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The QuickBooks Web Connector, explained for store owners

· 2 min read

If your books are in QuickBooks Desktop, any tool that sends web orders into them talks through one small program: the QuickBooks Web Connector. Knowing what it does makes the whole setup less mysterious.

What it is

The Web Connector is a free Intuit program that comes with QuickBooks Desktop. It runs on the same computer as QuickBooks and acts as a go-between: on a schedule, it calls a web address (your store, for example), asks what work is waiting, carries each request into QuickBooks, and carries QuickBooks’ answer back.

The important part: the call always starts on your computer. Your store never reaches into your office network. The Web Connector reaches out, over https, and only when it’s running.

The .qwc file

Each application you connect comes with a small file ending in .qwc. It holds the application’s web address, a user name and an ID. Open it on the QuickBooks computer and the Web Connector adds a row for that application. The first time, QuickBooks asks whether to allow access. Choose to allow it even when QuickBooks isn’t running, and the Web Connector can open the company file on its own for scheduled runs.

The password is typed into the Web Connector, not stored in the file.

Scheduling

Each row can run when you click Update Selected, or automatically every so many minutes (Auto-Run). Common choices:

  • Every 15 to 60 minutes for stores that want orders in QuickBooks the same day.
  • A few times a day or daily for stores that reconcile once a day anyway.
  • By hand when QuickBooks lives on a shared computer and you’d rather choose when it works.

The computer has to be on and logged in for a scheduled run to happen.

What stops it

  • The computer is off or asleep. Nothing is lost; the work waits for the next run.
  • Another company file is open. QuickBooks works with one file at a time; the run is skipped until the right one is free.
  • QuickBooks is busy in single-user mode with someone else, or showing a dialog. Close it, then run again.
  • The address isn’t https, or its certificate expired. The Web Connector refuses plain http addresses.
  • A wrong password shows as an authentication error on that row. Generate a new one in the application and paste it in.

In NemoWorks Sync

The setup guide gives you the .qwc file and a one-time password, and Settings, Connection sets the Auto-Run interval written into the file (15 minutes to daily, or by hand). Locking the store to one company file means it never writes to a different file someone left open. Missed or interrupted runs covers what happens when a run doesn’t go through.

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