I've many qdf and backup files with bits and pieces of financial hx. Is there a way to ???

GDT824

I've used Quicken for many years. During the last 7 or 8 years, I've been forced to reinstall Quicken on a succession of computers that have been lost or suffered untimely deaths. I now have a collection of Quicken data files that each hold pieces of a financial history I'm hoping to reconstruct and provide divorce court.

Quicken itself has undergone extensive changes, including changes to file structure apparently too great to maintain backward compatibility. I am now using a new notebook onto which I've copied QDF and QDF Backup files dating as far back as 2013.

Since then, I've started over from scratch more than once, only to later discover and resume use of Quicken files I thought I'd lost. Consequently, I'm not able to know a file's contents by it's creation or last updated date. Some files include accounts that may or may not have been added to previous or later-dated files. It's a real mess.

I don't know how to find the data without opening files in Quicken. I don't know how to identify the version of Quicken that created a given data file, so I'm afraid to try to open files, concerned I might corrupt them if I try to open them incorrectly.

Is there a tool that allows a user to only view a file's accounts and transactions - something that does not overwrite the date fields? Must I download older versions of Q to open old files, and if so, how do I know which version to use for a file? Is it always the version that created the file, and if so, must I find old license information for those earlier versions of Quicken?

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated. I've allowed these unknows to interfere with my use of Quicken for several years now.

Sincerely,
Gregg

NotACPA

Sorry, but it's just this side of impossible to "put Humpty together again".

When you first experienced this problem, did you restore to the new computer from a backup created on the old computer?  Or did you simply start a new Q data file?

And, re-installing Q onto a previously used platform does NOT, in any way, touch your data.

re: your reporting issue, I can only suggest that you bring each of those pieces up to current file format ... and provide separate reports. OR, after bringing them up to current format, export each to Excel and create the reports there.

q_lurker

I agree with the Humpty-Dumpty remark.  Tough to put it all back together.  But don't be too forlorn.  Based on the 7-8 year comment, you should be able to work with all those files with any recent (2017 and later) Quicken.  I would not worry about opening an older file with one of the newer versions.  

My approach would be (I think):

• Collect the 7 or 8 QDF files and their associated backups in individual folders (a folder and a Backup Folder probably).
• Copy each of the QDF files to one common folder naming each file uniquely (A, B, C..., 1, 2, 3, ...).  Separately keep track of which renamed file associates to which original file.  (I am assuming as is the files are named similarly and trying to get away from that.)  
• Open and review each renamed file.  Take notes about what is in each file -- relevant dates and accounts, how up-to-date.  
• If you have scheduled transactions automatically getting added into any file, I would delete those scheduled transactions and any related new automatically added transactions.  That is just to keep things as clear as possible as to what was in that file. 
• Once you have the handle on what files have what reasonably valuable or valid information, then you can begin to assess options going forward.  Those may include throwing away some files, manually adding information from some files to another, keeping some files for pure future reference, relying solely on printed reports from some files, etc.  In some cases you may be able to actually copy data from one file to another but even that can be tricky (Humpty-Dumpty).  

I am guessing that the backup files may not be very helpful, but keep them available until you are sure.  
 

Greg_the_Geek

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7150406/how-to-merge-two-quicken-files

GDT824

Thanks, Greg. Thanks for the link to the post about "merging" data. It looks like it might contain precise instructions for doing what I'd hoped might be possible. Thank you.

GDT824

Thanks NotACPA. I'll do my best.

NotACPA

Sorry, but it's just this side of impossible to "put Humpty together again".

When you first experienced this problem, did you restore to the new computer from a backup created on the old computer?  Or did you simply start a new Q data file?

And, re-installing Q onto a previously used platform does NOT, in any way, touch your data.

re: your reporting issue, I can only suggest that you bring each of those pieces up to current file format ... and provide separate reports. OR, after bringing them up to current format, export each to Excel and create the reports there.

q_lurker

I agree with the Humpty-Dumpty remark.  Tough to put it all back together.  But don't be too forlorn.  Based on the 7-8 year comment, you should be able to work with all those files with any recent (2017 and later) Quicken.  I would not worry about opening an older file with one of the newer versions.  

My approach would be (I think):

• Collect the 7 or 8 QDF files and their associated backups in individual folders (a folder and a Backup Folder probably).
• Copy each of the QDF files to one common folder naming each file uniquely (A, B, C..., 1, 2, 3, ...).  Separately keep track of which renamed file associates to which original file.  (I am assuming as is the files are named similarly and trying to get away from that.)  
• Open and review each renamed file.  Take notes about what is in each file -- relevant dates and accounts, how up-to-date.  
• If you have scheduled transactions automatically getting added into any file, I would delete those scheduled transactions and any related new automatically added transactions.  That is just to keep things as clear as possible as to what was in that file. 
• Once you have the handle on what files have what reasonably valuable or valid information, then you can begin to assess options going forward.  Those may include throwing away some files, manually adding information from some files to another, keeping some files for pure future reference, relying solely on printed reports from some files, etc.  In some cases you may be able to actually copy data from one file to another but even that can be tricky (Humpty-Dumpty).  

I am guessing that the backup files may not be very helpful, but keep them available until you are sure.  
 

GDT824

SuperUsers NotACPA & q_lurker,

I am truly thankful for each of your replies. They were more helpful than I expected. Just what I needed.

Greg_the_Geek

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7150406/how-to-merge-two-quicken-files

GDT824

Thanks, Greg. Thanks for the link to the post about "merging" data. It looks like it might contain precise instructions for doing what I'd hoped might be possible. Thank you.

NotACPA

@gdt824, jepollard was a HIGHLY respected SuperUser of this community, until he moved on.

You'll need to follow his instructions with EXTREME precision ... and then do it 7 more times.

GDT824

Thanks NotACPA. I'll do my best.