QuickBooks Desktop overview
Summary view of the QuickBooks Desktop connection flow and available support
Your financial institution has requested to view, create or modify your business's financial data via your QuickBooks Desktop account. This is needed to deliver financial services to you. You will follow a secure connection flow to establish a digital link to your QuickBooks Desktop account.
Check your software plan or version
If you need to check the plan or version of the accounting software you are using, follow these steps in QuickBooks Desktop:
- Launch the QuickBooks Desktop application.
- While in QBD, press the F2 key on your keyboard.
- In the Product Information window, check:
- The end of the product name to determine the software release.
- The Versions Used on File section to determine the software version.
You can also check your software version by logging into the Intuit Account Manager. Use your QBD credentials and select Products & billing in the sidebar to view subscription and version details.
Supported access options
At the start of the connection flow, choose the way you access your QuickBooks Desktop software. We need this information to customize the subsequent steps of the flow. There are four options to choose from.
| # | Option | Guidance |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | QuickBooks Desktop app | Choose this option if your QBD app is installed on your physical machine and can be accessed without Internet. To check, navigate to Start > Settings > Apps on your machine and search for QuickBooks Desktop. |
| 2 | QuickBooks Enterprise with Cloud | With this option, you can access your enterprise version of QuickBooks from any machine with an active Internet connection. |
| 3 | Rightworks | This option applies if you login to a remote desktop connection first, and then open the QuickBooks Desktop app as a second step. |
| 4 | Another hosting provider | Choose this option if none of the above apply. The connection may not work as expected because this is an unsupported access option. |
Prerequisites
Review the guidelines below to prepare for data streaming and ensure a smooth and successful setup.
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Check admin access and permissions
To successfully establish a connection, you must:
- Be a QuickBooks Desktop administrator or have access to administrator credentials.
- Have permission to install and run applications as an administrator on your computer.
- Have access to the machine where QuickBooks Desktop is accessed.
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Choose a low-activity time
We recommend starting the connection journey during a lower workload period (for example, end of day). To complete the installation of the connector, you will need to place QuickBooks in Single User mode. This makes QBD largely inaccessible to other users.
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Verify your QuickBooks Desktop company file
Ensure that your QuickBooks file is healthy prior to install of the Web Connector. To do so, open your QuickBooks Desktop company file, then navigate to File > Utilities > Verify Data. The length of this porcess depends on how much data you have. The verification process places QBD in Single User mode, so schedule this step for a time that’s most convenient for you.
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Expect performance delays
QuickBooks Desktop is a locally installed application, not cloud-based. This means temporary freezing or slowness during the data sync are expected, because the machine will be busy accessing large amounts of data.
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Keep your system awake
For data sharing to complete successfully, the Web Connector needs to remain open and your machine needs to be awake. Closing the Web Connector or shutting down your system during the syncing process will prevent your data from being synced.
To prevent Windows from entering sleep mode, open Settings, then navigate to System > Power & sleep. Under Sleep, set When plugged in, PC goes to sleep after > Never. Keep your machine plugged in.
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Back up your QBD data
If you are using third party software to work with QuickBooks Desktop, such as Rightworks, request your service provider to make a backup of your data or initiate a data backup yourself.
Support articles
For key steps of our QuickBooks Desktop flow and associated troubleshooting, we provide dedicated support guides:
Interactive walkthrough
Alternatively, follow our walkthrough below to see each step in practice. Click the pulsing dot to begin.