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Update QuickBooks Desktop to the latest release

by Intuit•360• Updated about 5 hours ago

Learn how to keep QuickBooks up-to-date so you have the latest features and product improvements.

QuickBooks automatically downloads and installs the latest updates when they're available. You can also run the update manually yourself.

This is different than updating your company file after you switch to a newer version or edition of QuickBooks Desktop.

Here's a quick video that shows you how to update within QuickBooks.

To watch more how-to videos, visit our video section.

To update your server Manager, check out Install, Update, and Set up the QuickBooks Database Server Manager.

Check to see if you have the latest release

  1. Open QuickBooks Desktop.
  2. Press F2 (or Ctrl+1) to open the Product Information window.
  3. Check your current version and release.
    prodInfo_QBDT_US_Ext_092722.png

See if you have the latest release available for your QuickBooks Desktop version:

Install the update

QuickBooks will automatically download updates when they're available. When the update is downloaded, you'll see Update available on the status bar in the top right corner. The next step is to install the update. The update will install automatically if you close the product and keep the system/PC switched on. Here's how you can manually install the update:

  1. Select Update available then select Install now to install the update.
  2.  Sit back and relax while the update is getting installed. It might take a while for the update to be installed.
  3. Open QuickBooks once the update is installed.

If you have a Payroll subscription, download the latest payroll tax table so you can process payroll in QuickBooks. Keep in mind, your Payroll subscription must be active.

You can also download specific updates directly from our website.

  1. Go to the Downloads & Updates page and select the standard setup. 
  2. From Select Country, select your country.
  3. From Select Product, select your product.
  4. From Select Version, select your version (year).
  5. Select Search.
  6. Select Get the latest updates. When the download finishes, open the file to install the update.
  7. When the install finishes, follow the on-screen instructions.

Tip: Get just the critical fixes. Ultra-Light Patches (ULIP) let you download specific, minor critical fixes instead of the entire update. The patch release process will continue as is. Select Critical Fixes from the list as you download the updates.

When the download finishes, open the file to install the update. After the install, restart your computer.

To manually install updates across your network, access the install file on your computer from another computer. Or, copy it to a flash drive and move it to other computers.

Unable to install the update

Sometimes, an update won’t advance to the next release number. Or you may encounter an error during the update installation. Here's how you can fix these issues. 

Solution 1: Download the update again

Repeat these steps a couple of times to see if the release number advances. 

  1. Go to Help and select Update QuickBooks Desktop.
  2. Select Update Now, then Get Updates.
  3. Close and reopen QuickBooks to install the update again.

If the release number doesn’t advance, try Solution 2. 

Solution 2: End task on the following processes

  1. Close QuickBooks.
  2. Right-click on the taskbar, then select Task Manager.
  3. Under the details tab, look for the following background processes to select and End task for each.
    1. QBW32.exe or QBW.exe
    2. QBCFMonitorService.exe
    3. qbupdate.exe
    4. QBDBMgr.exe or QBDBMgrN.exe
    5. QBMapi32.exe
  4. Right-click on the QuickBooks shortcut and select Run as administrator.
  5. Run the update again.

Check to see if you have the latest release

  1. Open QuickBooks Desktop for Mac.
  2. Press Command + 1 to open the Product Information window.
  3. Check your current version and release.releaseInfo_QBMac_US_Ext_092722.png

The current release can be found in the release notes for each version of QuickBooks Desktop for Mac:

Update manually

  1. Go to the QuickBooks menu and select Check for QuickBooks Updates.
  2. Select Install and Relaunch.
    verstionInstall_QBMac_US_Ext_092722.png

Note: To make sure updates automatically install in the future, select Automatically download and install updates in the future.

Unable to install the update

Sometimes, an update won’t advance to the next release number. Or you may encounter an error during the update installation. Here's how you can fix these issues. 

Solution 1: Download the update again

Repeat these steps a couple of times to see if the release number advances. 

  1. Open the QuickBooks menu, then select Check for QuickBooks Updates.
  2. Select Install and Relaunch.

If the release number doesn’t advance, try Solution 2. 

Solution 2: Get updates from our download site

  1. Go to the Downloads & Updates page and select the standard setup. 
  2. From the Select Country dropdown, select your country.
  3. From the Select Product dropdown, select your product.
  4. From the Select Version dropdown, select your version (year).
  5. Select Search.
  6. Select Get the latest updates.
  7. When the download finishes, open the file to install the update. After the install, restart your computer.
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