.QBB File Extension

QuickBooks Backup File

A QBB file is a backup file created by QuickBooks, the popular accounting and money management software developed by Intuit. These files contain a complete backup of a company's financial data, including transactions, accounts, reports, letters, templates, and company logos. QBB files serve as a safety measure to restore your data if the original QuickBooks working file (QBW) becomes corrupted or is accidentally deleted.

The QBB format has been a standard backup method in QuickBooks for many years, being a core feature since the early versions of the software. While Intuit has introduced additional backup options over time, the QBB format remains an essential component of QuickBooks' data protection strategy.

QBB files are primarily used for:

1. Data Backup: Creating regular backups of your company's financial information
2. Data Restoration: Restoring QuickBooks data after a system crash, file corruption, or accidental deletion
3. Data Migration: Transferring QuickBooks data between computers
4. Version Upgrades: Safeguarding data before upgrading to a newer version of QuickBooks
5. Cross-Platform Compatibility: Moving data between Windows and Mac versions of QuickBooks

QuickBooks automatically prompts users to create backup files at regular intervals as a best practice for data protection. Many businesses incorporate QBB backups into their regular data security protocols.

How to Create a QBB File

In QuickBooks for Windows:

1. Go to the File menu
2. Select "Back Up Company"
3. Choose "Create Local Backup"
4. Follow the prompts to save your backup file

In QuickBooks for Mac:

1. Go to the File menu
2. Select "Back Up to QuickBooks for Windows..."
3. Choose a location to save the backup file

How to Open .QBB as QuickBooks Backup File

To restore data from a QBB file:

1. Open QuickBooks
2. Go to the File menu
3. Select "Restore Company"
4. Browse to locate your QBB file
5. Follow the prompts to restore your data

Note: Sometimes you may need to change the file extension from ".qbb" to ".qbw" for the file to open correctly in QuickBooks, particularly when working with older versions of the software.

How to Convert an QBB File

QBB files can be converted to other formats through several methods:

1. QBW Files: The most common conversion is from QBB to QBW, which happens automatically when you restore a backup in QuickBooks.

2. QBO Files: QuickBooks Online users can import data from a QBB file by first restoring it to a QBW file, then using the export function to create a QBO file suitable for QuickBooks Online.

3. Excel/CSV: After restoring a QBB file to QuickBooks, you can export specific reports or data to Excel spreadsheets or CSV files for use in other applications.

4. PDF: Financial reports restored from QBB files can be exported as PDF documents for sharing with stakeholders who don't use QuickBooks.

Several third-party conversion tools also exist that can help convert QuickBooks data to other accounting software formats, though these typically work with the restored QBW file rather than directly with the QBB backup.

Applications That Open QBB Files

Windows Apps for QBB Files:

• Intuit QuickBooks Desktop Paid

In-browser (Online) Apps for QBB Files:

• Intuit QuickBooks Online Paid