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What to do if data disappears or is missing in EasyACCT

SOLVED•by Intuit•1•Updated November 22, 2023

This article explains how computer processes may delete data files and how to restore them.

  • EasyACCT doesn't arbitrarily or periodically delete files.
  • Files must be deleted manually or the deletion may occur for reasons listed in this article.

How to protect yourself from data loss

  1. Use EasyACCT's backup utility. See How to back up and restore company data to make frequent backups.
  2. Check your antivirus settings.
  3. Avoid leaving a company file or the program open when you leave the office.

Computer processes that can delete files

Files can be deleted either manually, by automatic backup or antivirus processes, or malware.

  • Files deleted manually through Windows Explorer go to the trash folder.
  • Files deleted through other processes, such as virus scans, rarely appear in the trash folder.

Automatic server backups can put data at risk

  • Individual files within a company file aren't compressed into a single backup file unless EasyACCT's backup utility is used.
  • Accessing data remotely and leaving the company file open and/or the program open for long periods can cause data loss when server maintenance or scanning is performed.

Antivirus software can mistakenly delete files

  • EasyACCT has an automatic saving feature, which can appear to be potential virus activity to some antivirus programs.
    • If the antivirus settings are very restrictive, the software may be deleting all suspicious files.

Hazards of leaving company files open: 

  1. Always close the company file after working in it by going back to the Company Selection screen where you see all the companies.
    • EasyACCT doesn't automatically close a company file. It must be closed by going back to the homepage or company selection screen.
  2. If a company file is left in open status for a long time, there can be file loss, especially if the data is on a server.
    • Server processes—such as file copying and backup procedures or virus scans—are automatically set to perform at certain times and don't check to see if any EasyACCT company is open.
      • Servers have RAM limitations just like workstations. If a server process requires RAM to do a job, an open file may be bumped out to make room for the process.
  3. Power surges and outages are common, and can erase open files without a trace.

If chart of accounts, employees, vendors, financial statement design, or other program data are missing:

  • Try running a data file index repair
  • Restore a backup
  1. This indicates the year was closed twice (because EasyACCT only stores two years of data).
    • There's a safeguard in place to warn against closing to a future period, but it can be bypassed.
  2. During the year-end closing, prior-year transactions are deleted and current-year transactions move to the prior year.
    • When the year is closed a second time, the prior-year's transactions roll off again and you're left with no transaction files at all.
      • These deleted files are permanently deleted and aren't recoverable.
      • If the year was closed twice, the only option is to restore a backup.
  3. If you haven't created backups using EasyACCT, see Restoring the automatic backup created during conversion.
  4. If a backup can't be located, you'll have to reenter the data.

It's common practice for multiple copies of company files to be made and stored in different data paths. To retrieve data from a backup:

  1. On the company selection screen, make sure the Current Data Path is correct.
  2. Run a Data File Index Repair (DFIR) for the affected module.
    • For example, for a missing chart of accounts, use the DFIR in write-up. Or, for missing employees, run a DFIR in batch payroll.
    • Make sure the correct year-end dates are in Company Information.
      • Manually changing the dates or closing the year will affect viewable data.
  3. Restore backups to a new location and then copy missing files to the current location. There are two ways to do this:
    1. Use theCompany Wizard to copy the data back into the working copy of the company. (This is the easiest method.)
    2. Use Windows Explorer (see steps below).
      • Restoring a backup to the same data path overwrites the current copy of the company. Be sure to restore to a different data path.
  4. The last option is to manually reenter the data.
  1. On the Company Selection Screen, make sure the Current Data Path and the company's 3 digit ID are correct.
  2. To determine the type of data that is missing and which files need to be copied, refer to the list of EasyACCT data files.
  3. Right-click on the Windows Start button and select Search.
  4. In the search field, enter one of the filenames (for example, GENLED.001) and press Enter.
    • Search the computer (not just a single drive).
  5. If multiple files are returned, determine the most recent file by looking at the last modified date.
  6. Right-click on the file and select Copy.
    • Don't copy files ending in x (such as genledx.001). These are index files. A data file doesn't have an x.
  7. Right-click on Windows Start again and select File Explorer.
  8. Browse to the folder identified as the current data path in step 1.
  9. Right-click on the folder and select Paste.
  10. Repeat steps 3-9 if there are multiple missing files.
  11. Open EasyACCT, open the company, and go to Data File Utilities > Data File Index Repair in the affected module.
  12. Make sure the missing data has been restored.

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