How do I back up Quicken data file to a disc?

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I want to back up my data file to a DVD.

Answers

  • RickO
    RickO SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
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    In Quicken, click menu File > Save a Backup. Choose a location for the backup file (eg. the Desktop) and click OK. 

    Once you have the file on your desktop, you can burn it to DVD, copy it to a thumb drive, etc. How to burn a file to DVD is beyond the scope of this forum, but a quick internet search will give you lots of help with that.
    Quicken Mac Subscription; Quicken Mac user since the early 90s
  • jacobs
    jacobs SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
    edited January 2021
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    If you're using a DVD as your long-term storage or backup, just be sure that you always have an external DVD drive available should you need to access that information. Since Macs produced in the past 8-10 years have not had DVD drives, and aren't likely to in the future, you'll definitely need an external DVD drive in the future to access that information.

    Also, be aware that while DVDs are great for storing a lot of data, they are not foolproof. A DVD that works fine today may have problems in 10-15 years. I went through a project at work, where we had a lot of arched photos on dozens of DVDs, and when we needed to restore data from them more than a decade later, some had read errors that ranged from minor to catastrophic. We had duplicate sets of the DVDs, and in some cases both duplicates of a disc failed. In theory, writable DVD drives should last at least 25 years; I'm just telling you that if it's critical data, you might want to duplicate it somewhere else as well.
    Quicken Mac Subscription • Quicken user since 1993
  • Tom Jeffrey
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    I really appreciate your thoughts and will keep them in mind, however, that really isn't the question: How do I get it on the DVD in readable form? What I have done results in a "read only" DVD, which would be fine, but it won't even open that way. any ideas?
  • RickO
    RickO SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
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    Copy the backup file from the DVD back to the Mac using the Finder before trying to open it. After moving it to the Mac, double click it and Quicken will open and confirm you want to restore the backup.
    Quicken Mac Subscription; Quicken Mac user since the early 90s
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