How to move my QMac 2007 file to an updated version... QMac 2015 or later.

zenon5

I tried to move it into quicken 2015 but the totals didn’t match my original totals. I’m open to updating to any version. Is one better than another for small business reporting? Is there a problem with my file or will my results vary with a different version?

jacobs

Let's start with Quicken 2015 being a very old version. It was the first release of the modern Quicken Mac, and it was missing a lot of functionality compared to Quicken 2007. While there are still some missing features today, the program has been improved by leaps and bounds over the 2015 version in many areas, including the importer. So if you're just starting out moving from Quicken 2007 to modern Quicken Mac, my recommendation is not to tie your hands behind your back by using the 7 year old version. Of course, if you purchase the current Quicken Mac, you're entering the world where software is sold as an annual subscription rather than  one-time purchase. But if you're using Quicken for personal as well as business purposes, I'd argue that the annual fee is likely worth it.

Next issue: do you have an older Mac running Quicken 2007 and a newer Mac on which you'd run Quicken Mac? Or do you just have one older Mac? What version of macOS is currently on that Mac, and what model is it (e.g. iMac Late 2017)? Modern Quicken Mac requires a relatively recent operating system; we can go into the details once you share what hardware and software you're running.

In terms of moving from Quicken 2007, are you still able to run Quicken 2007? If so, one suggestion to do prior to converting the data file to the modern Quicken format is to launch Quicken 2007 and rebuilt the transaction file indexes by pressing Command-Option-B. This may or may not make any difference when you convert, but I've seen it solve many unexplained problems in the conversion.

Beyond that, you'll need to provide more information about "the totals didn't match". Bank accounts? Credit card accounts? Investment accounts? All or just some? In most cases, Quicken 2007 data files convert pretty well, but there can be some fine-tuning required. For instance, some of my investment accounts were off by a few cents due to the different ways Quicken 2007 and Quicken Mac handle and round share purchase prices. It wasn't anything major, and didn't take me long to clean up. If one or more of your accounts are off by a larger amount, then you'll need to dig deeper. If you can still run Quicken 2007 alongside Quicken Mac, it can make this process easier, going account by account. For instance, start at the beginning to see if there's an opening balance transaction in one but no the other. Then jump to the end of any year in both programs and see if the running balance is the same; move forward or backward in time another year or two and check again until you zero in on the source of the discrepancy. The Quicken 2007 database was great for its day, but it was quirky and prone to data corruption occasionally, so you might find a chunk of some transactions missing or duplicated after the conversion. Further troubleshooting help can come from looking at the log file created by the conversion, but I won't go into that here.

Finally, in terms of versions of modern Quicken Mac, there's really only one version of the software, but some features are turned on or off depending on your subscription level. For most people, Quicken Deluxe is the most appropriate choice. Quicken Premier can be useful if you're going to use Quicken's online bill payment services, but since you haven't been doing that with Quicken 2007, I'm guessing you don't need it now. 

zenon5

First of all I want to express my appreciation for your advice. I have tracked my business on Quicken for probably more than thirty years. Just got the file full message last week.
I’m running it on a late 2014 Mac Mini using Mohave version 10.14.6. I can run both 2007 and 2015 on this machine. I just never had a compelling reason to upgrade either the software or the computer. Given that I need to do something and totally understand that I’ve probably lived on the edge for years, I want to make a move that will work for me for a long time to come.
I think that I risk no longer being able to run 2007 if I upgrade my operating system. I’m willing to take that leap of faith but obviously need to move my file as I do so. The store could happily purchase a new computer but once again I need to have a solid file to work with.
I don’t really want to take the intermediate step that 2015 would entail.
My file seems solid. I did use command option B as I have many times in the past. So if you don’t mind stopping with your third paragraph for the time being, should I just begin by upgrading to the latest version of Quicken for Mac and try transferring the file as is? Will my current Mac support that version?
Thank you!

jacobs

Officially, current Quicken Mac is fully supported on the past two operating systems (Catalina and Big Sur), but it definitely does run on Mojave. I actually have my live (non-testing) copy of Quicken on an iMac running Mojave. A few new features in recent releases require Catalina, but they are not critical features. So you could purchase Quicken, install it on your current Mac, import your Quicken 2007 data file, and actually run Quicken Mac and Quicken 2007 at the same time to be able to compare accounts between the two. I believe this is a much better option than going from Quicken 2007 to Quicken 2015.

The only potential downside for you is that it may not be long before Quicken will require a newer operating system. But… you can decide at any point in the future to upgrade your macOS from Mojave to Catalina on a 2014 Mac Mini. (In fact, if it's the "late 2014" Mac Mini, it can be upgraded to Big Sur as well.) So I'd upgrade your Quicken to the current subscription version with your current Mojave operating system, so you can run Quicken 2007 alongside it. Then, in the future, you can upgrade your macOS to Catalina or Big Sur (neither of which will run the old Quicken 2007), which should run ongoing upgrades to Quicken over the next few years. 

Ps56k2

zenon5 said: .... Just got the file full message last week.

just following along - and this was not mentioned again in the ongoing discussion on hardware & software

jacobs

I hit the “transaction file full” message in Quicken 2007 several times before I ultimately switched to modern Quicken Mac. It simply prevents entry of new transactions until you delete some. But it does not affect conversion to Quicken Mac (which has no transaction limit).

zenon5

Hmmm,
Sounds like a good plan Jacobs. I’ll upgrade and see what happens. I’ll always have the original file to fall back on. Just wish I had more time to invest in this unplanned project.
And, Ps56k2, thank you for showing an interest. Not trying to withhold information. I guess a rookie like myself just doesn’t always get what might be relevant.
I’ll give an update when progress (or backsliding) occurs.
Grateful for the ongoing advice!

smayer97

@zenon5
You can test to see if there is room to buy some time. Perform a "Save a copy" in QM2007. Then convert to QMac and see how many transactions there are. This will tell you how much room there remains in QM2007. From there, you can assess how much extra time you might gain to continue using QM2007 if you so choose. The max transactions QM2007 can handle is about 65,535 in total (does not include splits but transfer count as 2) and 10,535 in any one register. 

(there are other limits but those are likely the ones you are encountering given the message).

zenon5

I’ve downloaded Quicken for Mac and populated it with my 2007 file. Account totals vary but I can track the differences down. One thing I have run into is that when I have reconciled both a checking account and a credit card account I’m told that the accounts have never been reconciled. I’ve used and reconciled the checking account since 2005. Is this normal? Is there anything that I should be doing about it, or should I just move forward?
Thanks as always. Your kind assistance is greatly appreciated!

Bezeau

I have move my Quicken 2007 file to Quicken Mac but nothing appears in the new Quicken...It's all empty. Any explanation ?

jacobs

@zenon5 Sorry, I missed your last reply in this thread. Yes, it is normal that Quicken Mac would say accounts have never been reconciled. That means never reconciled in Quicken Mac. All your old reconciled transactions are still marked as reconciled. If you don't have the "Clr" column visible, you should make it visible, and you'll see all your old transactions have green checkmarks to denote they are reconciled. Quicken just has no history of which transactions were reconciled together month by month. As you move forward with Quicken Mac, Quicken Mac will store the state of each reconciliation you do, so you can go back to fix errors if something in the past changes (e.g. an accidentally deleted or edited transaction).
 
@BezeauYou have the old .qdmf file from Quicken 2007 on the Mac which has the current Quicken Mac? When you launch Quicken Mac, after logging in, you should be on the Let's Get Started page. (If you're not, go to File > New to get there.) Select the option for starting from a Quicken 2007 data file. Then select the .qdmf file, and let Quicken process the conversion.