues later in this What If tip.

In order to move your Company file using a back-up follow these steps:

  1. From the File menu, choose Save Copy or Backup and then select the option to Create a Backup copy.  You may wish to save this file to your desktop for ease of location.  Do not attempt to save the Backup directly to a flash drive or other removable storage.
  2. Locate the Backup file you created, and use the Windows ‘copy’ function to copy the file to a flash drive or other removable storage device.
  3. Safely remove the flash drive, or other removable storage device, and connect it to the new computer you wish to move your QuickBooks Company file to.
  4. Open QuickBooks on the new computer, and select the option to restore a back-up file.
  5. Follow the on-screen instructions to restore your back-up.

If you used Loan Manager, Fixed Asset Manager, had customized forms or templates, had a Logo or used attached documents, with your Company file then it may seem as though you still have some files missing after you have followed the ‘above’ procedure; QuickBooks does not automatically restore these files.  You will need to restore them manually, and you can obtain assistance for restoring these files by referencing the Intuit Technical Support Article found at:  KB ID# HOW12776