[GNC] Optimising migration via qif

[Derek Atkins]

Hi,

Jonathan Williams <jw at cdlnet.co.uk> writes:

> I am trying to migrate from MS Money to GNC using qif files for each account,
> and am meeting problems with the importer.  It asks me to check many
> hundreds of transactions, and if I skip this it results in hundreds of
> missing transactions (not duplicates, which would be easier to resolve). 
> I'm thinking of starting afresh, and some advice would be much appreciated. 
> I have explored the FAQ and forum but can't find answers I need. 
> Specifically:
> 1) Is it better to set up the CoA before I start, or import first and then
> edit accounts later?  I assumed the former, but not 100% sure.

In my opinion, it is better to set up the CoA and then you can map the
QIF Accounts to GnuCash Asset/Liabilities and then QIF Categories and
Memo/Payees to GnuCash Income/Expense accounts.

If you import and then switch stuff around, the importer will not know
about the moves and future mappings will be incorrect.

> 2) Is it better to import one account at a time, or all together with
> multiple qif files?  I have seen both suggested...

IMHO, it depends.  Sometimes it is better to do it all at once;
sometimes it is better to do it piecemeal.  I think the best thing is to
try it and see.  You can always quit without saving to "start over".

> 3) Would it help to import, say, one year of data to train the druid and
> then the rest?

It depends on how consistent your data is.

The payee/memo matcher in the QIF importer always works on full strings,
so if you have entries like "QuickTrip 1234567" and then "QuickTrip
2345678", the importer will not be able to match them the same.

> Thanks in advance for your help.

Hope this helps,

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-derek

-- 
       Derek Atkins                 617-623-3745
       derek at ihtfp.com             www.ihtfp.com
       Computer and Internet Security Consultant