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Verify and rebuild data in QuickBooks Desktop for Mac

SOLVED•by QuickBooks•4•Updated May 04, 2023

Learn how to verify and rebuild your data in QuickBooks Desktop for Mac.

QuickBooks verify and rebuild  tools find the most common data issues in a company file and fixes them. Here’s how.

How to verify your company file data

Before you rebuild your company file, use the verify tool in QuickBooks Desktop for Mac to scan your company file for errors or data damage.

  1. Select File, then select Utilities.
  2. Select Verify Data, then select OK to close all windows. If you see “Your data has failed the integrity check” you need to rebuild your file. If there are no problems with your data, you’re done.

How to rebuild your company file data

Once you’ve verified your data, you can rebuild your company file to fix any errors or data damage that's found.

  1. Select File, then select Utilities.
  2. Select Rebuild Data, then select OK to close all windows.
  3. QuickBooks will ask to make a backup before rebuilding your company file, select OK. If you don’t want to do a backup, select Cancel to continue rebuilding your company file.
    1. If you haven’t set up any backup preferences, QuickBooks will ask you to update them. Select Backup Preferences and edit as needed, then select OK.
    2. When the backup's finished, select Show in Finder to locate the backup or select OK if you’re done.
  4. Once the rebuild's finished, select OK.

To make sure your file is free or errors or data damage, verify your company file again. If you still have errors or damage, rebuild the file again.

How to manually correct errors

If you’re comfortable fixing errors manually, you can see each error message listed in the Verify Results window along with the steps to fix it.

Before you get started, make sure to backup your company file.

Record numbers help to find errors that QuickBooks finds when you verify your company file. If your file has any errors, you’ll have a link to open your QuickBooks.log file. This file contains the list of errors in your company file.

To find your QuickBooks.log file at any time:

  1. Hold your command key, then select Go and Library.
  2. Double-click the Logs folder.
  3. Double-click the QuickBooks.log file.

From the QuickBooks.log file:

You’ll see record numbers referenced as RecNum and RefNum. These are internal record numbers used by QuickBooks. For example, if you get an error that says "Verify Employee YTD Bal : ytd out of balance. Name = Dan T. Miller. Ref = 55." The record number is 55 in this case.

  1. Select Edit, then select Find.
  2. Search for @recnum then enter the record number. For example: @recnum 55.
  3. QuickBooks will find all records containing the transaction number. Look through the results and modify or reenter the data to fix the problem. If this doesn't fix the problem, contact Intuit Support.

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