Remote working has become a necessity in the way businesses work nowadays. Especially with the need to coordinate tasks between employees, departments, organizations and even across different countries, the need for everyone to be able to collaborate efficiently is crucial. In this regard, the same can also be stated to be valid in the case of managing the different accounting tasks and features of the organization (Working remotely with QuickBooks Desktop). Through conducting tasks in cloud, clients, businesses, accountants, and advisors alike can contribute to efficiently complete all tasks.
The QuickBooks Remote Access feature is one such tool that allows users to collaborate through cloud and gain efficiency through such collaborative tasks. Keep reading to learn more about QuickBooks Remote Access and its various advantages for your business. You can also learn how you can host remote working and switch to the online version efficiently from here.
QuickBooks Remote Access
The feature to access QuickBooks remotely is one of the most advanced features that aligns with the needs of businesses today. Especially after the pandemic, the need and usage for facilities supporting remote working have increased exponentially, and QuickBooks is providing services to allow you to manage all your accounts remotely. With efficient use of the feature, you can access not only the QuickBooks file remotely, but also any other files present in your computer. While you would need to pay a small fee every month to subscribe to the QuickBooks Remote Access feature, the efficiency it provides to your business and the incredible ease in conducting business definitely makes it a worthy investment. Without the need for any special system requirements and specifications, this tool allows you to access your QuickBooks files remotely through the web interface. However, it must be noted that you can access the feature with your subscription of any other QuickBooks product apart from “QuickBooks Pro for Mac.”
Advantages of QuickBooks Remote Access
QuickBooks Remote Access allows you to work remotely and enhance the way you conduct your tasks even without your system in front of you. But you must be wondering, how exactly does it help? In other words, what are the ways in which using QuickBooks Remote Access can benefit you? If you are indeed wondering these aspects of the tool, here are the main benefits you can avail as you use QuickBooks Remote Access:
- Access data files: One of the biggest advantages is that you can access all your data files remotely with the help of the tool. Simply open your local system, gain remote access to another system using the web interface, and simply get access to all files stored within the remote system. In this way, you can keep different documents stored in different systems but access them as and when you want.
- Print locally: While accessing data files is one of the most basic features that any remote access tool should provide, what sets QuickBooks Remote Access apart is that it also allows you to print the remote files locally. This means that if you want to print a file stored in another computer, then you can print it directly from the remote system with a printer near you.
- Copy folders and files from remote system to local system: While many remote access tools stop at only giving you access and functionality over remote files, QuickBooks Remote Access goes a step further and allows you to share documents and files between the two systems you are using. So, you can easily take a file from the remote system to your local one and vice versa, with maximum efficiency and minimum hassle.
Apart from these aspects of advantage, the QuickBooks remote access tool also helps you do all the above in a highly secure manner with maximum compatibility and integration. This is a crucial asset for any organization to have that can make tasks and procedures much more efficient over time.
Intuit supported remote access options for QuickBooks
Accessing remote services through QuickBooks can be done mainly in three ways. These three ways are:
- QuickBooks Online.
- QuickBooks via Remote Access Tool.
- QuickBooks Cloud Hosting.
The functionality and benefits provided by the three options varies greatly. This is why it is crucial for businesses to be aware of the differences and adopt whichever methods seems the most efficient. However, users should also note that they cannot switch between the three options as per their needs. Therefore, careful consideration is crucial to ensure that all organizational needs are indeed being met by the option chosen.
QuickBooks desktop is hosted in the cloud
The option of QuickBooks cloud hosting is one of the ways in which QuickBooks users can get remote access. The facility allows you to host the QuickBooks Desktop software through third party servers and creating a cloud space to make the system available remotely. The main features of using this method are that it:
- Guarantees reliable data protection: You can control the kind and amount of data that is being shared to the cloud server. This will prevent misuse of any data and ensure that only the most important ones are being shared.
- Boosts productivity: Since enhanced productivity is one of the basic criteria for using remote access software, QuickBooks cloud hosting does exactly that. By allowing you to track inventory, proceed with payments, and update any files and books from anywhere, your productivity is indeed maximized.
- Allows multi-device collaboration: You can easily share files and resources with your entire team easily. Regardless of the system they use, they can access the cloud server and make changes as needed, which get synced in real time.
Service to switch to QuickBooks online
Using QuickBooks Online rather than QuickBooks Desktop is another easy way of using remote access services and tools for your business. The aspect of doing all the tasks online makes the process much easier and convenient to operate remotely, as opposed to QuickBooks Desktop, where you would need other tools to operate remotely. The product works entirely on a cloud-based system and there are many plans that you can choose from which would change the level of controls and features you get while working on cloud. The QuickBooks Online product also:
- Allows sharing data access across multiple users.
- Provides excellent product support through efficient online chat customer support options.
- Guarantees security while collaborating and working with secure data without the need for backups.
Thus, for organizations looking to work remotely only, QuickBooks Online can be a much better option than using QuickBooks Desktop with a second application for remote access.
Using the QuickBooks remote access
The third option for working remotely using QuickBooks is by installing QuickBooks Remote Access Tool. This tool is one of the many add-ons for QuickBooks provided by intuit and does an excellent job of supporting remote tasks. With this tool, you can easily gain access to many other systems and computers and conduct your tasks by extracting files from these systems. As elaborated above, the QuickBooks Remote Access Tool allows you to:
- Access data files remotely.
- Print files locally.
- Copy files and folders from remote system to local system and vice versa.
- Gain excellent compatibility, security and integration across all systems.
In this way, by providing such benefits, the remote access tool acts as an external program that enables you to conduct all such tasks in the most efficient and easiest manner. You can get this tool with two of the most popular and efficient QuickBooks versions – QuickBooks Access and QuickBooks Full Desktop Access.
QuickBooks Hosting
There are three modes in which you can use the QuickBooks Hosting feature. Any of the three modes can give you sufficient efficiency with regard to working remotely through a cloud server. These three modes are:
- Dedicated Hosting: This mode allows multiple users to connect directly to the server where the QuickBooks program is installed.
- Peer-to-Peer Hosting: This mode is the most efficient where on-premise hosting is possible. This is due to the fact that a shared network allows one user to host the application and enables other users to get access to the application and data over the shared network.
- Alternate Hosting: This mode makes use of the hosting server while others use the local network. Specifically, this mode allows the main user to connect to the hosting server through the internet while all other users use the local network to connect to the main user rather than the server.
QuickBooks Online
QuickBooks is the alternate to the traditional desktop program that is QuickBooks Desktop. With all functionality being done online through cloud, this method is the best and most ideal for working remotely. By allowing cloud hosting access and enabling up to 25 users to connect simultaneously, this application provides the greatest efficiency in taking 100% of your tasks online, enabling it to be conducted remotely. Furthermore, the application also allows you to connect to more than 650 other cloud-based apps, allowing you to get the most while working remotely.
Thus, through the online version of the program, you can conduct essential tasks remotely, such as:
- Tracking income and expenditures.
- Billing customers and accepting payments.
- Remotely collaborating with accountant.
- Gain further efficiency by connecting through mobile app.
- Organize receipts for all transactions via mobile phone and sync them in real time.
- Get anytime online support.
QuickBooks Remote Access Tool
The Remote Access Tool add-on for QuickBooks by Intuit allows you to connect any local system to the desired remote system by installing it on the desired remote system. The add-on works with the help of the Cisco WebEx tool, which acts as a medium to support the remote connection. This is a highly secure and reliable tool that guarantees efficiency in allowing remote tasks and sharing of files to be done. The QuickBooks Access version is the basic one which has limited functionality and only gives your remote control over limited applications and functions. On the contrary, the QuickBooks Full Desktop Access feature provides access to the entire system, providing much greater efficiency and reach when trying to work remotely.
However, since the usage of this tool requires connecting from both sides to operate every time, it is ideal for users and businesses who do not need to connect remotely very frequently. Thus, if you are someone who only needs to work remotely infrequently and once in a while, then the Remote Access Tool add-on can be the best solution for you.
Ending Note
Remote working has become a necessity, and in keeping with its increasing importance, QuickBooks has also stepped up in providing you multiple options and functions through which you can access remote systems for maximum functionality. With the three different methods through which you can work remotely, the program provides services depending on the frequency and nature of remote tasks needed.
- If your business needs multiple professionals to collaborate on a regular basis and collaboration is essential to complete the various tasks of the organization, then the QuickBooks Cloud Hosting method is the most suited for you.
- However, if individuals within your business only need regular access to remote functionality, then transitioning to QuickBooks Online from QuickBooks Desktop can be the best move.
- Similarly, if you are an individual user and do not have a frequent need for remote access, then the QuickBooks Remote Access Tool can serve you the most efficiency.
So, depending on your needs, you can adopt the method that seems the most useful to you and in this way, you can incorporate remote efficiency in the way accounts and clients are managed. This can help you get the most out of your operation without subscribing to services and functions that you don’t need. One thing you will not have to worry about regardless of the method you are using is security, reliability and efficiency. By prioritizing these aspects in the way all three solutions have been crafted, remote working can now become safe and efficient for you with the help of QuickBooks!