Quicken Deluxe 2009 Will Not Launch

Attempted an upgrade from Quicken 2008 to Quicken 2009 via the download. The installation went without any error messages, however, when I attempt to launch it, the splash screen shows for about a second and then nothing. If I watch the Windows Task Manager screen, Quicken never shows up as an application. Have contacted Quicken help and opened a case # 080903-000618 with them, after working with them for 1.5-2 hours, they finally said it must be a Microsoft problem. So I have a case open with Microsoft and they had me try it with a clean boot (no system services), same problem. I also tried it on another computer and same thing happens. My OS is WinXP with service pack 2 installed. I've gone back to using Quicken 2008 which works fine, waiting for either Microsoft or Quicken to figure out what is wrong. My feeling is that it is a Quicken problem. Has anyone else seen this and if so, how did you fix it???

Reply to
Patrick Markovic
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Not that this is any real suggestion, but SP 3 (not SP 2) is current for XP. Maybe you might try bringing your OS up to the latest level?

Reply to
Andrew

I had similar problems with Q-2006, and Q-2007 after failures with adding online accounts. I spent hours on the phone with Quicken support, but they never were able to fix the problem. I finally came up with a solution, and it has worked each time I've seen the problem.

I deleted the entire "C:\documents and settings\all users\application data\Intuit\Quicken" directory, then did a repair installation of Quicken. That recreated the directory without whatever file was damaged. This directory contains many of the temporary Quicken files. If you are afraid to delete it, just rename it to Quicken_old.

Apparently something in a failed update caused an inconsistency in one of these files. That in turn caused Quicken to crash instantly upon opening my data file.

It may not fix your problem, but it has never caused me any harm or data loss, and it has resolved the problem every time. I have seen the problem several times, on two different computers.

Hope this helps...

-- Jim

Reply to
JimH

Another thing to try is to hold the CNTL key while clicking on the Quicken icon. That will open the program without opening your data file. If it works, you can the use the file menu to open the data file. If that crashes the program, then you might be able to use a backup copy of the file, or validate the data file with Q-2008 to repair any problem with it.

-- Jim

Reply to
JimH

Anything in the event logs?

Reply to
Hank Arnold (MVP)

Jim --

Thanks for your suggestion, however, it did not work. I had completely removed the "C:\documents and settings\all users\application data\Intuit\Quicken" and de-installed Quicken. Then re-installed Quicken 2009, only the splash screen shows. Also attempted to launch it by holding down the CNTRL key, same results. Nothing shows up in the event log. Still waiting for more information from Microsoft or Quicken.

Pat

...

Reply to
Patrick Markovic

Did you install by right-clicking "install.exe" then left-clicking "Run as", then left-clicking "Administrator"?

Reply to
John Pollard

Sorry, didn't pay attention that you downloaded the product. The name of the install file would probably not be "install.exe" then. My downloaded installation program is named "DynamiteMR_QW09RPM.exe" (the RPM is because I have Rental Property Manager; those letters would be different if you don't have RPM).

Reply to
John Pollard

I have had the same experience upgrading from 2007 to Quicken Deluxe 2009. The first time everything seemed to be working fine with importing and converting my data files, but after I closed it said that the backup did not complete successfully. Didn't think much of it at the time, but the next time I entered Quicken 2009, it prompted for me to find a file of restore a backup. I went through that process again and then the program would just start to close every time I tried to open a data file. I spent a long time on the phone with India yesterday with no solutions. They tried to tell me it was my system and we kept going backwards in time with my backup files. unfortunately I feel as if all my backup files are corrupted at this point.

Today I spent hours on my problem. First I uninstalled ALL Quicken files according to the Quicken support site using QcleanUI.exe . After removing all signs of Quicken from my system I decided it would just be easier to start over again with a fresh data file. After spending hours creating new Quicken data, I backed up the info and exited the program. The next time I tried to open data, I got the prompt screen again telling me to open a file or restore a backup. I tried to open the data file I had just recreated and the Quicken screen flashed for a second and then disappeared. This has been a disaster and I don't even know what to do from here.

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Reply to
Barauskas

Hi Patrick,

I also downloaded Quicken Deluxe 2009 version and installed it in Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 3 without any problems.

How I did it?

I downloaded Quicken Deluxe 2009. I uninstalled Quicken 2006 Deluxe. Rebooted the computer. Next I used Explore to delete all my files and sub-folders of my \Temp Folders. I also deleted \Program Files\Quicken folder and its sub-folder. Then I ran Disk Cleanup. Finally I rebooted and I then install Quicken Deluxe 2009. I had no problems.

Of course, I have done it, three times already on my two computers and each time, I did it, worked fine. And my computer did not need to be defragged, because it already had been.

Bottom Line: You need to empty your \Temp Folders and delete the Quicken Folder in Program Files for it to work correctly.

If you don't delete \Program Files\Quicken folder, it will probably crash on you, after a reboot, after you uninstall Quicken Deluxe 2008.

Reply to
thecreator

I'm a bit dubious that this is really a requirement. With all the beta testing and the market share of Q, I would really expect more than a couple of problems reported. Q users have never been reluctant to report problems... ;-)

I'm leaning more to some hardware/software interaction causing the problem. I've upgraded Q in place just about every year for 10+ years with absolutely no problems...

Could the OP post any errors in the event logs?

Reply to
Hank Arnold (MVP)

It sounds like you may be experiencing an "access" problem; that Quicken can't access your file.

What o.s.?

When you installed, did you "Run as" "Administrator"?

What is the fully qualified name of your Quicken data file (the one whose extension is QDF).

Reply to
John Pollard

Just followed your suggestion with the same results. One thing I noticed, when I reinstalled Quicken, it by default went into the C:\Program Files\Quicken folder and not in the C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Intuit\Quicken folder. Has anyone else noticed this and could this be a problem? The icon on the desktop does point correctly to the program files folder.

Barauskas wrote: ....

Reply to
Patrick Markovic

I am using Windows XP Home edition Version 2002 Service Pack 3

I did not install using "run as administrator".

The full name of my 2007 .QDF file was "BARAUSKAS FINANCES.QDF" The name of the 2009 new data file that I created was "Quicken Barauskas Family.QDF"

I spent more time with Quicken tech support last night. They allowed me to download Quicken 2007 Premier and go back to my old files, but now Quicken 2007 Premier does the same thing 2009 was doing. 2007 Premier opened my old file the first time I accessed it, but after a close and reopen the program just flickered and dissappeared seconds after opening.

Now they are telling me I have an operating system problem or that there is something wrong with my computer. I quickly pointed out that I had a very stable computer until I tried to upgrade to Quicken 2009 Deluxe and that now I can't access about 10 years worth of valuable personal information because of this upgrade.

Tech support kept focusing on where I was storing my information (drives). I keep my Windows fles on my C: drive. I install my programs on my D: drive (main internal hard drive partitioned into C&D). I store my data files on my secondary internal hard drive G:. We tried moving Quicken data files to C & D drives but got the same results.

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Reply to
Barauskas

When you reinstall, I suggest you do that.

[Before reinstalling, I would manually remove all folders with Quicken in their name, paying particular attention to those found in the Documents and Settings, and WINDOWS, folders. (Naturally not the folder where your Quicken data is kept, if that should have the word Quicken in its name.)]

By "fully qualified", I meant for you to include the full Windows path to the file.

To rule out the possibility that your folder or file name are involved in the problem:

I would create a new Windows folder with a full path name less than 33 characters, with no special characters, and no spaces (a folder directly under the root folder is preferable, and easier to keep the name short for). I would use Windows Explorer to copy my current Quicken data fileset into the new folder. Then I would change the Quicken data fileset name to something less than 8 characters, with no special characters or spaces, and not ending in a digit.

[You can rename the files in the Quicken data fileset using Windows Explorer (emphasis on the word "files" as there are multiple files that comprise your Quicken data: QDATA.*, where QDATA is the name of your Quicken data). I believe you'll have to rename each file in the fileset individually.]
Reply to
John Pollard

Hi, Barauskas.

As John said, Quicken should work much better with a shorter filename for your data fileset.

Quicken was designed back in the pre-Windows days of MS-DOS when computer resources were much more scarce and dear. Filenames (and foldernames) were limited to no more than 8 characters, plus, optionally, an extension of no more than 3. Those usable characters were limited to digits and English-alphabet letters, plus a very few "special characters" (- and _ and not much else). NO spaces. The period could be used only to separate the filename from the extension.

Later operating systems liberalized file naming rules to what we have today. But, internally, Windows almost always still uses good old "8.3" filenames. If you'd like to see what I mean, open a Command Prompt window (Start | All Programs | Accessories | Command Prompt) and type: Dir /x

This will produce a listing of all the files and folders in whichever folder you are looking at. But the /x switch will also produce an extra column, before the filename column, showing the 8.3 filename for each file or folder that has a name that doesn't conform to the old 8.3 rules. We call these Short File Names (SFN) and Long File Names (LFN), although the rules often require a SFN to be created for an "LFN" that is only a few characters. For example, if you abbreviated your QDF filename to "Bar Fin.QDF", you would see that name in both Windows Explorer and the Command Prompt window. But if you use the /x switch in the Command Prompt window, you would see that the system has created the SFN "BARFIN~1.QDF" for it, discarding the space (an illegal character) and adding the "~1" to indicate that this is the first "BARFIN" resulting from such change.

For your "BARAUSKAS FINANCES.QDF" filename, the SFN is "BARAUS~1.QDF". This uses the first 6 characters of your LFN, leaving 2 places available to add the "~1". If you had a second .QDF file starting with BARAUS (BARAUSKAS History.QDF, for example), it would become "BARAUS~2.QDF".

This lengthy explanation is only the beginning of these file naming rules, but it ought to illustrate why we recommend that you use a QDF filename with no more than 7 (or 6) characters, and with no spaces or other special characters. If you look in your \BACKUP subfolder (yes, the name is in ALL CAPS), you should see several (five, by default) generations of backups of your fileset. They should be dated a week apart, and their names will probably be "BARAUSK1.*" through "BARAUSK5.*. In other words, Quicken shortens your fileset's filename to no more than 7 characters and adds a single digit to indicate how recent the backup is. We recommend NOT using a digit as the final character of your filename because it invites confusion when Quicken adds another digit.

And a "fully qualified filename" would include the full path, such as: "C:\Program Files\Quicken\BARAUSKAS FINANCES.QDF"

RC

Reply to
R. C. White

Thank you R.C White & John Pollard!!!!

I applied all of your suggestions and I am back up and running now in Quicken Deluxe 2009. I did the following:

1) Cleaned up previous versions using qcleanui.exe (all versions) 2) ran msicuu2.exe just to make sure program wasn't still lingering 3) removed all Quicken files from my C: D: & G: drives 4) emptied recycle bin 5) restarted computer 6) created a windows folder on my C: drive called C:QUICKENDATA 7) moved my 2007 Quicken files into C:QUICKENDATA 8) renamed all quicken data files AJBDATA.qdf, etc 9) installed Quicken Deluxe 2009 in C:Program Files/Quicken 10) opened Quicken Deluxe 2009 and opened my data file "AJBDATA.qdf" 11) it converted my data and has been ok ever since (I have opened and closed Quicken several times and made a backup file without a problem)

More than likely it was my data file names (even though I have used the same name for many many years) and the location of the Quicken files.

Thank you all so very much for saving such important data!

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Reply to
Barauskas

Glad you got it working.

Just curious: did you run the install as "administrator"?

Reply to
John Pollard

Hi, Barauskas.

You're welcome. I'm glad you got it going. And thanks for the feedback. ; Thank you R.C White & John Pollard!!!!

Reply to
R. C. White

John-

I tried "Run As" but when I got to that screen I chose "current user" (which was me). I didn't feel good about getting into the other password situation. I did not see administrator in the drop-down box.

It seems that I was stuck in my old ways by trying to seperate windows files/program files/data files on seperate drives or partitions. It's just the way I've done things for years. Teaching an old dog new tricks!

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Reply to
Barauskas

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