HELP!!! Broken Q2017 file

martindw

I sure hope somebody can help me here ... Recently, my Q2017 install has been popping up blank windows asking me to log in with my Quicken ID ... but with no way to do so as the dialog box was empty -- no prompts, no fill-in boxes, no buttons, just a blank dialog box. After clicking the red X to close the box six or seven times, I was able to use my data.

In frustration, I tried telling my Quicken to log in using a new Quicken ID, figuring that would give me a dialog box permitting me to re-enter my same ID and password. But instead, now when I open Quicken I get the password for my QDATA file, followed by a blank white screen with the support number at the bottom of the page. Given Quicken's notices all over the place that they don't support 2017 anymore, I'm not optimistic for help from them.

Any suggestions?

And I really don't want to upgrade, not only because of the insulting subscription fee, but also because I don't want my finances in the cloud, [Removed - Speculation/Disruptive]

Help would be greatly appreciated!

martindw

Incidentally, in case anybody wonders, I tried simply creating a new file in my otherwise-blank Quicken instance. It, too, remains a blank white screen. So the fact that I logged out seems to have deactivated the whole program.

splasher

To clarify your impression in the statement about " I DON'T WANT MY FINANCES IN THE CLOUD".

Your information is only in the cloud if you want it there and subscription Quicken is no different than Quicken 2017 in that respect.  If you don't have it there now, it won't be there under subscription.

Chris_QPW

See this thread (its not good news):
https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7918354/migrating-quicken-2017-from-old-to-new-computer-quicken-data-access-guarantee

martindw

> @Chris_QPW said:
> See this thread (its not good news):
> https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7918354/migrating-quicken-2017-from-old-to-new-computer-quicken-data-access-guarantee

You're right, not good news at all.

So I have a theory ... one that the Quicken gods won't approve of for sure ... do you know if a QIF file exported from the newer versions can be imported into legacy Quicken? I still have my old 2013 installer, though I don't recall if it installs successfully on W10

martindw

> @splasher said:
> To clarify your impression in the statement about " I DON'T WANT MY FINANCES IN THE CLOUD".Your information is only in the cloud if you want it there and subscription Quicken is no different than Quicken 2017 in that respect.  If you don't have it there now, it won't be there under subscription.

Good to know. The website does not make that at all clear, all that I can find seems to tout the 'benefits' of the connected version, which aren't benefits to an old geezer like me LOL

Chris_QPW

martindw said:

> @Chris_QPW said:
> See this thread (its not good news):
> https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7918354/migrating-quicken-2017-from-old-to-new-computer-quicken-data-access-guarantee

You're right, not good news at all.

So I have a theory ... one that the Quicken gods won't approve of for sure ... do you know if a QIF file exported from the newer versions can be imported into legacy Quicken? I still have my old 2013 installer, though I don't recall if it installs successfully on W10

Absolutely.  It isn't easy, but it is certainly possible.  Here is how I have done it as a test a few times.
https://www.quicknperlwiz.com/changetransfers.html

On the actual install of Quicken 2013 you should have no problem installing it on Windows 10/11.
When that is finished you can install the last Mondo patch from my website to bring it up to the last version for Quicken 2013:
https://www.quicknperlwiz.com/quicken-2013-patches.html

martindw

So I'm looking at this ... and @Chris_QPW I'd appreciate just a little more insight. It appears that the export of QIF files is by major account -- ie, each bank account or credit card. If there's a way to export the whole shebang I'm not seeing it. This creates worry lines on my face <grin> as I fear when I import it really will blow up those account transfers just like you were talking about, conversion or no. Is there a way, barring the category switch you indicate I may have to do, but I'd love not to (LOL), to not have a hopeless collision while importing accounts one at a time?

martindw

To follow up @Chris_QPW I think I now understand what you mean about transfers ... it appears that everything imported correctly from my QIF files except for those transactions that are coded type "TXFR" in the register. Transfers between, for example, my savings and checking accounts, or from my checking account to a credit card, seem perfectly happy if the check# field is coded EFT or blank. Does that follow from your experience? And if so, is it better that I run your patch program, or that I just re-code those few transactions before re-exporting?

Thanks in advance ... your instruction has been amazing!

Chris_QPW

The QIF export account selection has a <All Accounts> at the top of the list.

My experience on the transfers is they always got messed up especially the ones that were transferred to investment accounts and doubly from splits like paychecks to save my 401k.

Other people have reported better success in that but I have never been able to to get my import of qif to be even close when I left the transfers alone.  So that's why the purpose of change transfers.  By changing the transfers to regular categories there's no way for quicken to muck up trying to match transfers from different accounts.  It means that the link transfers are broken but from an accounting standpoint especially the old double book before you had computers and could actually do a linked transfer an offsetting transfer in the other account works out just fine.  It is even possible to sometimes come back after the fact and use find and replace and fix the links for at least some of them not all of them seem to work on. But in fact that's probably not really even worth it.  how many times do you really have to jump between two accounts from the transfer?  

Is really an interesting observation that linked transfers cause new users some of the biggest problems.  After all you either have to pre-enter them or quick and has to make a guess certainly not the most robust system in the world. 

martindw

> @Chris_QPW said:
> The QIF export account selection has a <All Accounts> at the top of the list.
>
Not the Starter Edition version I downloaded and installed yesterday. It only lists the individual accounts. Is this perhaps a new 'feature'?

Chris_QPW

martindw said:

> @Chris_QPW said:
> The QIF export account selection has a <All Accounts> at the top of the list.
>
Not the Starter Edition version I downloaded and installed yesterday. It only lists the individual accounts. Is this perhaps a new 'feature'?

Yep, just one of the many reason I don't suggest using the starter edition.

martindw

> @Chris_QPW said:
> Yep, just one of the many reason I don't suggest using the starter edition.

Ouch ... so one pound of flesh paid to Quicken ain't enough ... why am I not surprised ...

martindw

So @Chris_QPW : first of all, I'm sorry I doubted you -- clearly, accepting the fact that transfers were screwy and following your instructions would have saved me a lot of time!

Exporting the separate QIFs for every account, though tedious, and then running them all through your QIF fixer, allowed me to import my complete account and transaction history correctly. The only hitch is that somehow, my savings account got coded as a checking account, and Q2013 didn't want to let me change it. What I did instead was delete that account, re-create it with the exact same name and zero balance, then re-import the relevant QIF for that account. It worked.

Oh, and memorized transactions imported but not scheduled transactions ... no biggie, I just re-created those from the most recent instance of each.

You're the best! Thank you so much for the uncompensated support you provide to the community!

Chris_QPW

Your very welcome.

I should admit one thing, I have never had the patience to export each account individually and import them that way.  So, if that works differently I would never have known.  I have 132 accounts (most of them closed, but still important for the history), dealing with them let alone all their transactions one at a time is way beyond my tolerance for what I might get out of this.

In fact, manual entry is beyond my patience.  When I started using Quicken in 1992 and couldn't do downloading I only could put up with it for about a year or two.  I quit until 1996 when I could download transactions.  And it looks like I have come full circle.  My finances were much simpler back then, then over time got a lot mor complicated and now they are somewhat more complicated then back then, but now most everything is setup to be automatic and I don't really need Quicken any more.  I will most likely stop using Quicken at the end of the month when the Chase change over is final, since I refuse to use Express Web Connect.

JS Burg

I believe this is an issue Quicken has created so we will get frustrated and upgrade to a subscription model. B**tards! If anyone comes up with a fix or has a way to downgrade to an earlier version, please post it. Thank you.

Chris_QPW

JS Burg said:

I believe this is an issue Quicken has created so we will get frustrated and upgrade to a subscription model. B**tards! If anyone comes up with a fix or has a way to downgrade to an earlier version, please post it. Thank you.

Downgrading is possible, but not easy see my other comments in this thread these comments:
https://community.quicken.com/discussion/comment/20293745/#Comment_20293745

The Quicken 2013 Deluxe install can be downloaded from here:
https://assistant.quicken.com/patch/ASDES5672FR13/Old_Products/QWIN/QW2013DLX.exe

martindw

> @JS Burg said:
> I believe this is an issue Quicken has created so we will get frustrated and upgrade to a subscription model. B**tards! If anyone comes up with a fix or has a way to downgrade to an earlier version, please post it. Thank you.

That's what I just did ... I downgraded from 2017 to 2013, by way of a temporary (i.e., less than 48 hours) "upgrade" to present version.

martindw

> @Chris_QPW said:
> Your very welcome.
>
> I should admit one thing, I have never had the patience to export each account individually and import them that way.  So, if that works differently I would never have known.  I have 132 accounts (most of them closed, but still important for the history),

Yeah, I wouldn't have had patience with that either. My case was way simpler with only 12 accounts ... a combination of savings, checking, credit card, and CD accounts only (I have never entered other investments into Quicken, I use it primarily as a way to control cash flow and balance my bank statements). 12 exports and imports did not make for an egregious level of effort.

There was one really funky element to the multiple QIF import before I did your transfer fix ... importing the accounts one at a time as described above resulted in wildly crazy account balances that gradually adjusted as subsequent accounts were imported and transactions accepted. It never did come out right though, till I followed your directions LOL. I still haven't figured out what Quicken was doing with those transfer transactions ... some I could find, some I couldn't, even though the raw transaction account remained identical to the source. Anyway, for other readers' benefit, just listen to @Chris_QPW and do the conversions!