The Return of Com Errors to QuickBooks Desktop

by

General Ledger

COM Errors are suddenly plaguing QuickBooks 2016 users. Multiple users are reporting the dreaded COM Error when using QuickBooks 2016 Desktop products, including Pro, Premier and Enterprise.

When a Com Error pops up, QuickBooks will crash without saving the work you're performing.

Sometimes you could be opening a specific list element (like a customer) or a transaction (like a vendor bill). You might be attempting to email a transaction to a customer or simply trying to print a report.

I recently experienced a COM Error in QuickBooks 2016 Enterprise while attempting to view an Invoice "on screen" within the GUI (graphic user interface).

We saw Com Errors extensively back in QuickBooks 2014 versions. Intuit subsequently released a product update that resolved those issues.

Then, back in 2015, shortly after the release of QuickBooks 2016 Desktop products, we started seeing Com Errors again. This time they were associated with SDK application connections or data exchanges. Intuit not only worked with an SDK developer to outline a "temporary manual fix," but it built a resolution for this error into a "critical fix" pushed update of QuickBooks.

A few months ago, I experienced Com Errors with a couple of my QuickBooks Enterprise 2017 installations after a Windows update. When I rolled back the Windows update, the Com Errors went away.

Some people report that updating QuickBooks to the most recent maintenance release resolves the problems. Others will tell you to run a Windows’ repair to fix Com Errors. 

Still, other "techno-types" will tell you to perform:

  • a Windows removal of the QuickBooks application, and then
  • download the QuickBooks "clean install" Utility, then
  • run the "clean install utility," followed by
  • a complete re-installation of QuickBooks to resolve Com Errors.

In my own QuickBooks technology practice, we have found that Com Errors are many times associated with some form of corruption that's created within the "Windows User" account, regardless of the type/level of Windows user.

In those cases, we found that creating a new Windows User on the computer experiencing the Com Errors within QuickBooks was the best solution. Once you login to the computer using the new Windows User account, login to QuickBooks and see if you get the same result.

Of course, Com Errors might be just the excuse you're looking for to get both a new computer and the newest QuickBooks Desktop version since 2018 was just released.

Best of luck.