Upgrading to 2006

You don't have a choice; you can not install Q2006 with another version of Quicken installed. Your minor option is to uninstall yourself before starting the Q2006 install, or to allow the Q2006 install process to uninstall your older version.

John:

For the sake of seamless conversion of data files, might it not be advisable to leave your current version installed, select the current Quicken folder for installation of Quicken 2006 and then let setup do the removal and conversion during setup or is that not possible with Quicken 2006? Of course, it might not make any difference; a conversion is a conversion is a conversion!:-) Once data conversion is complete and successful you can then procede with clean installs in the future using whatever current data file.

I ask this question because I've noted occasional issues with online accounts being inaccessible after data conversion to a new version of Quicken both in my own experience and seeing it come up in various forums.

There's a related support article in this regard that seems to imply the issue can be corrected by using the above method. "What if my online banking does not work after converting my data file:"

I've used this method when running into the issue myself and it seems to minimize the possibility of that happening if you follow the procedure as an upgrade path from your previous version.

I'm interested in this as well because Intuit has Sunset Q2003, my current version, and I'm currently awaiting arrival of Q2006.

Thanks.

I might be missing something, but I can't think of any meaningful difference in the two approaches.

Uninstalls/installs do not touch data files (and I keep my data files in a totally separate folder from my program files anyway). Conversion is a separate step; when the install finishes, it may ask you if you want to run Quicken but you do not have to do so in which case no conversion takes place. And if you do run Quicken, you do not have to convert your file at that time - though I don't know why you wouldn't want to.

Well, I can't argue with you there, though it has not happened to me. But I can't think of any instance when it was claimed that an uninstall/install affected a data file, before or after a conversion.

If you feel more comfortable with one approach than the other, by all means, use that approach. I have never taken a stand on it one way or the other.

And, as if it hasn't been mentioned often enough,

BACKUP YOUR OLD DATA, AND KEEP IT IN A SAFE PLACE!

Just in case.

Notan

Thanks, John.

After I posted I did begin to think it was a difference without a distinction. I'm guessing the purpose of the support article is simply a way to restore uncorrupted file in order to allow Quicken conversion to "try again.":-)

Good advice, it's always best to have a backup of your old data available in case there is some issue when you move to a new version. That's always been my policy.

Probably overkill on my part but more likely the result of my having had two hard drives fail in less than a year some years ago, I have my Quicken data backed up in four different places; a separate folder on a separate partition on my hard drive, a backup computer, an external hard drive I use for backup and backed up to DVD.