888-316-6672  |   999 N Plaza Dr STE 280 Schaumburg, IL 60173  |  info@dlaexperts.com

Logo
DL & Associates logo

Technical Blog

Create or restore backup files in QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale

Learn how to create, restore, and test a backup file in QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale.

Important:

To protect your file from data loss, it is necessary to create a backup copy of your company file in QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale BEFORE performing either one of the following:

  • Uninstalling the software
  • Importing data
  • Transferring the software to another computer

Create a backup

  1. From the File menu, select Back Up Data.
  2. Specify the backup location:
    1. To back up to the default folder on the local hard drive, select Default Location.
    2. To back up to a network drive or removable media, select Specify Alternate Location and enter the path or browse to the backup location and enter a file name.
  3. Click Backup then Finish.

Restore a backup

A backup of your company data is a compressed copy of your data placed in a location outside the company data folder. Since the file is compressed, it cannot be opened in the same way that a company file is opened. Before this data can be opened in QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale, it must be decompressed through the Restore function.

  1. From the File menu, select Company Operations.
    1. In the Start Company window, click the Restore from Backup radio button then click Next.
    2. Specify the location you wish to restore from:
      1. To restore from the default folder on the local hard drive, select Restore from default backups and select a backup file from the list displayed.
      2. To restore from a network drive or removable media, select Browse to alternate backup file and enter the path or browse to the location of the backup file.
    3. Click Next then Close.

QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale will uncompressed and copy the backup files into your working directory. You will be prompted to insert sequential restore disks if required.

Test the backup and restore functions

  1. Follow the steps in creating a backup copy of your company file.
  2. Create a new customer in your data file using a fictitious name such as John Doe.
  3. From the File menu, click Restore Backup File.
  4. Select the backup created in step 1. Identify the correct backup by the date and time.
  5. Click OK, enter YES to confirm then click OK 
  6. Click OK when the restore process completes.
  7. Locate the customer you created in step 2.

If the customer name created cannot be found in this file, it confirms that the backup and restore processes are functioning as designed since the customer was created after the backup was created.

To locate your company data file:

Point of Sale saves all working files at a default location. This can NOT be changed.

The file is located in: C:\Users\Public\Documents\Intuit\QuickBooks Point of Sale (x.0)\Data\[company name]\qbpos

Note: (x.0) designates the Point of Sale Version. (e.g. 18.0 for QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale 18.0)

  • In some cases, the file might have been saved or moved to a hidden folder. You may need to display hidden files and folders.
  • To find the file using the extension name, you can use the search function in Windows, search for the full company data file name or enter *(asterisk) followed by the extension name.
    • POS company file – qbpos.db
    • POS backup File – [Date Created].qpb
    • Store Exchange mailbag – .qbt

For QuickBooks Point of sale V12, V18, and V19 support, please contact our team at DL & Associates at 888-316-6672 or info@dlaexperts.com