July 2017 Tip-Making backups in QuickBooks desktop

It’s important to make sure that your company’s financial data is backed up regularly.  Fortunately, QuickBooks makes it easy to see when the last backup was done and to schedule future backups.

When was the last time my QuickBooks data was backed up?  Go to the Home page and look at the right side of the screen in the box titled Backup Status.  This will show the date and time of the last local backup.  If it’s been a long time since your last backup or you’ve worked in your QuickBooks company a lot since the last backup, it’s time to do it now!

How do I schedule backups?  Click on File at the top of the screen then go to Back Up Company then Create Local Backup.  To schedule future backups, choose to save a Local Backup, click Next, then Only Schedule Future Backups.  Once you click next, you can pick how often you want to backup your file either based on how often you close your file or based on a schedule.  Click the options button in the Create Backup box to tell QuickBooks where to save your backup files and to tell it to perform a complete verification when backing up.  It’s recommended that backups not be saved on your local hard drive but instead to some type of portable media such as an external hard drive or cloud drive.

How do I create a one-time backup?  Click on File at the top of the screen then go to Back Up Company then Create Local Backup. To create a one-time backup, choose to save to a Local Backup, click Next, then Save It Now.  When you click Next again, you are able to navigate to where you want to save the backup.  Again, it’s recommended that backups not be saved on your local hard drive but instead to some type of portable media such as an external hard drive or cloud drive.  Choose your location, click Save, then you’re ready to go!