Solved

Why does QuickBooks Online log me out while I'm actively working, and how can I extend my session?

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
November 17, 2019
56 replies
181 views

Does this application have a time limit for each sessions?

QuickBooks Online

Best answer by sofiamdc-2341

QuickBooks Online automatically signs you out after a period of inactivity. This is a security feature designed to protect your data when you step away. By default, the session limit is set to 1 hour, but you can extend it up to 3 hours. Just keep in mind that only the Primary Admin or Master Administrator can change this setting, and the change will apply to everyone in your company.

How to change the timeout setting

Go to Settings, then select Account and Settings.
Select Advanced.
Select the Edit icon from the Other preferences section.
In the Sign me out if inactive for dropdown, choose 1, 2, or 3 hours.
Select Save, then Done.

How QuickBooks measures inactivity

QuickBooks Online measures inactivity based on the last time you moved your mouse, clicked, or typed inside a transaction form. If you work in other browser tabs or windows while leaving QuickBooks open in the background, the app still counts that time as inactive. Because of this, your session can sometimes time out even when it feels like you've been actively working.

Also, a brief drop in your internet connection can end your QuickBooks session, even if it's so quick that you don't notice it on other websites.

If you're being signed out sooner than your setting

Try signing in through a private or incognito browser window to rule out a browser cache issue. If that works, clear your regular browser's cache and cookies, then try again.

Google Chrome: Ctrl + Shift + N
Mozilla Firefox: Ctrl + Shift + P
Safari: Command + Shift + N
Microsoft Edge: Ctrl + Shift + N

For the QuickBooks Online desktop app, try resetting the app data first. Go to Help and select Reset App Data. If the issue continues, uninstalling and reinstalling the app from quickbooks.intuit.com/online/apps is the next step.

Got more questions about your sign-in experience or session settings in QuickBooks? We're happy to help.

Helpful Resource: Change the timeout duration in QuickBooks Online

Rustler

Level 15

Yes it does and you set it in company settings, automation I think but it not it is there somewhere. max is 3 hours and you get logged out

IamjuViel

Level 8

Hello, @p-breau.

@Rustler is correct! You can set your account's time-out preference in the Account and Settings page.

Here's how:

Go to the Gear Icon.
Choose Account and Settings.
Select the Advanced menu.
Scroll down to the Other Preferences section.
Click the Pencil Icon.
In the Sign me out if inactive for drop-down, select 3 hours.
Click Save.
Hit Done.

To learn more about resolving browser-related issues when navigating around QuickBooks Online, you can read through these articles:

Swing by here in the Community if you have other questions. I'm just a few clicks away.

M

matt_naifeh

@IamjuViel

So your telling me I can only work for 2 hours and 59 mins max then I will be logged out? Why isn't there a warning that I am fixing to be logged and EVERYTHING I have typed up is about to be deleted??? I just lost half of an estimate because I was logged out before I could hit the save button AGAIN. This has happened SOOOOOOOOO many time I am about ready to switch back to doing everything in an excel spread sheet, at least I know I won't lose hours of work.

U

Unicomp

Why only (3) hours? And, even though I have (2) step verification turned off, it keeps doing it.

So, now, not only do I have to login at least (5) times per day, (today was (7) times), I have to go all the way out and start over and (2) step verify.

I am a sole proprietor, and there is no one that is getting into my login here. Further, it should be my choice.

WHY? Shouldn't we be able to shut this off completely?

It seems to me a lot of choices are being taken away from us, and I do not have time for this.

Q

questionasker

I've easily lost half a day of work today because QuickBooks Online logged me out in the middle of entering a budget 3 times. The program was not inactive. I was in the middle of typing. It takes me back to the sign-in screen. I log back in and it takes me back to the page that I was on. However, if I try to hit "save" then, it says that something has gone wrong and logs me out again. Then when I log back in, I'm back on the home page and all of my previous unsaved work was lost. I don't know what to do at this point besides hit save after every single line. Fix this, Intuit.

T

TirzahC

Level 4

Hello, questionasker

The QuickBooks system uses a timeout duration feature that helps prevent unauthorized persons from accessing your data when you're away from your computer. Then, measures your time of inactivity from the last time you moved your mouse, clicked or used your keyboard on any transaction form.

Additionally, I'd encourage you not to log into your QBO account using a different browser at the same time. Once the other one got kicked out, you'll automatically be logged out as well using your default browser. Then, you can perform some troubleshooting steps to help isolate any browser-related issues.

Let's consider accessing the website and logging into your account using a private browser so we can isolate this issue. To do so:

Google Chrome: Ctrl + Shift + N
Internet Explorer: Ctrl + Shift + P
Mozilla Firefox: Ctrl + Shift + P
Safari: Command + Option + P

If this works, you can clear your regular browser's cache so the system can start fresh.

Additionally, I've also included this reference for a compilation of articles you can use while working with us: Help Articles for QuickBooks Online.

Keep me posted on how it goes. If you have other QBO feature concerns, let me know in the comments below. I'll be glad to help. Take care and stay safe always.

J

JWolf1

QuickBooks needs to stop automatically logging you out. It is a stupid feature that does far more to annoy users that it does to safeguard against a person dumb enough to leave a computer logged in where someone else can access it. Note that it doesn't stop anyone from using your computer for up to three hours before logging them out, but if you use multiple pages, which I do all day, it makes you repeatedly log in multiple times over the course of a day.

A

ATM2022

Adding my voice to the discontent on this.

In the middle of an invoice, less than two hours after I first logged in, I was logged out and lost all of the line entries I'd made - of which there were MANY. Signed back in. Worked for a bit. Went to access a recurring billing, and BOOM. Logged out again!

I have the time set at three hours. Clearly that feature isn't working.

YOU NEED TO FIX THIS. Please.

(Oh, and to add insult to injury... How is it that you can autosave my post in the community while I'm in the middle of writing it, but you can't autosave my changes in QBO so I don't lose everything when you decide to log me out for no reason at all? The irony!!!!)

L

LeizylM

QuickBooks Team

This isn't the kind of experience we want you to have when using QuickBooks, Info-at-All-time.

I'd like to help and share what I know about the log-out time feature.

QuickBooks Online time-out function is designed for the security of your data especially when you're away from your computer for several minutes or hours. When you set your timeout duration to a specific setting (1, 2, or 3 hours), you'll remain signed in that long before being logged out for inactivity.

QuickBooks Online measures your time of inactivity from the last time you moved your mouse, clicked, or used your keyboard on any transaction form. If you are timed out, sign back into your company to continue where you left off.

I got the point on how important to keep things before automatically logging out in QuickBooks. With that, I'd recommend saving everything before the maximum hours end. It's how to keep all the transactions entered into the program.

At the moment, we're still using the time duration to stay logged on in QuickBooks. While the auto-saving of transactions isn't an option, you can send a product request about this feature.

Here are the steps you can follow:

Go to the Gear icon.
Select Feedback.
Enter your comments or product suggestions.
Then, select Next to submit feedback.

In addition, you can check out this article in case you experience an issue when signing in to your account: Get help if you can't sign in to your QuickBooks Online account.

You can always post here if you have further questions about the time-off feature. We're all right here to help anytime.

A

ATM2022

>> QuickBooks Online time-out function is designed for the security of your data especially when you're away from your computer for several minutes or hours. When you set your timeout duration to a specific setting (1, 2, or 3 hours), you'll remain signed in that long before being logged out for inactivity.

Thank you for your reply, but that is absolutely NOT TRUE. My day started at 9am. By 11am, I had been logged out at least 3-4 times. I don't remember now - it's such a frequent occurrence that it's hard to keep track.

Clearly, by the number of replies and kudos on this thread, this is a serious issue that should be addressed by QuickBooks. You're great at figuring out how to charge us for features we don't want or need, but sadly, seem to be incapable of fixing the ones that are critical to operations.

L

lauren potter

Adding to this discussion, this is the single most frustrating part of my day. I understand signing you out if you are INACTIVE. but clearly this system is BROKEN because it logs you out when you are in the middle of typing. CLEARLY I AM ACTIVE!!!! I go to save a massive journal entry I've been working on for about an hour and I get "something went wrong" or some other annoying error. I have to close the journal entry without saving (and it even prompts me to save but again.... I can't because the system has logged me out in the background) And of course as soon as I try to refresh the page to clear the error I am prompted to login again. By this point I know the drill and know that the "something went wrong" error means the system has logged me out so my only option is to close the journal entry and LOSE EVERYTHING and start over and TRY to get it all done in the time window that QB gives me. Oh, and because its a JE, I can't save until its balanced so there is no way to "save as you go"

THIS IS SO IRRITATING QUICKBOOKS!

FIX THIS!

DON'T LOG ME OUT WHEN I AM STILL WORKING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A

AbegailS_

Level 6

Hi there, @lauren potter.

I understand you're in a tough spot here, and this isn't something we want you to experience while using QuickBooks.

I've checked here on my end and there's no reported case about this issue. There are times when a browser's cache data becomes full of the frequently accessed web or damaged. To better isolate this issue, let's try signing in to your QBO account using a private or incognito window. This mode doesn't use the existing cache data and helps us confirm browser-related issues. Let me show you how:

For Google Chrome browser: Ctrl + Shift + N
For Mozilla Firefox browser: Ctrl + Shift + P
For Safari browser: Command + Option + P

Once done and it works, go back to your regular browser and clear the cache to delete those temporarily stored files and browsing history. The overtime collection of data can create corruption, however, removing this should fix the issue. You can also use other supported, up-to-date browsers to roll out the possibility of a browser-related issue.

If the issue persists, I recommend contacting our QuickBooks Live Team. That way, they can create a case and forward it to our Product Team for further investigation.

Additionally, you may want to review this article in the future that enables you to extend your time limit before the system automatically logs you out when idling: Change the timeout duration in QuickBooks Online.

Please let me know in the comment on how it goes, and if you have other concerns, you can always include them here. Anytime I'll be around to help. Stay safe and well.

P

phylwith

New Member

This is a problem on both the windows app and the mac app for Quickbooks Online. The "sign me out after xx hours of inactivity" does not work. The application logs us out at random times, whether we are using the app or it is idle. The problem seems worse on the the app for QBO than using a browser. Please fix this!

R

ReymondO

Moderator

Thanks for joining the thread, @phylwith.

We want to ensure that you have a seamless experience using the QuickBooks Online app on your Windows or Mac devices. Since you're still getting the same results after setting the "Sign me out if inactive for XX hours", I'd suggest some troubleshooting steps. Let's start by refreshing the program to prevent any disruptions while using QuickBooks. Here's how:

Refresh your QBO app by clicking Help.
Select Reset App Data.

If the issue persists, we may need to uninstall and reinstall the QBO application. Here's a quick guide to do it, or you can visit the link here to reinstall the app directly. Simply scroll down to the Get the QuickBooks Mac or Windows App section, then click the Free Download button.

If the problem continues, I suggest reaching out to our QuickBooks Team so they can conduct a thorough investigation and resolve the issue.

Feel free to post here if you have any further questions about the timeout feature. We're here to help at any time.

R

RickCoplin

I'm using QBO app on my Mac Studio with Ventura 13.5.

QBO RANDOMLY logs me out while I am typing.

In advanced settings, I have the log out set to after three hours of INACTIVITY. QBO insists on random logouts DURING ACTIVITY which cause a loss of work.

I've read through multiple threads on QB's site, such as this one.

In these threads the "experts" (just bots?) point to the users as having the issue. They're wrong.

QB has an interface problem and those who monitor threads (just bots?) brush it off. There are "solutions" like clearing a browser cache, but these do not address real problem with QB software.

I was aslo logged out while reading this thread, about 20 monutes after I logged into QBO via a browser.

Please fix this "feature."

A

Anonymous

This is not the experience we want our users to have with QuickBooks, Rick.

I can share information to stop your QuickBooks Online application account from logging out of the system.

The application logs you out from the system when you sign in to QBO in a browser or vice versa. In this concept, you'll have to log in only on one platform for some time. For example, for this hour, you will use the browser and for the next hour on a QBO mobile application.

At the moment, we're still using the time duration to stay logged on in QuickBooks. While the auto-saving of transactions isn't an option, you can perform some troubleshooting steps to fix the performance issue:

Here's how:

Go to your device's Settings and select Setting General iPhone Storage.
Choose an app that's taking up a lot of space.
To free up the storage without deleting the documents and data for the app, select the Offload App.

If the issue persists, we may need to uninstall and reinstall the QBO application. Here's a quick guide to do it, or you can visit the link here to reinstall the app directly.

Other than this, I suggest contacting our Care Support team. They have tools to pull up your account to review what's totally causing this issue and other ways to fix it by using their means.

Additionally, you may want to review this article in the future that enables you to extend your time limit before the system automatically logs you out when idling: Change the timeout duration in QuickBooks Online.

If you require further assistance managing your QBO account or related matters, reply to this thread. I am here to support you at any time.

R

RickCoplin

Your response is total BS.

I was not logged into the browser version until I came to the community to serch for an answer.

I was logged out yesterday over 20 times while using QBO desktop on my Mac.

WTF does an iPhone have to do with this issue? I did not mention that in my comment, nor was I using an iPhone.

The article you mention is TOTALLY USELESS as it deals with resetting the INACTIVITY timeout. From the instructions: "Choose 1, 2, or 3 hours from the Sign me out if inactive for ▼ dropdown menu.”

The logouts I am expericning are WHILE ACTIVELY USING QBO.

Do you have a solution or is it still my issue?

sofiamdc-2341

Answer

Community Manager

QuickBooks Online automatically signs you out after a period of inactivity. This is a security feature designed to protect your data when you step away. By default, the session limit is set to 1 hour, but you can extend it up to 3 hours. Just keep in mind that only the Primary Admin or Master Administrator can change this setting, and the change will apply to everyone in your company.

How to change the timeout setting

Go to Settings, then select Account and Settings.
Select Advanced.
Select the Edit icon from the Other preferences section.
In the Sign me out if inactive for dropdown, choose 1, 2, or 3 hours.
Select Save, then Done.

How QuickBooks measures inactivity

QuickBooks Online measures inactivity based on the last time you moved your mouse, clicked, or typed inside a transaction form. If you work in other browser tabs or windows while leaving QuickBooks open in the background, the app still counts that time as inactive. Because of this, your session can sometimes time out even when it feels like you've been actively working.

Also, a brief drop in your internet connection can end your QuickBooks session, even if it's so quick that you don't notice it on other websites.

If you're being signed out sooner than your setting

Try signing in through a private or incognito browser window to rule out a browser cache issue. If that works, clear your regular browser's cache and cookies, then try again.

Google Chrome: Ctrl + Shift + N
Mozilla Firefox: Ctrl + Shift + P
Safari: Command + Shift + N
Microsoft Edge: Ctrl + Shift + N

For the QuickBooks Online desktop app, try resetting the app data first. Go to Help and select Reset App Data. If the issue continues, uninstalling and reinstalling the app from quickbooks.intuit.com/online/apps is the next step.

Got more questions about your sign-in experience or session settings in QuickBooks? We're happy to help.

Helpful Resource: Change the timeout duration in QuickBooks Online

How to change the timeout setting

How QuickBooks measures inactivity

If you're being signed out sooner than your setting

How to change the timeout setting

How QuickBooks measures inactivity

If you're being signed out sooner than your setting

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