Add More Options to Automatic Back-ups in Quicken for Mac (22 Legacy Votes)

smayer97

There are 4 improvements that can be made to the new Automated Back-up in Quicken for Mac:

1. allow choosing the max number of back-ups (like in QM2007 and QWin) [done]
2. provide option to only reminder user to create manual back-up (like in QM2007 and QWin) [done]
3. only create a new back-up when there is an actual change to the data [done]
4. add an option with the following choices as follows: 
   - save at [most, least] 'X' times in 'Y' [hours, days]
   
   This way, you can put either a cap in a selected time period with the 'at most' option, or a timed trigger with the 'at least' option that always makes a back-up even if Quicken is left open for hours or days at a time, as many users are in the habit of doing. And this could work well with item 2 so it either does it automatically OR generates a reminder.

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[Edited to reflect current voting procedure — jacobs 8/23]

smayer97

These items have been partially implemented. 

Item 2. and 3. were implemented in QM2017 v4.5.0 released April 27, 2017.
Item 1. was implemented in QM2017 v4.6.0 released Sep 8, 2017.

The only item left is #4, which will automatically backup even if Quicken is left open, based on the settings. This is to make sure Quicken always generates a certain number of backups even if you leave Quicken open.

Please continue to add your VOTE at the top for this last item.

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pjpjr10

I have been frustrated to have to rebuild my file due to power outages or system-dictated restarts that have closed Quicken for Mac unexpectedly and improperly. While I understand that some people may not want another behind-the-scenes operation running on their system, I would like the option to be able to turn auto-save on for set periods of time. For example, I would like if Quicken permitted automatic saves and backups much like Time Machine, such that I would have a weekly and hourly backup, along with my file saving every 5-15 minutes (if not more often).

[Merged Post]

jacobs

First, I'm unsure why a Mac restart would corrupt your Quicken file unless you were just in the middle of saving a transaction. Every transaction is saved as you enter it, so there shouldn't be a need for an auto-save every 5 minutes. (And you probably wouldn't want to have hundreds of saved backups if it saved a new backup file that frequently.) I've had power outages and needed to reboot a frozen Mac at times when Quicken was running, and I've never experienced a data file problem.

But if indeed you've suffered file corruption in the past and want to protect yourself from lost work, then you could simply manually generate backup files whenever you want from File > Save a Backup. You could even assign this a keyboard shortcut in your macOS system preferences. Save a backup whenever you've done extensive work — owever you'd define that... perhaps after 30 minutes or an hour of work — so you can revert to that backup should you need to. 

You should have Quicken set to save backups when you quit Quicken, and you should quit Quicken each time you're done working with the program to let it close cleanly and generate a new backup file. Set the number of backups to be retained to a high number, such as 50 or 100, so you're assured of having frequent backups going back quite a while in time. 

And of course, Time Machine will do its own thing backing up your Mac hourly, so if you've quit Quicken or manually generated a backup, then Time Machine will back up those backups as well. I always like having multiple layers and generations of backups. Time Machine backups to an external drive should protect you if your Mac or your Mac's hard drive fails. So I also recommend using a cloud-based backup, such as iDrive or Backblaze, so you're protected in case your home is robbed or damaged and you lose your Mac and backup drive. 

[Merged Post]

smayer97

For further consideration?

Quicken Anja

Hello All,

The status of this Idea has been changed to Under Consideration as it has reached enough votes and has been submitted to our Product and Development team for further review.

Thank you!