QuickBooks 2012 Registration Problems for ProAdvisors
This is for all the ProAdvisors out there – doesn’t affect the rest of you folks (lucky you!). ProAdvisors are just starting to get an email from Intuit that has the links to download their copies of QuickBooks 2012, and it includes your license numbers and your product codes. Unfortunately, there are some problems, at least initially, that you should be aware of. Fortunately, there is a workaround (and I suspect Intuit will figure this one out, too).
The product code is a key item, it tells your installation of QuickBooks what kind of options you should have. If you buy QuickBooks Accountant 2012 (for example) from Intuit through their web site, you get a particular product code. However, if when you get QuickBooks Accountant 2012 through the ProAdvisor program as a part of your membership, you get a different product code, because ProAdvisors have different features. I don’t have a complete list of features, but here are a few that come to mind:
- You get the ability to use QuickBooks e-mail as a “send forms” option for no additional charge.
- You get a license for the Advanced Inventory feature in Enterprise – while most ProAdvisors probably won’t use this in house, you need it to work with any clients that have the feature.
- You get the ability to receive accountant’s copy files transferred through the Intuit servers.
There may be some other features.
Update: 1:25 PM on 9/13 - Intuit staff has finally woken up to what is happening, and they are looking to see what changes can be implemented. So at this time, the best answer is to WAIT on installing/registering your QB 2012 product until the dust settles…
Update 3:07 PM on 9/14 – Intuit has announced that they are aware of the problem, that a fix is underway. They recommend that you don’t download. If you have, they recommend that you don’t register. If you have, they say that they’ll have a fix out next week. The official email is shown in a comment below.
Update 6:00 PM on 9/19 – Intuit announces that the PROBLEM IS FIXED – you should get an email that goes through the details. I will note that the fixes WORKED FOR ME, so all should be good new (until next year???).
Product Code Problems
So what is the problem? You can’t use the product code from that email if you want to register your copy of QuickBooks through the registration process. Ugh! I recall that this happened last year as well.
Here is what I went through.
- I installed QuickBooks Enterprise 2012 and used the product code from the email (it was also listed in my online ProAdvisor account).
- I ran the program, it said I had 30 days to register, so I started the registration process.
- I was not asked to enter my information to validate my registration – usually you are asked to log in. For some reason none of my install attempts (Premier or Enterprise) asked for this. The program immediately said that I had to call registration to get a validation code. Side note – some ProAdvisors didn’t have this issue crop up and were able to register normally, from what I’m told.
- I called in to the registration number and gave them the info, they gave me a validation code, I entered that. Unfortunately, the validation code was rejected. The registration person said “oh, your product code is incorrect” and they gave me a different product code.
- I had to change my product registration (more on that later) to the new code.
- I entered the validation code given earlier. It works!
- However, when I open my company file with Enterprise, it says that I don’t have a license to use Advanced Inventory, that I have to buy it or turn it off. Wait, isn’t that supposed to be a feature I get for free?
What has happened here is that the product code that I was given for my products are the general retail product codes, not the codes for a ProAdvisor. So my extra features are disabled and not available. This is NOT good.
When I called ProAdvisor support, the first thing I hear is a message saying that the product codes in the email are wrong, that the correct ones are… the same ones that registration gave me, which I believe are not correct.
Arrghhh!
But It Can Be Fixed
I waited on hold for a ProAdvisor support person, which took awhile. I explained the problem, and what I thought was going on. Fortunately, the support person (name withheld, but he did a GREAT job, thanks!) was able to work this out. The process involved:
- Making sure I had the NEW product code installed – not the one from the email.
- The ProAdvisor support person “flipping the switch” on the various features in my registration record in the database that he had access to.
- Doing a “Sync license data online” operation in the program on my side.
Once we did that for each of the products, I was able to access the features that I needed.
How can you check? In Enterprise, see if you can turn on the Advanced Inventory feature. If you are told you have to buy it or turn it off, you do NOT have things set up correctly. Or, go to your Send Forms preferences and see if you have QuickBooks E-mail as an option – if you don’t, then you aren’t set up correctly. If you do, though, this isn’t a complete test, but it is an indication.
Changing Product Codes
If you have installed with the original product codes from that original email, and can’t register your products, you either have to uninstall and reinstall your product, OR you can edit the qbregistration.dat file to make the change. See the instructions at http://support.quickbooks.intuit.com/support/articles/HOW12493 and follow them carefully to change to the proper codes.
I’m hoping that Intuit will figure out what is going on and will rectify this so that we don’t have to go through all of these gyrations. I hope that this doesn’t happen every year – it isn’t the first time that I’ve run into this (which is why I was so suspicious when registration told me to change the product code).
Update 1:25 PM 9/13 – hold off, Intuit is working on fixes, so don’t change your product codes
And, note, SOME PEOPLE have not run into this problem, apparently, although I haven’t confirmed that they have all of their features enabled properly.
For another view of the problem, see Michelle Long’s blog post at http://longforsuccess.com/2011/09/13/alert-quickbooks-proadvisors-incorrect-product-codes-for-2012/
My thanks to the Intuit ProAdvisor Support team for being able to answer my questions and get this fixed in my case, very quickly.
Category: For Consultants/Accountants, QuickBooks Tips/Tricks, Working with QuickBooks
About the Author (Author Profile)
Charlie Russell is the founder of CCRSoftware. He's been involved with the small business software industry since the mid 70's, and remembers releasing his first commercial accounting software product when you had a one-floppy disk drive system, loading the program from one floppy and then replacing that with the other floppy to hold the data. He has a special interest in inventory and manufacturing software for small businesses. Charlie is a Certified Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor with additional certifications for QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Enterprise. He also is a Xero Certified Partner. Visit his CCRSoftware web site for information about his QuickBooks add-on products. Charlie can be reached at charlie.russell@sleeter.com He is also the author of the California Wildflower Hikes blog and a regular blog contributor to the Intuit Inner Circle. Connect with Charlie at GoogleSubscribe
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Sites That Link to this Post
- ALERT – QuickBooks ProAdvisors – Incorrect Product Codes for 2012 : Long for Success | September 13, 2011
Make sure you save the qbregistration.dat file after you have make the changes> Also, it is imperative that when changing the Install ID (prd code is called Install ID in this file), that it looks exactly the same, meaning, the dashes are there. AND DON’T DELETE ANY OF THE STRANGE CHARACTERS OR BRACKETS. Best to do a copy/paste right into the appropriate field. If you have trouble reading the .dat file (make sure to open in note pad), make sure Word Wrap is on. QB MUST BE CLOSED WHILE YOU CHANGE THE DAT FILE.
The correct product number for Premier 2012 is (removed) is and the correct product number for Enterprise 12.0 is (removed)
Thanks, Woody. I didn’t publish that in the article because I wasn’t sure how much of that is supposed to be generally available public info, and what isn’t. But since you entered it, I’m off the hook!
HALT! DO NOT USE THOSE CODES. WE ARE FIXING IT IN THE BACK END.
Anyone joining this late – I removed the codes that Woody had posted, as that might not be the best solution. Note, though, that the codes were what were being given out by the Registration people, and the same ones that were on the recorded message at PAP support.
I’m glad that this is getting the attention it deserves, and a better solution is in the works…
Current Status:
Intuit does not recommend downloading QBA 2012 or ES Accountant v12 at this time. Instead, we encourage all ProAdvisors to wait to download these two products after we have fixed the issue relating to registration keys.
Latest Intuit Update:
We’re aware of issues concerning installation of some of our 2012 products & are working as quickly as possible to fix it. QBA 2012 & Enterprise Accountant v12 are not ready to install. You can download these products & use them in trial mode but you won’t be able to register them. We will instruct you on how to access and register the products shortly. Please note that Intuit does not recommend you implement any workarounds to register either products if you have already downloaded them. If you have already downloaded these products and are using them in trial mode, or have registered them with a license numbers different from what you received that is okay. You will not lose any data but may need to reinstall the product. QuickBooks Mac 2012, however, is ready to download & install.
Hey Charlie – does this ‘registration’ mess have anything to do with getting emails that say ‘Thank you for registering your QuickBooks software’ when you haven’t even ‘downloaded’ the new software yet?
I received two emails this afternoon, and I have not even tried to download the QB-2012 products!
Murph
I got those too, for each of the three products. I asked Woody about that offline, all he said was “congrats you are registered…”
I don’t think that the emails are directly a part of the product code issue.
Cool – all these headaches AND I get to pay an extra $100 for that privilege when my renewal comes up
Kidding aside – thanks for your tireless efforts to sort out the fact from fiction when it comes to the various things happening in the world of QB. I really appreciate it.
Here is the latest word from Intuit:
Yesterday we became aware of an issue concerning registration of some of our 2012 products. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Here is the latest information, as well as rough timing on resolution.
Summary:
1. QuickBooks Accountant 2012 and Enterprise Accountant 12.0 have a registration issue.
2. Due to this issue, we suggest you wait to download the products until notified.
3. If you have downloaded the products, that is okay. But, an additional action may be required if you’ve already registered.
4. We are working on the fix and are on track to deliver it next week.
5. We will contact you as soon as we have a resolution.
Details:
The registration issue we are experiencing impacts the QuickBooks® Accountant 2012 & QuickBooks Enterprise Accountant 12.0 products associated with your QuickBooks ProAdvisor® Program membership. QuickBooks Mac 2012, however, is ready to download, install & register.
Do not register your products:
Due to this issue, we suggest you wait to download the products until notified. If, however, you need to download them before then, you may do so, but do not register them using one of the workarounds posted online or that were previously provided by our support team.
What if I already downloaded?
If you have downloaded the product, you can experience the 2012 products without registering them. You will have full QuickBooks Accountant functionality including payroll, Accountant’s Copy File Transfer and QuickBooks Email. However, temporarily, you will not have access to Connected Services and Remote Access functionality.
If you have downloaded these products AND registered them using a workaround, that is okay. You will not lose any data, but you may need to take an additional action (e.g. reinstall) to maintain access to your products later.
We are working to fix this problem and are on track to resolve the issue next week. Please look for an email with an update or check your ProAdvisor Member Website notifications at http://www.qbproadvisor.com.
We appreciate your patience. Thank you for your support.
The ProAdvisor Team
This evening Intuit announced that the problem is fixed. I’ll not repeat the email that was sent out – all ProAdvisors should get the notification. Note that the fixes WORKED FOR ME so we should all be good to go now…
Read that email carefully…