You have your QB company file open and ready to stop for the day. It’s time to backup!
The QuickBooks backup process compresses data. The backup file will have the same filename as the company data file (unless you rename it), but it will have a.qbb filename extension, rather than a .qbw extension. A backup file must be restored before it can be opened.
Note: You need to be in Single-user Mode to use the back up feature.
To back up a company data file:
For our example we will be backing up across a network to a specific folder
- From the QuickBooks File menu, choose Save Copy or Backup Company and select Create Local Backup.
- In the Do you want to save your backup copy locally or online? select Local backup and click Options.
- Click browse and locate the QB backup folder. For our example, we will choose the mapped drive of “Q”. Click OK and OK again. Click NEXT
- When do you want to save your backup copy? window will open, select Save it now and Finish
You only have to follow the example above the first time. After that, you will simply complete steps 1 and click finish. If you have multiple companies, you will need to complete the steps for each company.
Note: Memory sticks or flash drives are not recommended for backing up files directly from QuickBooks. If the memory stick is a mapped drive (has a drive letter assigned to it), you should see that option when saving. If not, backup the file to your hard drive and copy the file onto your memory stick.
Important: In addition to your regular backup routine, we recommend that you make two separate year-end backup copies of your data using reliable backup media (for example, CDs), and label them with the year. Keep these year-end backups separate from your daily backup media and protect them from heat, magnets, and other hazards (as with all backup media). We recommend keeping one year-end backup copy at your place of business, and storing the other off-site.
