QDATA.quicken File Size reduced after version 603.41003.100 was installed on 08/27/202121

Bandit0615

My QDATA.quicken file size was 37.2 MB before this version was installed and 15.6 MB after it was installed. Suggest you check file size to see if it was effected like mine. I was able to save a backup file just before this version was installed. Now I will have two QDATA files, one before this version was installed and the smaller QDATA file that will be continually updated as usual. I suspect the data was lost during the QDATA conversion process which is last step of the new version installation.

jacobs

I have seen no other posts here about data loss. You're talking about a version which is several releases ago, so I can't quickly compare, but overall, I haven't observed any change in my file size.

You're saying data was lost -- can you identify what data was lost? Are accounts missing? Transaction history in some accounts? Since your file size dropped by almost exactly half, I wonder if there was an old backup copy of your file stored within the file which was removed during the update. (Quicken Mac used to store a backup internally, but I thought it hasn't done this for awhile.)

If you did lose data, I'd suggest restoring your latest backup from before the update, and then updating to the latest version of Quicken; if a glitch occurred during your previous update, there's a good chance it might not recur if you try it a second time.

Jon

I think something did happen to reduce the file size. The May backup for my data file was around 65MB, but the August backups for the same file were only 21MB. I didn't delete anything from the file, and I don't seem to be missing anything either.

(The file is currently sitting at 35MB, but I've merged in a bunch of old transactions in the last few weeks. The two backups had everything from the beginning of 2017, but the file now goes all the way back to 2003.)

jacobs

@Jon I do not have any size reduction in my live or backup data files.

I suspect that there was a backup of your data file stored inside your Quicken data file package -- something they used to do but I thought had cleaned up a few years ago -- and a recent update properly detected the backup copy and deleted it. Based on both of the reports here of the file size shrinking by about half, that's my guess...

Bandit0615

Thank you for your thoughtful comments about my issue. I will start examining my current data today. I posted this issue early bcuz it was time sensitive in that I wanted other users who might have the same problem to save a backup from just before the data loss like I did.
I wasn't aware that Quicken for Mac used to store a backup internally in the past so that's good to know.

I started using Quicken for Windows in 1992 and after buying my first iMac in late 2017, switched to Mac version which converted my Windows QDATA during the installation process. The Windows QDATA file size at that time was 33.4 MB before it was converted. The Mac QDATA file grew to 37.2 MB before the data loss problem occurred. So, that indicates to me there was actual data loss and not an internal backup that was removed.

I will keep this Posted Issue updated when I find out more.

Jon

Going back through older backups, I see the files tripling in size from 9MB in September 2018 to 27MB just 3 months later. The next backup is from August 2019 which is 40MB, another 50% increase. No big jumps after that, just a gradual increase to 65MB in May of this year.  So maybe there was something going on back in 2018/2019 that was dumping a bunch of unnecessary data into the file.

magoodm

I have also experienced a big data file reduction. I'm not sure after which update it was, but it was a few months ago. My data file dropped from 140mb to 70mb after the update. I haven't seen any data loss and everything appears to be there.

Bandit0615

Good to know. However, I never experienced any big changes in file size in the 25 years I used Quicken for Windows or during the 4 years I have been using using Quicken for Mac until 08/27/2021 when it went from 37.2 to 15.6 MB. The 37.2 MB Mac QDATA file size was a gradual increase from the Windows QDATA file size of 33.4 MB.

In the 30 years I have been using Quicken this file size change is unprecedented. It's going to take me time to find out what data was lost, but it has not effected the ability to use any of my current active accounts so far.

Bandit0615

My last comment was in response to Jon. In response to your comment, it sounds like the same thing that happened to you also happened to me. I am still going through a lot of hidden inactive accounts, but so far I haven't found anything that would cause this large loss in data. Everything works fine with with all my active accounts and no data loss there. Quicken says the program does not compress QDATA This is just such a BIG mystery. Never seen anything like this in my 30 years of using Quicken.

Jon

I tried restoring from the last big 65MB backup and the resulting file was shrunk down to 21MB, consistent with the reduction in backup file sizes that I saw this summer. Nothing appears to be missing from the restored file - all the accounts are still there and the balances look correct. Whatever it's throwing away, it doesn't seem to be anything necessary. Maybe jacobs is correct and it's clearing out embedded backup data that wasn't supposed to be there to begin with. Whatever it is, I'm not going to worry about it.

jacobs

Bandit0615 said:

Quicken says the program does not compress QDATA This is just such a BIG mystery. Never seen anything like this in my 30 years of using Quicken.

If you have a copy of your data file from when it was larger, or can restore one from a backup, you can look inside the "wrapper" which makes a Quicken data file look like a single file to see if there is indeed a backup of your data embedded in there. Control-click on the older data file, and select Show Package Contents.

magoodm

Bandit0615 my Quicken history is 32 years starting with the DOS version in 1989. Like you, I've only experienced file size creep - growing slowly but never getting smaller, so when I saw the recent sudden big size drop I was at first worried that something was gone. After running problem free since then with my data apparently complete, I don't believe anything is gone or broken. I just assumed the developers found something in the file structure that could be improved or some redundant information that could be cleaned up. It would be interesting if Marcus or the moderators could shed some light on what they did to accomplish the file size improvement.

Bandit0615

I think I'm going to stop examining my inactive hidden accounts based on what you said magoodm. I've already looked at the first 20 inactive accounts and found nothing missing. I still have another 80 or so accounts remaining, but will no longer continue to examine them.
I do have a QATA backup file when it was larger (37.2 MB) and will try what jacobs suggested to see if there is an embedded QDATA backup file.
Thanks to all of you for your very helpful input that has put me at ease with this change in file size.