QuickBooks Won’t Open: Know How to Fix

Why Does the “QuickBooks Won’t Open” Error Occurs?
There are many reasons why QuickBooks might not open correctly such as a corrupt hard disk, missing or damaged QBWUSER.INI file, outdated operating system, and more. You can repair the error by performing a clean installation of QuickBooks. Alternatively, you can download QuickBooks Tool Hub to run QB Install Diagnostic Tool and Quick Fix my Program to fix it.



Error: QuickBooks Won’t Open the error  
Error message: QuickBooks already has a company file open. If you want to open another company file, close this one first.

Only QuickBooks Accountant and QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions can open two company files at once.

Sometimes, QuickBooks just crashes without any reason, or QuickBooks won’t open. Such scenarios cause a lot of frustration for the user. Also, they are hard to fix as the underlying problem becomes difficult to configure. In this article, we will explore a few methods that can resolve this error. We will start with terminating the process, scanning the computer, creating a new admin user, and reinstalling the software.

Causes of QuickBooks Won’t Open

QuickBooks Desktop won’t start for various reasons and they are mentioned below.

• If the company files get damaged or corrupted.
• Already open a company file on a different system using a multi-user network.
• Outdated version of QuickBooks software.
• The company name is very long.
• Using incorrect methods to open a company file.
• Maybe the hard drive is corrupted.

Symptoms of QuickBooks Won’t Open

• The software window seems to freeze.
• There seems to be a problem opening the QuickBooks company file.
• Windows are running slowly
• The computer hangs every now and then, it can be difficult to work smoothly.
• Computers respond very slowly to both keyboard and mouse.

Note: Sometimes, when you keep clicking on the QuickBooks icon over and over again, it can prevent the software from opening up fully. It’s important to give yourself a little break and wait for a few moments before trying to open QuickBooks again. Don’t click too often or you will most likely send multiple requests at once.

System Requirements to avoid QuickBooks Won’t Open

One of the most important things to do before you start using QuickBooks is to check its system requirements.

We have provided the required information so that you can verify that the computer software, hardware, and operating system meet the system requirements for your QuickBooks Accounting Software.

Precautions to take before Resolutions QuickBooks Won’t Open

You should try the following things before moving on with the fix.

• We recommend that you update the software to the latest version.
• In order to fix this, we have to switch off the hosting on the system.
• Ensure to Suppress the QuickBooks Desktop software
• Rename the .TLG and .ND files
• Repair the QuickBooks Desktop
• The software is installed on your PC.

QuickBooks Won’t Open, Terminating the process

The first thing you can try is to change the name of your company file and keep it shorter than 65 letters (no special letters). Below are some other resolutions you can try if you encounter difficulty opening QuickBooks.

• Scanning for malicious programs
• Folder Permissions
• QuickBooks File Doctor
• Repairing QuickBooks
• Reinstalling the software

Sometimes multiple instances of the software are fired up at once. This can create an error due to which QuickBooks won’t open.

This will close all services related to QuickBooks. Check if the software works or not.

• Right-click on the taskbar.
• Select Task manager.
• Open the Processes Tab.
• Right-click on any QB process.
• Click on End Process Tree.
• Select again on End Process Tree on the confirmation box.

To fix Quickbooks won’t open error, follow the steps provided below:

Method 1: Scanning for malicious programs

Malicious programs such as malware, ransomware, and the virus can often interfere with the working of QB, and users will QuickBooks won’t open errors. It is important to remove such programs. Luckily, many security software is available in the market which can do this for you. Also, various options are available on the market. After downloading and installing the security software, run a full system scan. Once the scan is finished, remove all infected files. Restart your computer and check whether QB works or not.

Method 2: Folder Permissions

Folders also have settings in windows. You can edit these settings by right-clicking on the folder and selecting properties. These settings can influence the way in which QB reads the company file.

Follow the steps provided below to check if there are problems with folder permissions:

• Go to the folder in which the company file is stored.
• Right-click on that folder.
• Click on properties.
• Make sure that the checkbox against Read Only is unchecked.
• Click on Apply and Save.
• Reopen QB.

Method 3: QuickBooks File Doctor

This tool is offered for free by Intuit. With this tool, users can scan for network and company file errors. Download the tool from this link and install it on your system. After installing, open QB file doctor and select the company files you want to scan. Fix all the problems found by the tool and restart QB.

Read Quickbooks file doctor won’t open

Method 4: Repairing QuickBooks

For repairing QB, users can follow the steps provided below:

• Log into a user account with Administrative Privileges
• Select Programs and Features
• Select QuickBooks
• In the options provided above click Repair
• Follow the installation wizard for repairing the software
• Restart your computer

Method 5: Reinstalling the software

If everything else fails then you must reinstall the software. For doing so, go back to programs and features and click on uninstall instead of repair. Restart your computer and reinstall the entire software.

QuickBooks won’t open or doesn’t start, what should you do?

There are a few different things you can try when QuickBooks won’t open. Namely, renaming your company file and keeping it under 65 characters with no special characters. Here are some ideas of what else you can do.

#1: Close the running process named “QBW32.exe”.

• Right-click on the windows taskbar in the operating system, then select the “Start Task Manager” option.
• Now go to the “Process” tab at the top and click on the “Image Name” header so as to see all your processes in alphabetical order.
• Find “EXE” and then select it.
• When you’re done with the process, click on “End Process” to close the “EXE process” program.

#2: Change the Name of the QBWUSER.ini. file

• If you’re having trouble accessing the ini file, there are a couple of steps you can try. First, enable hidden folders and files temporarily, and then try again. You may be able to see a new folder within the ini folder where ini is located that has .ini associated with it.
• After locating the folder, click on the “QBWUSER.ini.file” and then select the “Rename” option.
• After this type “Insert.old” at the end of the file name
• Let’s rename the “ecml.file” file to something else so that QuickBooks isn’t confused. If it works when you rename the file, then we know that the issue is solved.

#3: Press QuickBooks Desktop Installation

• To access QuickBooks Desktop (which is the standard version of QuickBooks): First, right-click on the QuickBooks Desktop icon.
• Press on the “CTRL key” and then select “Open.” Hold the “CTRL key” on “No Company Open” until you have opened the window.
• Now open the QuickBooks Desktop application.

#4: Repair the installation of QuickBooks if it’s done incorrectly

• Firstly, right-click “Windows Taskbar”.
• Then choose the “Task Manager” option
• After this, click on the Process tab.
• Right-Click on any of the “QuickBooks processes“
• The next step is clicking on “End Process.”
• You will get a confirmation process and after that, go to the “end all processes” button.
• Try restarting QuickBooks again
• Now Just click the “Repair QuickBooks” button.

#5: Create a new user in Windows as an administrator

• First, click on the “Control Panel” in order to get started. From here you will be able to navigate through it.
• Click the “User Account” tab then click the “Manage Users” tab, and finally, click “Add New User“.
• When you’re done, enter the name as well as the domain of the administrator.
• Then, click ‘Ok‘.
• If using Windows 10, then click “Administrator“.
• After this, click “Finish,” and then “User Accounts” will appear.
• Now hit “OK.”

#6: Restart the desktop

• Open the “Start menu” on your computer by clicking on the Start button in the bottom-left corner.
• Please click on the “Power Button” and then select the “Restart” option.
• Open QuickBooks Desktop after restarting.

#7: Do a clean installation of QuickBooks

First, uninstall the QuickBooks software. After it’s uninstalled, reinstall it using a clean install and then create a new installation folder for your small business. Rename the installation folders.

#8: Use the Quick Fix My Program tool

• With the newly released tool hub, users can quickly download and install new tools according to their needs.
• After that, you’ll need to save your file somewhere before it is accessed easily.
• When the installation is finished, open the QuickBooks tool hub by double-clicking on the icon in your taskbar.
• Under the program problems tab, you’ll find the Quick Fix my program tool. Just run it
• After you complete this session, make sure to run QuickBooks again and check to see if the issue was resolved.

#9: Access the company file from a different location

• The first step is to press the Windows + E command to open File Explorer. This will open up Windows Explorer.
• After that, you should look for the file with the qbw file extension.
• To find a file location on a network server, open the Network drive on which the file is located.
• Right-click the file and click “copy.”
• After that Search for the path to your C: drive and then create a new folder inside it and Rename it as “QbTest“.
• Open the folder and paste the company file into it
• Open up QuickBooks while holding the ctrl key and access the company file that you copied.

#10: Run the QuickBooks install diagnostic tool

• The first step here is to open the QuickBooks tool hub and then select installation issues.
• Also, select QuickBooks to install the diagnostic tool
• Use the tool and let it run a full scan
• Once the tool identifies the issue, it will automatically perform the necessary steps to rectify the issue.
• This process could take time
• After that, restart the system to save changes and also Check to see if the issue has been resolved.

If you get stuck anywhere in the process, feel free to get in touch with QuickBooks experts, Which are available 24/7 CALL NOW.

See Also: Get Help to Open .qbw File without QuickBooks

FAQ

what do i do when quickbooks won’t open?

When quickbooks won’t open, then the user must follow the below instructions;

1. Restart your computer and try opening QuickBooks again. Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve the issue.
2. Check that your computer meets the minimum system requirements for QuickBooks.
3. Make sure that your QuickBooks software is up to date. You can check for updates in the “Help” menu in QuickBooks.
4. Run the QuickBooks Install Diagnostic Tool. This tool can help fix issues that are preventing QuickBooks from opening.
5. Try opening QuickBooks in Safe Mode. This will open QuickBooks with a minimal set of drivers and services.
6. Reinstall QuickBooks.

Why won’t my quickbooks open?

1. Check if your computer meets the system requirements for QuickBooks. QuickBooks may not run on older or unsupported versions of Windows or macOS.
2. Restart your computer and try opening QuickBooks again.
3. Check if QuickBooks is running in the background.
4. Update QuickBooks to the latest version.
5. Run the QuickBooks Install Diagnostic Tool.
6. Uninstall and reinstall QuickBooks.