[GNC] Upgrading or starting fresh?

[Adrien Monteleone]

On 1/9/24 12:31 PM, Dianna Broughton wrote:
> I previously asked about upgrading from 2.x to the current stable version,
> and may still do that.

No matter what, I'd upgrade to the last of the 2.x series which would be 
2.6.21.

> However, before I do, I have a couple questions.
> 
> 1.      Would it be easier to just download the current stable version and
> start fresh (with opening balances) for 2024, keeping the previous
> version/files backed-up and available for informational purposes, and in
> case of a future audit? Can I have two versions running on the same PC
> (Windows 10)?

As far as I know, you cannot have two separate versions at once on the 
same Windows installation. Starting over is a personal preference. Some 
folks do it every year!

> 2.      If yes to #1, what is the most stable version to download?

That's oddly a personal question at the moment. The 4.x series is pretty 
good for most needs. 5.x introduced a new method for auto-filling text 
based on previous transactions. Some folks like this, some do not. There 
are still kinks to work out. If you are fine with this change, I'd 
recommend 5.4 as 5.5 (the current release) has some new bugs, and a big 
one has to do with report stability on Windows. (they are either blank 
in some cases, or outright crash the program)

So the short answer is 4.14, or 5.4 depending on your preference for the 
auto-fill process. (you'll likely eventually need to move to or past the 
5.x series anyway as 4.x won't be supported forever)

> 3.      I use this software for two small businesses and personal finances,
> but I've never officially closed out my books at year-end. Should I have
> been doing that? Should I do it moving forward?

Not necessarily. That too is a personal preference. The wiki should 
cover the major questions to ask yourself when deciding this.

Even if you chose to close the books, the process is easily reversible, 
as it just adds two transactions each time closing all Expenses & Income 
to Equity. Simply deleting those transactions will 'un-close' the books. 
There is no other magic that happens with that procedure. You could do 
that manually if you wanted to. It is just a shortcut.

> 4.      I really like the current 2.x version I'm using, but I'm concerned
> that it won't be compatible with future operating systems (currently Windows
> 10). That's why I need to upgrade and figure this out.

Some older releases of 2.x were 32-bit. I'm pretty sure the last of the 
2.6.x series were 64-bit. That would be the biggest concern with respect 
to future Windows versions as Windows may eventually drop support for 
32-bit apps. (MacOS did several years ago)

However, one solution here, as well as a solution for keeping multiple 
versions at the same time, is to investigate turning your current 
Windows installation into a Virtual Machine (VM) when it is time to 
either upgrade GnuCash or Windows. Personally, after having upgraded 
GnuCash all along the way, I'd say that is much easier than messing with 
a VM, and even if you have several versions you need to step through 
this time around, you'll only have to do that once. (as long as you keep 
up every other year or so from now on)

Regards,
Adrien