using a copy of a quicken data file without affecting the Cloud version

tmplee

One of the ways we use Quicken (QM 2007) is to keep the "working" copy of the data file on one machine and occasionally move a copy of it (compressing it, of course) to a second machine that is used to extract the necessary data from it for doing taxes or other things while the working copy is still be used. Occasionally the second machine may be used to make temporary changes to its datafile that aren't intended to be reflected in the original. How can I set the second machine up using "new" Quicken so that while using the copied file it doesn't attempt to make changes to the Cloud accounts associated with the original file? (I actually wouldn't care if it didn't try to sync with the Cloud at all, but I haven't found a way to do that.) I did an experiment by making a duplicate of a data file (with a different name) and opening that, but it clearly linked to the existing (single) Cloud account/file.

John_in_NC

As you found out, duplicating/renaming won't fix this. Internally, the file has an ID for Cloud access, and that ID remains the same when you duplicate the file. Hence the syncing.

You can duplicate your file, and when you open the copy, immediately go to Preferences: Mobile, Web & Alerts and turn off syncing. Also, don't update any accounts connected online-depending on the connection method, this can cause syncing of data.

jacobs

@tmplee I don't know if this is viable in your usage, but I would simply suggest taking the second Mac offline -- disable the Internet connection -- while using Quicken on that machine. (Of course, that precludes using other apps that need an Internet connection at that time; if you have a WiFi-connected printer, this may not work for your needs.)

You might also want to re-evaluate if you really need to do this copy to a second Mac; 99.9% of Quicken Mac users likely produce their reports for taxes from their "live" copy of Quicken. A lot of us established certain ways of doing things many years or decades ago due to specifics of the program which may have been present then but are no longer necessary today, yet we try to maintain our status quo. Changes in the current year/quarter shouldn't affect anything in the past. If you need to make some minor adjustments, you might be able to simply duplicate your data file, use the copy, make your changes, print your reports, quit Quicken, delete the temporary copy of the data file, and relaunch Quicken by double-clicking on the original "live" data file. Obviously, I don't know the specifics of what you do on the second Mac, so I'm just throwing out things for you to consider.

tmplee

@jacobs It looks like I can in fact do what I want to do. I created a new Quicken file on machine A with a checking and cash account in it, and entered a few made-up transactions. I synced it to the cloud and verified with my iPhone that it indeed was there with all those transactions. I turned syncing off (in case that state is remembered in the file) and quit Quicken. I transferred a compressed copy of the data file to machine B and opened it, with syncing turned off. I added a few new transactions to the file and quit Quicken. Neither the on-line version or the one on machine A were changed. Just for the fun of it, I turned syncing on on machine B and made sure a sync happened. As I remember, I had to sign out of Quicken on the iPhone and sign back in, but the changes were now reflected in the on-line copy. I quit Quicken on machine B and started it again on machine A. The changes that I had seen on-line were *not* reflected back to machine A and the changes I'd made disappeared from the on-line version at some point.

jacobs

I don't use Quicken Cloud Services, so your testing is more real than anything I can postulate. I feel I've seen lots of problems reported on this forum with data syncing, and moving a data file between two machines and counting on Quicken to sync when you want and not when you don't seems ripe for problems somewhere down the road -- but if you're satisfied it works to meet your needs, godspeed and good luck. (And make sure you have adequate backups, always!)