Invoice Attachments open as "download file" not as "view image"

Hello, Steph.

I can share some information about viewing attachments in QuickBooks Online (QBO).

The error you're having upon viewing the attachment can be caused by the piled-up cache in your regular browser. A browser's cache stores temporary internet files from your browsing history. However, as it collects too many files, this may cause performance issues in your account.

Try using a private browser when viewing your attachments. If it works, proceed and clear the cache in the one that you're currently using. This helps isolate the issue since it doesn’t store data in the cache. Here are the following keyboard shortcuts: 

• Safari: Command + Shift + N
• Mozilla Firefox: CTRL + Shift + P
• Google Chrome: CTRL + Shift + N
• Microsoft Edge: CTRL + Shift + P

If it works, here's how to clear cache and cookies to fix issues when using QuickBooks Online. Restart your browser right after. You can also try to log in to your account using other supported browsers (Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari, Microsoft Edge) if the steps above didn’t work.

Here's more information on how to edit and remove attachments from your invoices or other transactions in QBO: Add or delete attachments in QuickBooks Online. 

I'm always here if you need more help with your invoice attachments, or anything else. Let me know by leaving a reply below. Have a great rest of the day!

Hi, MaryJoyD,

I didn't mention it in my note earlier, but I had cleared all of my caches and cookies; I had closed all of my chrome windows; I had rebooted my computer.

I just now tried using Microsoft Edge to open QBO and view the invoice attachments (which are .jpeg files) and I got the same offer to download the attachment rather than just viewing the attachment.

I have also tried right-clicking on the attachment to open it in a new browser tab and it re-loads the entire invoice in the new tab and does not open the attachment.  

Clearly something has changed about how QBO handles attachments and it has upended our workflow.  I do not want to download the attachment that I just added to an invoice; I just want to view it because I need to translate the VIN in the jpeg photograph into the Year/Make/Model car for the invoice.  

Though your recommendation to clear cookies is sound, it did not resolve the problem.

I am having similar issues.  I make manual journal entries and attach supporting documentation.  I have done this for years and as recently as last week.  Seems some update has caused this glitch.  It is an issue on both a windows based laptop as well as a Mac desktop!

Hopefully QBO will solve this soon!

Appreciate the update, @Teamwrx Controller.

I hear you and thank you for the confirmation you shared discussing how you've performed a few troubleshooting steps to identify why viewing attachments will download them instead of opening the file in a new tab.

Saying the issue persists, I recommend contacting our Customer Care Support. You can work with one of our specialists in creating a ticket to let our engineering team investigate the root cause of why such a problem is persisting. To do so:

1. Go to Help.
2. Select Search.
3. Click Contact Us.
4. Enter a few words describing how viewing the attachments included in a transaction is not working as expected in the What can we help you with? text area.
5. Select Continue.
6. Click Chat with us or Have us call you to connect with our team online.

Let me know how it goes in the comments below. Don't forget to include my name, @JonpriL, in your reply so that I can get back here and answer all your concerns about QuickBooks. Stay safe!

I am having the same issue. It started within the past week. Please update if you have found any resolution. Thank you.

Any luck @sgeorgefl ?  I thought walking away for a few days with the holiday might help "reset" or "update" the issue.  I have been on live with help for over two hours now with still no resolution.  Has anyone been able to figure this out?

UPDATE 11/28/22 1:36 PM

After over three hours on the phone with chat, they are escalating it up with high urgency and have my account attached. Hopefully "they" will resolve the issue for all of us.  I will update when I have any additional information.

Hi, @Teamwrx Controller ,

I check it every day that I send out invoices (which is almost every day).  The invoice attachments still want to download as files when I just want to view them and trying to open the attachments in a new tab on my browser still results in just opening the whole invoice in a new tab.  

No fix yet.  

The super-peculiar thing is that invoice attachments created on or before 11/09/2022 open as images - exactly what I want to see.  Invoice attachments created on or after 11/11/2022 try to download as files.  It is as if something changed altogether in how the attachments got defined.  I'm not a programmer, so I'm not entirely sure of my diagnosis of the problem, but the attachments behavior definitely got changed between the two dates.  It's not as if *all* invoice attachments changed as a wholesale thing - only the ones that were created after that date.  That's what makes me think that they got defined differently.  

Stephanie

@sgeorgefl That's my exact issue as well.  Worked fine for years, then just won't.  I sent it up to engineering today after three plus hours on the help chat redoing all the things I've already tried.  I will keep you posted.  I recommend getting on the help chat so they are aware of more customers having the same issue.  I tried different operating systems and devices as well as browsers. It's definitely a QBO issue that I think happened when they did some kind of update IMO.

It's working correctly in Firefox!  I was working in another software and it suddenly did the same thing of downloading an attachment rather than previewing it. So I thought maybe it's related to Chrome even through I know I read somewhere that the problem existed in other browsers. I clicked the exact same attachment in the same invoice. Chrome and the Windows app open a download box, and Firefox opens the attached pdf. Making progress. Please update the thread if you figure out why some browsers are working but not others.

UPDATE: I tested FF one more time before posting. As I watched more closely, I realized that it is automatically downloading the file and then opening it. The files are sitting in my downloads folder. So I'm guessing QBO is supposed to do a download to a temporary folder automatically and that is no longer working (I do not want them to automatically save to my downloads file as FF is currently doing.)

This problem began for me after 11/6. I posted about it here. It does the same thing in Chrome and Safari, on Windows 11 and Mac, with PDFs and PNGs, in my check register and in vendor profiles.

I asked my daughter to try it at work, where they have just recently switched to QBO but have not been attaching files yet. She uses Firefox there, and she reported that the file opened with Adobe Reader and also downloaded.

Does it open in a new browser tab for you or with another program? I suppose that might be a setting in either Firefox or the operating system.

It's obvious to me that this is a bug in QBO, introduced with the November update. Anything attached on or before 11/6 behaves as it should, but files attached after that date want to download.

So she had the same results as I with it downloading and then showing the document. (Yes, whether the pdf opens with browser or a different app is an Operating System setting.)  I tried to use the Chrome DevTool to catch any errors that I could forward to Intuit, but the tool plus google hasn't led me any closer to what may have changed. I'm getting really annoyed by the time this is wasting for me when I can't quickly view an attached file. 

I'm here to ensure this gets investigated, @lledgersllc.

I understand how convenient it is to view the attached file to your invoices, and  I read all the responses and all the possible troubleshooting steps have already been shared to get this fix. I suggest reaching out to our QuickBooks Support Team to further investigate why you're unable to view the attached file to your invoices. They're also equipped with tools to determine the main cause of this.

Here's how to reach our support: 

1. Go to the Help menu, then choose Contact Us.
2. Type your concern in the box and hit Let's talk.
3. Choose either Get a call or Start a chat.
4. Complete the needed information, then submit the request.

Make sure to contact them within business hours to ensure a swift response.

For future reference, I'm also adding an article that can help you get paid faster with QuickBooks invoicing. It also helps you learn about how to let your customer pay their invoice securely, and easily track their payments.

Feel free to get back here should you have additional concerns about invoice attachments. We're always delighted to help. 

Happy Monday!  And December!

Any success?  I just tried again this am and no luck.  I was really hoping with the new month QBO would have some updates to get us all back to being able to attach files!  I haven't been able to close October and now I won't be able to close November without the attachments.

QBO HELP - how's it going on your end?  Any resolution to our issue yet?

No change here. Since my problem began after 11/6, I'm guessing the next update will be around 12/6.

No joy in Mudville, here!

Copied from my post in the thread that I started:

Good news! This appears to be fixed. This morning I attached PDFs to two transactions in my checking register, and they open in a new browser tab when I click the links.

So I guess my suspicion was correct all along: This was a bug introduced with the November 6 update, and now it has been corrected in the December 6 update.

YAY!  It is resolved!  Nice to chat with all of you.  Have a great day!  Good luck with going back to attach the past month's work.  Hopefully it won't take too long!

YES!! Thank you for the update. I'm not sure if I would have noticed because I finally gave up and changed my system settings (which required extra steps for anything related to downloads, not just QBO, but at least allowed me to immediately view the attachments). 

And my thanks to anyone in support/development who may have had a hand in the fix (even if the problem was not acknowledged).

Cannot open attachments yet ? any luck on repairing this issue?

Hi there, LoriCrawford.

Thank you for visiting the QuickBooks Community. I'll be sharing details on how Attachments work in QuickBooks Online. Then, point you to the right support team to assist you further on this matter.

Invalid characters in your QBO company name or in the name of one of your list items (such as Customers, Vendors, Products and Services, or the Chart of Accounts), can lead to server errors or other problems in the application. To avoid unexpected errors, you have to make sure your company name in QuickBooks Online only contains accepted characters from this list. You can open this article to view extra details: Acceptable characters in QuickBooks Online.

On the other hand, he troubleshooting steps shared above are usually the instructions on how to fix unusual behavior such as being unable to open attachments in QBO. With this, I suggest making sure to perform those details so you can open attachments without any issues.

However, if the problem persists, I suggest contacting our QuickBooks Online Support Team. They have the tools to investigate the cause of why you can't open attachments. 

Here's how to contact them:

1. Open your QuickBooks Account.
2. At the top right, click the Help icon.
3. Choose the Assistant section.
4. Type your concern in the Type something field.
5. Click Talk to a human.
6. Click I still need a human.
7. Click the Get help from a human.
8. You'll be routed into the How can we help? page. Then, select callback or how you want to contact them and fill in the information.

Lastly, you may refer to this article to see the steps on how you can view, edit, or delete attachments in QBO: Add or delete attachments in QuickBooks Online.

Please let me know if you need clarification about this, or if there's anything else I can do for you with attachments in QBO. I'm always around to help you, LoriCrawford. Have a great day!

Update 2/6/23:

Back to the same issue!  Maybe since it's the 6th, it will be resolved today and not March 6th?  Anyone having the same issue we had back in November?

Yes, Teamwrx, there have been several reports over on the thread that I started in November. One difference I've noticed is that this time PNG attachments don't seem to be affected. They still open for viewing in a new browser tab as they should. I'm not going to rush to convert everything to PNG, however, since that behavior might be because the "Let's Screw Up Something That Used To Work Fine" department has accidentally overlooked PNGs for the time being.

Ugh!  I'm so sorry for you.  I just gave it a try exactly as we did before and did not have the issue that we were having earlier.  

However, I changed my process so that I don't depend on QBO doing the right thing.  I keep a "File Explorer" window open and drag and drop files from it over to the "attachments" area on the Invoice in QBO.  I have the two folders "pinned" on my File Explorer window where the attachments are stashed until I do the Invoice so that they are easy to find. 

Steph