Windows to Mac Conversion Missing Attachments

Irkle

I recently converted my windows Quicken file to a new MacBook Pro laptop and all of the attachments are missing. I noticed the Sync to Mobile is also not bringing the attachments uploaded into the Mobile App into the MacBook Pro. Two questions:
1) Does the Mac from Windows conversion process include the Attachment files?
2) What are the steps to sync attachment from the mobile app to the Mac quicken file?

Chris_QPW

#1 No.

For the answer to #2 a Mac user needs to answer this, and this is posted in a Windows category.  I'm going to flag this for a moderator to move it to a Mac category so they will see it.

Irkle

Thank you for the assist Chris. This is my first time asking a question in the forum and hadn't realized this is not in the Mac category as that is what I intended.

jacobs

I'm sorry to report that attachments have never been part of the data migration from Quicken Windows to Quicken Mac. 

I'm not sure I understand your second question. When you create a new Quicken Mac data file by importing your Quicken Windows data, it will create a new Quicken Cloud file from the desktop Quicken Mac file. So there won't be any attachments, unless you start adding them in Quicken Mac.

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I feel attachments serve a purpose, but may not be the best choice in Quicken Mac. You can attach a document to a transaction, and whenever you view that transaction in a register, you can access the attachment. Beyond that, there are no features for attachments. There is no way, for instance, to view all attachment, or to mass export or delete attachments. Storing your attachments inside your Quicken data file can vastly increase the size of your data file, which increases the time it takes to quit and generate a backup, and with all your backups, it uses more storage space (although that's not likely a problem for most Mac users these days). If you decide to stop using Quicken in the future, or if Quicken goes out of business, all your attachments are buried in your data file with no easy way to manage them.

As an alternative, I suggest creating a documents folder for you attachments. Depending on what documents you like to save, you can set up a sub-folder system by date or by Payee. To file by date, create a folder for each year, and date your documents with a consistent leading date in the name, such as "2022-11-01 Chase Visa.pdf"; if you save a lot of attachments, you can create sub-folders for each month or quarter to make it easier to find things in the future. To file by Payee, create a folder for each type of document you retain, such as certain bills or bank statements; again name your documents with a leading date so they are in order within each folder (e.g. "2022-10-31 Vanguard statement.pdf"). Either approach should make it easy to find documents when you want them. The documents are not tied to Quicken, so if your file is corrupted or you stop using Quicken, it won't affect your records. And you're storing them only once, rather than inside every Quicken data file backup.

Since you'll be starting over with attachments as you embark on using Quicken Mac — sorry! — I'd encourage you to think about what documents you save, how often you access them, and whether you want to store them in Quicken as you have been or whether to store them externally as described above. 

Chris_QPW

For what it is worth Quicken Windows suffers from the exact same problems where Quicken Windows doesn’t provide any good way to really deal with attachments except one at a time, and that it greatly increases the sized of the data file.  As such, Quicken Windows SuperUsers have the same advice, in that it is better to workout some external method for storing the documents you might want.