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JNohKuhn
January 12, 2021
Question

company file disappeared and backup (QBB) won't restore

  • January 12, 2021
  • 1 reply
  • 0 views

I'm using Quickbooks Desktop Pro 2020 on a PC. I have multiple companies that I track, and one of them as not too much activity. I know I added transactions in October, but there's a backup file (QBB) dated 12/2/20 (I may have added a transaction or two then - can't remember). When I went to open the company file the other day it was not there - it had disappeared. I went to restore the backup file and after selecting it and choosing the new location it would not load - the open/restore window simply returned and nothing happened.

 

I had copied the QBB backup file onto other drives so I tried to restore those, but same result: nothing loaded. I can see that the QBB file is not empty as it's over 21 MB of data.

 

The QuickBooks Tool Hub and repair file options are only for QBW files, so I don't know how to repair the QBB file, or even if that file needs repairing.

 

I then was looking at my other company files and noticed that even though everything is working correctly, there are only QBB files saved - there are no QBW file extensions anywhere.

 

Question 1 - any idea's how to find and/or restore the missing company file and/or the backup file?

Question 2 - why does my QB only utilize QBB files, even for "active" data files?


Thank you,

James

    1 reply

    JoesemM
    JoesemM
    January 13, 2021

    Hello there, @JNohKuhn.

     

    I appreciate you sharing with us the details of your concern. I can help you find your working company file.

     

    This happens if your computer is disconnected from the path where the QuickBooks file is located or your QuickBooks file has been deleted from your computer. 

     

    We can perform these recommended steps to fix the issue. First, let's locate the file by going to your computer server and perform a wild card search for all company files. Let's make sure to include the asterisk (*) before the extension type to ensure the search works correctly.

     

    • *.qbw (Working File)  
    • *.qbb (Backup File) 
    • *.qba (Accountants Copy File)  
    • *.qbx (Accountants Transfer File)
    • *.qby (Accountants Change File) 

     

    Once found, take note of the file's location so you can easily locate it when opening your company file. I also suggest you change the name of your company file so you can easily locate it in the future. 

     

    For more information, you can refer to this article: Company file is missing or cannot be found. It helps you learn about searching for all company files saved locally on the same computer or over the network. 

     

    Also, I'm adding this article that will guide you in Resolving Problems Opening QuickBooks Desktop or your Company File.  

     

    If you have other questions or concerns for QuickBooks Desktop, you're welcome to post here again. I'll be around to help. 

    J
    JNohKuhnAuthor
    January 13, 2021

    Thanks Joesem for the information. I'd already searched every drive for those extensions, and found only the QBB files. There are no QBW of any kind on any drive, including for the s 3 other companies that I'm having no difficulty with.

     

    I should add that everything is filed on my local C drive, with the working company files all saved to a common folder (it was the original default of C:/users/public/public documents/intuit/quickbooks/company files), and then those working company files were backed up to an external Western Digital drive. The backup QBB files are saved to a different folder, and then those backup QBB files are copied to an external local drive, and then to the cloud. I cognizant of the need for multiple backups and redundancy. That is, I know exactly where all of the files are supposed to be, and as a result of not finding things, I ran a search over the entire C: drive for both *.QBB and *.QBW files - nothing was found.

     

    That's what's so strange about the "missing" company file. Only 1 of the 4 I use is missing, and it's not on my WD external drive (which keeps 5 multiple iterations, but I've only run that backup program once since I know the working file worked). That is, even if I accidentally deleted it, and not noticing it I backed up to WD, an older iteration on WD would still have the company file - but it doesn't.

     

    My only guess is that when I last updated QuickBooks, which was around the time the company file went missing, somehow this company file was removed from everything.

     

    Also, your reply doesn't address my 2nd question, where none of the company files I work with are QBW files - they are all QBB. It's always been that way since I converted these from a Mac QuickBook program (QB 2020 Desktop Pro for Mac) to the PC based one about a year ago. To my knowledge, I never had the option to choose QBW or QBB. The program just saved things on its' own.

     

    Does any of the above information spark anything?

     

    Thank you,

    James

    R
    Rasa-LilaM
    January 13, 2021

    Hello again, JNohKuhn.


    I appreciate following the solution shared by my peer and letting us know the result.  The additional information gives us an idea of the next troubleshooting steps we’ll have to perform.


    Utilizing the Auto Data Recovery (ADR) feature can help retrieve your data. This tool will automatically make a local backup copy of your company file. You can recover information using any of the following processes.

     

    • Original .TLG file with .QBW.adr file
    • .QBW.adr and .TLG.adr files

    Also, the ADR is only available in QuickBooks Pro, Premier, and Enterprise Solutions for Windows. When using this tool, let’s make sure to perform the resolution steps in order.


    Here's how to recover recent transactions using the original .TLG file with .QBW.adr file:

     

    1. Create a new folder on your desktop named QBTest.
    2. Open the folder where the company file is saved.
    3. Then, find the .tlg file in your company file's folder and it has the same name as your company file.
    4. If you’re unable to spot the .tlg file, follow the steps in this link and proceed to #3 in the Recover recent transactions using the original .TLG file with .QBW.adr file section.

    In regard to your other question, it’s possible your QuickBooks is damage that’s why it utilizes the QBB files. Check out this article to help resolve the issue: Fix data damage on your QuickBooks Desktop company file.


    For future reference, these links outline the complete steps on how to resolve any of the following issues.

     

    Feel free to visit the Community again if you need help when working in QuickBooks. I’ll be around to assist further. Have a good one.

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