QuickBooks license error

Many software vendors use random pieces of information about your system’s hardware to create a license file. Intuit does this to create a file called EntitlementDataStore.ecml that is used by QuickBooks to determine if you are the rightful owner of QuickBooks. Make a change to your system, however, and you could find yourself getting a licensing error when you start QuickBooks.

This happened to a system I was working on last week. I cloned the system to a new hard drive and everything worked fine except Quickbooks. Here’s how I fixed it:

[Requirements]

• QB License Number
• QB Product Code
• QB Validation Code

[step 1] In QuickBooks 2010 and newer on Windows 7 or Vista navigate to:

C:ProgramDataIntuitEntitlement Clientv6.0

QuickBooks 2009 and Enterprise 9.0: C:ProgramDataIntuitEntitlement Clientv5
QuickBooks 2008 and Enterprise 8.0: C:ProgramDataIntuitEntitlement Clientv5
QuickBooks 2007 and Enterprise 7.0: C:ProgramDataIntuitEntitlement Clientv3

On Windows XP navigate to:

Quickbooks 2010 & up: C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication DataIntuitEntitlement Clientv6.0
Quickbooks 2009: C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication DataIntuitEntitlement Clientv5.0
Quickbooks 2008: C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication DataIntuitEntitlement Clientv5.0
Quickbooks 2007: C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication DataIntuitEntitlement Clientv3.0

[step 2] Locate the file called EntitlementDataStore.ecml and rename or delete it.

[step 3] Re-launch QuickBooks and notice that the software is now no longer registered. Click Help->About and when you see the QuickBooks Splash screen press CTRL+R+P

[step 4] Your QB license number and product code should already be filled out, simply enter the verification code you obtained when you initially registered the software and Click Register.

That’s it.