Ubersmith integrates with Intuit's QuickBooks Desktop Pro, Retail, Enterprise, and Accountant versions 2016 through 2018 using QuickBooks Web Connector. QuickBooks Web Connector is a software application that runs on Microsoft Windows and enables Ubersmith and QuickBooks to exchange qbXML data packets.

This integration is one-way, from Ubersmith to QuickBooks. QuickBooks periodically connects to Ubersmith to get updated information about clients, invoices, and payments. Updates made in QuickBooks will not be transmitted to Ubersmith. Any client account updates should only be made in Ubersmith and not directly in QuickBooks, as this will affect that account’s ability to sync in the future.

Ubersmith’s database entries for clients, invoices, etc. have fields called qblistid or qbtxnid. QuickBooks uses ListID and TxnIDs identifiers to reference items. Ubersmith continuously tries to send entries that do not have ListIDs or TxnIDs to QuickBooks until the synchronization is successful.

Terminology

Ubersmith and QuickBooks do not always use the same terms for equivalent data, while some terms are the same. Some QuickBooks items do not have a corresponding one in Ubersmith at all, such as taxes, accounts Receivable, and undeposited funds. The following table lists Ubersmith names, and the corresponding QuickBooks terms. 

Clients and Customers

When client information is updated in Ubersmith, the customer information in QuickBooks is update to match.

Service Plans and Service Items

When a service plan is added to Ubersmith, an identical entry is made to QuickBooks service items. QuickBooks service items are used to build invoice line items.

Invoices

When invoices are generated in Ubersmith, an equivalent invoice is created in QuickBooks. The QuickBooks invoice has the appropriate line items, as they appear in Ubersmith. See Taxes (below) for more information.

Taxes

While Ubersmith supports multiple tax rates for a single invoice, QuickBooks does not. To successfully transfer multiple tax rates from Ubersmith to QuickBooks, you will need to create sales tax items in QuickBooks, and add individual line items for each taxable line item on the invoice.

In order for Canadian taxes to properly import, you need to create a vendor in QuickBooks to receive the taxes collected. To do this, ensure that the item sales tax codes in QuickBooks are in place and correct for each service plan, and ensure the use Customer and Vendor Sales Tax codes option is not selected. Refer to your QuickBooks documentation for more information.

Payments

Payments are transferred to QuickBooks only when their accompanying invoice has already been transferred. If a payment fails to transfer to QuickBooks, Ubersmith does not try to transfer that payment again. Paid invoices in QuickBooks are marked with a big blue PAID stamp.

If a payment fails once in QuickBooks, it will never succeed. Ubersmith marks failed payments with 'XXX' in the qbtxnid database field. This ensures Ubersmith won't try to apply it again, and also makes the payment entry easier for you to find to troubleshoot or want to try applying it again.

Refunds and Credits

A refund is only handled successfully if the refund is initiated in Ubersmith before the associated payment is transferred to QuickBooks. 

PreReqs

• Install QuickBooks on your Microsoft Windows host. If you are already using QuickBooks, refer to Using an Existing QuickBooks Company File.
• Install the QuickBooks Web Connector on your Microsoft Windows workstation.
• Create a Not Classified class in QuickBooks.
• Create sales tax items in QuickBooks.
• For Canadian taxes: create a vendor in QuickBooks to receive the taxes collected. To do this, ensure that the item sales tax codes in QuickBooks are in place and correct for each service plan, and ensure the use Customer and Vendor Sales Tax codes option is not selected.
• Create a placeholder unused Tax Item in QuickBooks, and configure that item as your most common sales tax item.
• Upgrade to the latest release of Ubersmith.
• Ensure Ubersmith has a valid SSL certificate.
• Configure your Ubersmith service plans:
  • Ensure every service plan has a QuickBooks Income Account defined. If not, ensure you define the Other Income income account in QuickBooks.
  • Ensure the income accounts you chose for your service plans exist in QuickBooks.
  • Ensure your accounts receivable and deposit accounts in Ubersmith and QuickBooks match.
  • Ensure individual line items for each tax rate.
  • Ensure the income account you chose for setup fees in Ubersmith and QuickBooks match.

Installation

From Ubersmith

1. From the Ubersmith Dashboard, click Settings. The Ubersmith Settings page appears.
2. In the Global Settings section, in the Integrations sections, click QuickBooks Web Connect. The QuickBooks Web Connect page appears.
3. In the Enable QuickBooks Web Connect field, select Yes.
4. In the QuickBooks Locale field, select your location.
5. In the Web Connect Username field, enter the username to use for QuickBooks Web Connect.
6. In the Web Connect Password field, enter the password to use for QuickBooks Web Connect. The username and password is strictly for QuickBooks Web Connect to authenticate with Ubersmith to sync data, and has no other function in the system.
7. In the Company Filename field, enter the exact, full path name for your QuickBooks company file.
8. In the Setup Fee Income Account field, enter the full name of your QuickBooks income account. Use a comma to delimit multiple accounts.
9. In the Deposit Account field, enter the full name of your QuickBooks payment account that receives deposits. Use a comma to delimit multiple accounts.
10. In the Accounts Receivable Account field, enter the full name of your QuickBooks account receivable account for Ubersmith payments to be associated with. Use a comma to delimit multiple accounts.
11. In the Import Records Starting From field, enter the date to begin importing records to QuickBooks.
12. In the Transfer Payment Data field, select Yes to transfer payments to QuickBooks.
13. In the Transfer Account Credit Data field, select Yes to transfer account credits to QuickBooks.
14. In the Import Account Credits Starting From field, enter the date to begin importing accounts credits to QuickBooks.
15. In the Ubersmith QWC File field, click Download.
16. Click Submit.

From QuickBooks Web Connect

1. Start your QuickBooks software.
2. Open your QuickBooks Company file.
3. Open the Ubersmith QWC file your downloaded in STEP #. The Authorize New Web Service page appears.
4. Ensure the Application Information and Web Security Certificate Information sections are correct and click OK. The QuickBooks – Application Certificate page appears, to approve the Ubersmith QBWC file.
5. Select Yes, always allow access even if QuickBooks is not running.
6. Click Continue. The Access Confirmation page appears.
7. Click Done. The QuickBooks Web Connector page appears.
8. Select the row of your UbersmithQBWC file.
9. Select Auto-Run and the number of minutes for the update to run.
10. Enter your QuickBooks Web Connect password.
11. Click Update Selected. Payment methods, service plans, tax items, clients are imported to QuickBooks, which can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours, depending on the amount of data.
12. Click Update Selected once more. invoices, payments, and credits are imported during this updated.
13. Click Exit.

Using an Existing QuickBooks Company File

When you synchronize Ubersmith with QuickBooks, Ubersmith is the primary source of information. If your QuickBooks company file already includes customer or financial data from other sources, you can continue to use this file when you begin to synchronize with Ubersmith.

After synchronization, Ubersmith stores a ListID returned from QuickBooks. If there is no ListID, Ubersmith tells QuickBooks to create a new customer record. If this customer already exists in QuickBooks, there will then be two records for the same customer.

In order to prevent client duplication, you will need to update all your QuickBooks customer names to match Ubersmith’s client names and client ID numbers. For example, your QuickBooks customer named ABC Company is the same as the Ubersmith client, ABC Company with an Ubersmith Client ID of 1001. To properly synchronize, your QuickBooks ABC Company needs to be renamed ABC Company (1001). Do this for every record in the QuickBooks company file that has a companion record in Ubersmith. There is no way to automate this process, but it only needs to be done once.

At the next synchronize, Ubersmith attempts to create a customer with the name ABC Company (1001) and the request fails due to QuickBooks responding that the name is already in use. Ubersmith detects this error and updates its internal records so that future synchronizations referencing that customer succeeds.

Troubleshooting QuickBooks

When troubleshooting QuickBooks issues, refer to the QuickBooks Web Connector log for more information about the issues.

Synchronization Fails Immediately

If your QuickBooks Web Connector synchronization immediately fails, ensure you are using the correct locale for your QuickBooks version.

Service Items, Invoices or Payments are Not Added

If your income accounts are not configured properly, this causes a cascading effect that prevents service items from being added, which prevents invoices from being added, which prevents payments from being added.

• Ensure your QuickBooks income accounts are correctly configured for your service plans.
• Ensure all the entries in your accounts are spelled correctly with proper capitalization.

Errors with Other Income Account

If requests are failing and you are receiving errors about other income accounts or if there is no income account specified for the service plan in QuickBooks, ensure you have a specified income account for the service plan, and an Other Income income account in QuickBooks.

QuickBooks Won’t Start

If QuickBooks Web Connector reports that it cannot start QuickBooks, ensure the QuickBooks Integrated Application settings in enabled and your company file name in Ubersmith is accurate.

Only Setup Fee service plans are copied

If you get errors, synchronization is not properly functioning and only setup fee service plans are copied to QuickBooks, ensure you have a specified income account for the service plan, and an Other Income income account in QuickBooks.

You Cannot Use the Same Tax Item

If you are using QuickBooks internal tax support, and receive errors about invalid references to QuickBooks Item <item> in the invoice line, or that you cannot use the same tax item in both the line items and the txn tax. then Ubersmith is creating tax line items that are using the same item as the most common sales tax item, which QuickBooks tries to append to the end of the invoice.

Create a placeholder unused Tax Item in QuickBooks and configure that item as your most common sales tax item. Refer to your QuickBooks documentation for more information.

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