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Data stored on a network drive

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Joe Meyer

28 Aug, 2016 12:33 AM

I have been a quicken user and I am looking for something to replace it. I have my quicken data stored on a home network drive, so I can access it from any of the computers in my home. Can I use Moneydance in the same way. How can I configure the application to have the data stored somewhere other than c:\users\<username>\.moneydance?

1. Support Staff 1 Posted by Ethan on 28 Aug, 2016 12:41 AM

   

   To share your data between your two or more desktop systems, you will need to share your main data file between your computers via either a shared local network drive or through an online syncing service. The instructions I'm going to give are for doing this via Dropbox, but you could use any equivalent service.

   First, you will want to locate your main data file on the desktop version of Moneydance that is most up to date. Assuming that you haven't specified a custom location, your data file will be saved at a location described at http://help.infinitekind.com/kb/moneydance-2015/where-is-my-data-st..., and will be called something like yourfilename.moneydance. You will want to move this file to your Dropbox folder by following the instructions at http://help.infinitekind.com/kb/moneydance-2014/how-to-move-your-da...

   Once your data file has been moved, reopen Moneydance, use the Open Other option from either the welcome screen or from the menu bar at File -> Open -> Open Other, and select the data file in its new location. If you can now see your data, this computer should now be set up. Make sure that the Dropbox program is running and you are connected to the internet.

   Moving on to the other computer, assuming that you have Dropbox set up and installed on this computer and either are using the same Dropbox account or have shared the data file with whatever account you are using, you should now be able to see your data file in the Dropbox folder on this computer. Follow the same instructions using the Open Other option in Moneydance to point the program to this file. Your data should now be available on this computer.

   Moneydance will remember the locations of your data file once you tell it using this 'open other' option, so all of this setup should be a one time event. In the future, you should just have to launch the program, and Moneydance will open the last known location of your data file. If you are using multiple data files, you can quickly switch between them by using the File -> Open menu.

   It is also important to only have Moneydance open on one of your computers at a time. Otherwise, you will run the risk of one of your computers overwriting the data that the other one is trying to make at the same time. You should get in the habit of completely closing the program when you are not actively using it.

   Finally, Dropbox uses SSL connections and AES-256 bit encryption to store your data, which provides a high level of security. If you are using a different service, you should check whether they have similar levels of security for your financial data. Starting with Moneydance 2015, Moneydance data files are also encrypted by default. You can also make your data file more secure by going to File -> Password from the Moneydance menu bar to set a password for your current data file. This will mean that you (or anyone trying to access your data file) will have to enter a password to open it no matter where the data file is stored. Note that we haven't built any 'backdoors' into our encryption, so if you forget your password, we have no way to help you retrieve your data.

   Please let me know if I can be of further assistance,

   Ethan
   Moneydance Support

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2. Ethan closed this discussion on 28 Aug, 2016 12:41 AM.