When exiting Quicken, no longer being asked if I want to backup (Q Mac)

lablover57

Unless i have automatic backup on, there is a backup. However, there are times I want to backup in a different location. Now, it is greyed out and I am not alerted anymore. If this is the latest 'update', I don't like it. 

jacobs

Could you clarify what version of Quicken and what version of macOS you are using?

Are you saying if you go to Quicken > Preferences > General, the "save to" button is grayed out? 

Or are you going to File > Save a Backup? Are you getting the Save As sheet where you can specify a filename and a location?

lablover57

macOS 10.15.5 Version 5.17.3 (Build 517.34913.100). Yes, it is now greyed out.

Quicken_Tyka

Hello @lablover57

Thank you for taking the time to visit the Community to report this issue, although I apologize that you haven't received a response.

I am unclear on where you are seeing this issue, I apologize.

Are you seeing the greyed out menu when navigating to File > Save a Backup? Or, is it when you are changing the default location when backups are stored?

If the latter, may I ask where you are choosing to have automatic backups saved to?

Please let us know!

-Quicken Tyka 

lablover57

When I exit out of Quicken. In the past, i was prompted if I wanted to backup (which I checked off in preferences in the past) because sometimes, nothing was downloaded in my transactions or I didn't do some data entry. So, I figure, why should I back up when nothing was done? Now, I don't get prompted. I don't want automatic backups because those backups do not go in the directory I want it go to. Very annoying. It is greyed out under Preferences. It never used to be before the latest upgrade.

jacobs

@lablover57  I know you're frustrated, but because you're mixing a few different (related, but different) issues in your post, I'm still confused about what's grayed out. Last time I asked multiple questions, so this time let me ask one at a time.

If you go to Preferences > General, you should see this dialog box:

If you have both check boxes checked, are you saying the "Backup Folder…" button is grayed out?

lablover57

I am saying 'ask to back up data file before data file before backing up' is greyed out. 

jacobs

lablover57 said:

I am saying 'ask to back up data file before data file before backing up' is greyed out. 

Thanks for clarifying. Have you unchecked the first checkbox ("Automatically back up data file when quitting Quicken")? That will cause the second checkbox to become grayed out. Conversely: you must check the first checkbox in order to be able to check the second one. The first turns on automatic backups; the second allows you to limit those automatic backups by asking for a prompt each time. And the Backup Folder button allows you to set your preferred location for the backup files.

Make sense? 

lablover57

I have done that. I am still not prompted to backup. I want to be prompted, I don't want 'automatic', because it backs up to the default folder and I don't want the default folder. I have designated my folder, but still backs up to the default. Still working it. This has been going on since the blasted update.

jacobs

I'm still trying to make sure I understand everything you're saying, because some of it seems conflicting. Let's talk about three separate issues you've raised, one at a time…

You just wrote above that "I want to be prompted", but you previously wrote that the checkbox to ask to be prompted is grayed out.

The reason I asked about the checkboxes is because you previously wrote that you had the checkbox turned OFF:

lablover57 said:

When I exit out of Quicken. In the past, i was prompted if I wanted to backup (which I checked off in preferences in the past) because sometimes, nothing was downloaded in my transactions or I didn't do some data entry. So, I figure, why should I back up when nothing was done? Now, I don't get prompted.

Then, yesterday, you explained that the second checkbox was grayed out. Typically, the second checkbox is grayed out when the first checkbox is not checked, like this:

(It doesn't matter if the second box is checked or not if it is grayed out.) When you check the first checkbox, the second one become black, and you can check it or not according to your wishes.

So I want to confirm: are you seeing the first checkbox is checked, but the second one is grayed out? If so, could you post a screenshot? I'm not sure how it could be in that state.

----

Next, you wrote you wanted to be prompted because sometimes you haven't changed anything and don't want to make a backup. So it might be helpful to know that Quicken will not make a backup -- and will not prompt for a backup -- if you haven't changed anything since opening the file. It will only back up automatically (or prompt whether you want a backup) if you have edited something in your data file.

So could you perform the following test. Launch Quicken. After it opens, quit Quicken. Does it create a backup? (It shouldn't.) Now re-launch Quicken. Create a dummy transaction in any register. Quit Quicken. Does it make a backup? It should (as long as the checkbox in preferences for automatic backup is checked).

----

Finally, you wrote that you designated your backup location, but it is still creating backup files in its default location. That also doesn't seem to make sense, and doesn't match my testing. So let's check into this a bit further…

In Quicken, go to Preferences > General. Click the Backup Folder button. Quicken will open a Finder window that might look something like this at the top:



Please now click on that top menu -- the one which in this screenshot shows "Automatic Backups". A dropdown menu will appear which shows the path to your designated automatic backup folder. If it is in Quicken's default location, it will look like this:



So this shows, from bottom to top, that on my iMac, the Quicken automatic backup folder is on my hard drive, in my user account called Home (your might be different), in the Library > Application Support > Quicken > Backups > Automatic Backups folder.

Is this what you're seeing? If so, you have not specified a different location for your automatic backups.

If you do want a different location, in this window, you can specify it. So just to experiment, click on Documents or Desktop on the left side, followed by the blue Choose button on the bottom right of that window. Create a dummy transaction in Quicken, and quit. You should now see a folder called Automatic Backups on your desktop or in your Documents folder (whichever one you clicked), and inside it should be a file beginning with the name "BACKUP (Automatic)" followed by your file's name and today's date.

All your future automatic backups will appear here. And if you want a manual backup (File > Save a Backup), the location will default here, but you can direct it to save the manual backup anywhere you want.

lablover57

I meant it wasn't. Sorry. I am still working it. I never had this issue before the update.

jacobs

@lablover57   I tried to help you with a very long post above breaking down the separate issues you've been complaining about; I asked a number of questions, and asked you to try several things. You replied with "I meant it wasn't." I have no idea what that's a response to.

If you go back to the post above and work through it one paragraph at a time, I feel confident we'd get to the bottom of the issues you're experiencing.

lablover57

oops sorry about that. Multitasking can be fun. LOL I meant, yes I have unchecked the first box (like before the update). Ask is checked off and greyed out. I am still not prompted when I exit out. After the update, it was saving to the default location, which I had to change again (after I realized it was doing automatic updates and also not prompting me). The other information you provided, yes I have done that. Thank you and I am again, sorry for the confusion.

jacobs

@lablover57  If you have the first checkbox unchecked, the one about prompting is grayed out, as I showed above, and you've confirmed. It should not be prompting you; it's working as intended. You need to turn on both checkboxes to be prompted whether to do a backup. The first enable automatic backups; the second tells Quicken to prompt before doing an automatic backup.

lablover57

Yes, but it isn't doing that when the two checkboxes are checked off. In addition, it isn't being backed up to the folder I configured but to the default. This started after the latest update.

jacobs

@lablover57  Sorry, I don't understand your responses. You want to be prompted whether to backup or not when you quit, and I've said half a dozen times now that you need to have both checkboxes in the preferences checked for that to happen. Yet you keep replying you don't get prompted when the boxes are not checked. I don't think I can state this more simply: turn on both checkboxes. You will then be prompted whether to do a backup (but only when you've actually changed something in your data file).

As for the file location, I gave a detailed set of instructions above, with screenshots, and asked you to exactly follow the steps and report what your results were. You haven't done that, but keep repeating it's backing up to the wrong location. Until you go through the steps I listed above, it's hard to guess at what you've set.

lablover57

I don't get prompted. I know how to do this. (been a user since the dos days..a system admin..tech savvy.. ;-) ). Like I said, since the update, I have not been prompted and the back up folder goes back to the default, not the drive I selected.  I think I am just going to see if I do a restore from backup to see if I can go back  and see if that works. Thanks!