Sorry, didn’t know where or what else to do.
I had to do a reset on my system, reinstalled manager, and when I try to import my back-up, I get “invalid file format” any suggestions. Is the a thread covering this that you can lead me to. Thanks Tracer
Please do not send personal messages unless you really have personal information to convey. I have made your topic public.
What do you mean by having to do “a reset on my system?”
Windows reset, basically removing all apps previously installed, starting over with a clean slate.
If you removed Manager, you only removed the application, not the data, unless you completely erased and/or reformatted your drive or deliberately removed the application data folder. Since you did not mention that, I assume you did not. Therefore, all your data, which is stored entirely separately from the program, should be undisturbed.
You should not need to import your old business(es) at all. Manager will look in its default location for the application data folder, with your business data inside. As it does that, it will look for its index file, also in the application data folder. This index will tell the program what businesses you have. They will appear in the list on the Businesses page of the program when you launch it. You should be able to open them as usual.
I don’t deny that the data file may still be on my computer, apparently Manager did not find it. After re-installing manager and opening it, my account was not there, hence the attempt to import my last backup. I opened file explorer and searched for all files containing “manager.” There are many and a lot of those are located in a directory named C:\windows.old\windows which I assume is where the file manager would normally use to load my accounts is at that you mentioned, but Manager would not look there for the file for my account.
OK, you did more than you first said.
Launch the program and look under Preferences for the application data path. This is the folder where Manager is looking. Your business is not being found because it is in that C:\windows.old\windows directory you mentioned. Probably the easiest thing to do is move all the files from that directory with .manager extensions to the application data folder shown under preferences. (Depending on your operating system settings, the file could be hidden, so you will have to show hidden files or navigate there by pasting the file path into the file search function.)
The basic problem is that the index file in your current application data folder is pointing Manager toward an empty location. By bringing over the old files and the old index folder, everything should be set right. The old index folder should be pointing to the same default location as the new one, but will include references to your business(es).
Read this Guide for more information on the various types of files and how to manage them: Manager Cloud. It sounds like you may have many obsolete files. The Guide explains how to identify which ones are current.
The important thing in sorting all this out is not to delete any files. Move them to a safe place outside the application data folder as you experiment. Once you are satisfied you have found the correct one, then you can get rid of obsolete ones. And remember that Manager will regenerate any file it needs, including a new index, but you may have to import old businesses until you find the right one.
No it wont be, the windows.old folder only relates to a previous windows operating version. E.g. If you have upgraded from windows 8.0 to windows 10, then windows 8.0 is copied to windows.old. This has absolutely nothing to do with Manager.
Within windows.old and other window folders there are a lot of files with the word “manager”. In fact if you do a .manager search you will get over 200 responses.
However, if you do a C: drive .manager search look for files which have the Manager icon 
, not necessarily with green tick as that is a Dropbox symbol.
If you look for .manager extensions, everything you find should be a file generated by Manager. And yes, there might be hundreds, depending on your backup practices and history and the number of businesses you have, as well as how many updates you have been through that changed the database structure. When you do that, you end up with relic files that Manager does not delete. The number could also have grown if the application data folder itself was changed in the past. The process of trying to restore a business by itself can result in extra data files if not done correctly, especially when the original index file has been misplaced and Manager has to generate a new one. Nothing proliferates data files as rapidly as a confused user searching for a business. Those are some reasons identifying the current data file for a business can be difficult.
Of course, you also need to make sure your search includes hidden folders.
Only the four files with the Manager icon actually have .manager extensions. The rest all include “manager” as part of their file name or are references to URL’s. The four with .manager extensions are clearly labeled as being of “Type: MANAGER File.”
Yes, but the illustration is showing that the .manager search will produce results which contradicts your comment “everything you find should be a file generated by Manager”.
No it doesn’t. I specifically wrote, “If you look for .manager extensions, everything you find should be a file generated by Manager.” I even put it into bold type.
My correction
I was able to recover my account! Thank you Tut for your assistance and you also Brucanna for your concern on my comprehension of Tut’s instructions. The guides helped also. I’ve gained a deeper understanding of how manager operates. Thanks again!
Where was it?
After determining what I was looking for from the guide, like you said: C:\windows.old\users\me\appdata\local\manager. Copied them to windows\users\me\appdata\local\manager, ran program and it loaded my account.
Great. Thanks.
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Hey
I’ve installed a year ago the software of manager on my laptop. Now I have a new desktop and would like to import my business. But with the backup file. I get File Type error.
Could someone help me?
With kind regards