Various small and medium scale businesses use QuickBooks as their main accounting software. This is because it offers a range of benefits and features. As a result, it can create a huge problem if QuickBooks won’t open or start normally.
In such cases, the entire accounting work can come to a halt and disrupt the business. Thus, you need to fix the problem as soon as it appears on the system.
Underlying Reasons Behind QuickBooks Error
Generally, this issue is caused due to one or more than one of the following reasons.
- The company name is longer than normal.
- Company files have been damaged.
- QuickBooks’ system file QBWUSER.INI has been corrupted.
- There is a problem with the hard drive.
- QuickBooks has not been installed correctly.
- Corrupted System Files.
Effective Ways to Resolve QuickBooks Not Opening Issue
Here are the quick and easy methods to try if your QuickBooks will not open. These will help to resolve any system or software issues to fix your problem. Go through these methods one by one.
Method 1 – Run System File Checker Tool
Windows operating system has a built-in System File Checker that can automatically scan and fix corrupted system files. You can run this program by following the instructions provided below.
- Press the Windows logo button on the keyboard to open the Start Menu. Click on the text box and type ‘cmd’.
- Right-click on the Command Prompt application and choose ‘Run as Administrator’ and select Yes if prompted.
- Now, type ‘sfc /scannow’ and press Enter. The System File Checker will be launched and it will scan to detect any corrupted files. If found, it will automatically fix them.
After that, close the Command Prompt and relaunch the QuickBooks application. Check if QuickBooks application still won’t open or not.
Method 2 – Run QuickBooks Install Diagnostic Tool
Sometimes, QuickBooks won’t open if it is incorrectly installed in the system. In such cases, you can try to fix this problem by running the Install Diagnostic tool. Follow the instructions given below to run the tool.
- Open the default web browser and visit the official website of QuickBooks. Find and download the QuickBooks Install Diagnostic Tool.
- Right-click on the downloaded tool and select ‘Run as Administrator’. Next, follow the instructions as displayed on the screen.
- Close the tool once the program has finished scanning for any errors. Relaunch the Quickbooks application and check if it is running successfully.
Quick Jump: How to install Quickbooks Diagnostic tool?
Method 3 – Rename/Delete QBWUSER.INI
QuickBooks won’t open if some of its system files do not work correctly. One such important file is QBWUSER.INI. Thus, deleting this file should help to resolve the problem. Hence, go through the steps provided in the following section.
- Launch the File Explorer by pressing the Windows button along with the letter E. Thereafter, navigate to C: or the drive where Windows OS is installed.
- Next, double click on the Users account and open your user profile folder. Next, open the AppData folder.
- You have to enable ‘Show hidden files and folders’ if you cannot see this option. It can be done by clicking on the Organize menu and choosing the Folder option. Then, go to Search Options and enable the option from the View tab.
- In the AppData folder, go to the Intuit folder and open the QuickBooks directory. Here, find and delete the QBWUSER.INI file. Now, close all the windows.
Finally, relaunch the QuickBooks application to check if it is opening normally.
Method 4 – Rename .ND and .TLG files
QuickBooks uses .TLG and .ND file extensions to work with the company’s data. In some rare cases, these files can get damaged or corrupted. As a result, you will find that QuickBooks won’t open on the system.
Therefore, you can fix this problem by deleting those files. Follow the steps provided in the section below.
- Open the File Explorer by pressing the Windows logo key with the letter ‘E’. Next, head over to the directory where the company file is located.
- Here, you need to find and delete the .TLG and .ND files from the directory. It should have the same name as the company file.
- After that, close the open window and relaunch the QuickBooks application. Check if the problem has been resolved or not.
Method 5 – Change the file location
Another way to resolve QuickBooks that won’t open is by changing the company file’s location. This may be the cause of the problem due to a hardware or software issue. Thus, go through the following instructions to follow this method.
- Press the Windows logo button along with the letter ‘E’ on the keyboard. Head over to the directory where your company file is saved.
- Here, you should see your company file name with a .QBW extension. Right-click on the file and select the cut option.
- Next, move to a different drive or your desktop. Create a new folder and paste the file inside it.
- Now, press and hold the Ctrl button on the keyboard. While pressing, open the QuickBooks application. You will be presented to the ‘No company open’ window.
- Click on ‘Open or Restore an Existing Company’ and navigate to the new file location. Check if QuickBooks is still not opening or if the problem has been fixed.
Method 6 – Run QuickBooks Tools Hub
QuickBooks has a special Tools Hub program that can automatically scan and fix software problems. Therefore, you can implement this process to fix the problem by going through the following section.
- Open your default browser and go to the official website of QuickBooks. There, find and download the QuickBooks Tools Hub.
- After the file is downloaded, right-click on the tool and run it as an Administrator. Head over to Program Problems and select “Quick Fix my Problem”.
- Wait for the program to finish the scanning process. Finally, close the program and check if the problem has been resolved.
Method 7 – Reinstall QuickBooks
Finally, you can try to resolve this problem by performing a clean reinstallation. Go through the following instructions to carry out this procedure.
- Press the Windows logo button along with the letter ‘R’. Next, type ‘appwiz.cpl’ in the text bar and click on Ok.
- Now, you will see a list of all the programs that are installed in the system. Find and select the QuickBooks application from this list.
- Right-click on the program and click on Uninstall. Go through the instructions as displayed on the screen to remove the application from the system.
- After that, restart your computer. Open your default browser after the computer boots up. Head over to QuickBooks’ official website.
- Search and download the latest version of the QuickBooks software. Run the tool as an administrator and install the program in the system. Now, QuickBooks should run without any problems.
These solutions should help to resolve your issue in no time. Make sure that you follow each step carefully and correctly.