Troubleshooting Data Damage in QuickBooks Desktop

When using QuickBooks Desktop you may encounter some problems that belong to data damage. If you find that the data seems to be having some issues that regard to corruption, you need to perform some troubleshooting steps with the QuickBooks Company File. So, In this post, we’ll discuss how you can troubleshoot data damage in QuickBooks Desktop.

There are several reasons for data damage such as QuickBooks company file size exceeding its limit, etc. In QuickBooks Pro and Premier, you have a data file size limit of around 200-350 MB and with QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions the limit is about 1 GB or even more. The size of the file increases from time to time. You may have used your company file for more than 10-15 years and now it requires some cleanup.

You can check your data file size by following the below steps:

  • Open QuickBooks Desktop
  • Press F2 key or Ctrl+1
  • Under File Information, you can see the file size in KB that can be easily calculated to MB with a quick Google search.

Sometimes QuickBooks data gets damaged because of insufficient RAM, networking issues, etc. There are many early signals for data damage such as:

Things to do before starting up with the troubleshooting steps

A. Create the Company File Backup

If you can open the company file, it’s suggested to create a backup before the troubleshooting steps.

  • Open QuickBooks Desktop
  • Go to File > Back Up Company > Create Local Backup
  • Now follow the onscreen instructions to create a backup

B. Update QuickBooks Desktop

  • Open QuickBooks Desktop
  • Go to Help > Update QuickBooks Desktop…
  • Click on Update Now(To the top)
  • Click Get Updates
  • It may take some time to update the QuickBooks Desktop

Note: The process to fix this may be complex, you can speak with our experts for a quick resolution. Dial TollFree or leave us your message and we’ll contact you.

5 Simple Steps to Troubleshoot Data Damage Issues in QuickBooks Desktop

Step 1: Download and Install QuickBooks Tool Hub

  • Download QuickBooks Tool Hub and then go to your download by pressing CTRL+J
  • Under your downloads list click on QuickBooksToolsHub.exe
  • Click Yes to allow this app to make changes
  • Now click on Next to install it and then click Yes again to accept the license agreement
  • Click on Next and then Install (It may take some time)
  • Once the installation is complete click on Finish

Step 2: Run QuickBooks File Doctor

  • Open QuickBooks Tool Hub (Icon will be available on your desktop)
  • Select the Company File Issues tab
  • Click on Run QuickBooks File Doctor
  • Click OK. It may take some time to open the QuickBooks File Doctor automatically on your computer
  • Choose your file and network
  • Then click Browse to locate the company file location
  • Select the company file and click Open
  • Click Continue
  • Then enter your company file password. If your company file doesn’t contain the password, simply click on Continue again
  • Now QuickBooks File Doctor starts diagnosing your company file. It will take some time depending on your file size.

If the same problem still exists move forward to troubleshoot Data Damage in QuickBooks Desktop.

Step 3: Verify the Company File

  • Open QuickBooks Desktop
  • Go to File > Utilities
  • Choose Verify Data
  • Click OK to close all the QuickBooks windows
  • It will take a couple of minutes to verify data integrity.
  • If it doesn’t detect any problem with the data, you can continue to use your company file. In case, it detects some problem with the company file click on Rebuild Now

Step 4: Rebuild the Company File

  • Go to File > Utilities
  • Choose Rebuild Data
  • Click on OK to create the backup
  • Choose Local/Online Backup and click Next
  • Click on Browse to select the backup location
  • Then click OK
  • Click Use this Location
  • Click Save to back up the company file
  • Then it starts to rebuild the data file
  • Click Review Now to see the company file Rebuild results. If you encounter an error click on the drop-down arrow and see the article.

Step 5: Condense the Company File

There is an inbuilt function in QuickBooks Desktop to reduce the company file size, known as Condense Data. It will keep all your transactions but remove the audit trail info and this function reduces the file size.

The reason to do it is that QuickBooks Data Damage generally arises because of the company file size.

It’s suggested to create a backup again before condensing the data. Also, if you’re not sure about this method, you can speak with our independent experts.

To condense the data:

  • Go to File > Utilities
  • Choose Condense Data
  • Choose Keep all transactions, but remove audit trail info to date
  • Then click Next
  • Depending on your data file size, it will take some time to condense.
Troubleshooting Data Damage in QuickBooks Desktop

Once the company file is condensed you will see a prompt that also mentions the size of a file is reduced by how much percentage such as 20%, etc.

Now the company file size is reduced by QuickBooks itself, you can proceed further to continue tracking your business finance.

After following all the above steps you can easily Troubleshoot Data Damage in QuickBooks Desktop, if the problem still exists, you can speak with our experts. Leave us your message.

Related Posts

Leave a Reply