Money 2005 patches for UK, French and International English

Microsoft removed these downloads off from their website recently. I've already had a number of people contact me about obtaining them. I've placed the download links on my main website at the following location http://moneymvps.org/downloads/patches.aspx so that you can still install it and access your Microsoft money file. Glyn

Money 2005 QFE#2 for UK Users (1105 patch)

What is the QFE#2 for the UK users? Maybe an obscure title, but it's really good for Money 2005 UK users. It's the downloadable patch which brings a retail copy of Money 2005 to the 1105 update.

This is the update you need to reopen your Money files, should you need to reinstall later on, such as installing Money on a new PC. This is something that I've had a lot of emails about recently.

Should you reinstall your Money 2005 version, before you open your file, install this update as well and you won't have any issues. If you don't install this update, you'll find that you can't open your file.

If you're using Money 2005 and have no issues, then there is no need to install this update.

The update can be found on the Microsoft Download Site. [Edit 3/3/2013, Microsoft have removed this, please visit Article 649 on my main website instead]

Some of the articles on moneymvps.org will be updated to feature this update shortly.

Money 2005 update still available - but for how much longer?

I've brought up my test system this morning, removed the existing copy of Microsoft Money UK 2005 on it to test whether the update is still being served from Microsoft's servers.

I can report that it is - almost 2 months after the expected take-down of the update. During the update, it can report the expiration of features, these being the online functions, however it's still possible to get the '1105' patch.

Although it is still available, I wonder whether it will be gone tomorrow, next week, next month or if it will still be around in a year's time. It's possible that there hasn't been the need to take it away yet. However it could go at any time, and once it does, that's it, unless you've made your backup (see this article on how to make a patched CD).

My previous posting was intended to ensure those using any 2005 version made their backup. This still applies and is just as urgent as before.

Do it now!

Money 2005 patch download available again

The Money 2005 Service Outage as reported earlier in the week is now fixed.

I received an email around 11pm BST (22:00 GMT) last night informing me. I've also heard from a couple of people confirming this is the case.

If you've been stuck at version 730, you should now try and restart Money and let the download occur. Once done, you may wish to consider making a CD as detailed in FAQ Article 630, BUT make sure you test it if you do!!!.

Thanks for all the comments and questions during the outage. It made the page reporting the problem one of my busiest ever.

Creating a self contained installation of Money 2005 with the 1105 patch

I've just put up a post on http://moneymvps.org with some instructions on how to create a self contained installation of Money 2005 onto CD, so you never need to rely on the Microsoft servers to deliver the patch update again. This fix can be read in FAQ Article 630.

Credit is to Jean-Paul in the French money newsgroup who came up with the solution. I've had feedback that it works on all language versions of Money 2005.

It is probably not legal to share the files that are required from a patched version. You may need to wait until Microsoft sorts out the problem with downloading before performing these instructions.

Updating Money 2005 - Service Outage

I've been informed that currently upgrading Money 2005 from its 'out of the box' version to the patched version (from version 14.0.x.0730 to version 14.0.x.1105) is currently experiencing problems, and so these upgrades don't currently work.

Microsoft is working on the problem. In the meantime you'll probably not be able to open your Money file if you've just done a clean install and need to use an existing file.

As far as I know, it is affecting all regions.

Update: 14 May - I'm hearing that the fix should be ready later in the week, however this is not guaranteed.

16 May: Hearing this morning that things seem to be working again

Retailers with Money in the UK

I've been out of the country a bit recently, as well as having had a short holiday in North Wales.

On my return, I was visiting relatives, and happened to go into a PC World store in Reading, Berkshire. Shops like this are not normally a place I visit, as I usually buy everything I want from Amazon, Play.com and other online retailers, but they are useful for me to browse in, especially if I am looking to buy something in the future and want to get a hands-on look.

I digress though.... what interested me was their software section. After parting myself from 97p for some scooby doo software (and a book) for my son (no idea why this software was so cheap..), and drooling over the 50" plasma screens, I walked around to see if Microsoft Money was on the shelf.

I found a couple of long shelves with 'Financial Software' above them - they were completely empty of all software (just one or two MYOB boxes (the business accounting software) at £199 hiding away at the bottom where it was difficult to see them).

If one of the larger retailers no longer appears to stock the software (didn't have time to find an assistant to check), then that doesn't really bode that well for Microsoft Money in the UK. It's still selling it on Amazon, but even there it appears to be only third party sellers.

Of course, the software is still useable, and even when the quotes are due to expire in December 2009 (the Microsoft link is no longer available), the software can still be used.

It's a pity that Intuit announced the termination of Quicken in the UK, but Microsoft have yet to confirm the suspicions that many people have.

I see a gap in the market which should be exploited by one of the minor players, such as Personal Accountz - if the two big players are gone, people struggling with debt and general tightening of people's finances, what a better time to try and get a product into retail channels.

My day job involves .NET development, but I don't have the time to write a program myself. Many years ago my father wrote one in FoxPro - but neither of us have the program or the code any more, which is a shame as I'd open-source it. I really wish I had the time to write a PFM which addressed the needs as I see them in the marketplace... I am seeking new employment at present, so I'll gladly talk to companies that write such software

End of Support for Money 2005

According to the support lifecycle for Money 2005 (see this page), support ended for Money 2005 yesterday, January 8 2008.

It isn't clear from the lifecycle whether this is all regions, but I would expect so.

Note that quote downloads for Money 2005 for UK users should continue until December 31 2009, as stated on the Money UK Pages

Microsoft Money 2005 Online Services Expiry on 1 September 2007

On September 1st, most people using Microsoft Money 2005 Online services will have found that these expired. This is per the Online Services Policy that you would have accepted when you first used the product.

Microsoft® Money 2005 includes up to two (2) years of Internet-based Services. You will be able to use the Internet-based Services in Microsoft Money 2005 for a period of two (2) years from installation of the product or until September 1, 2007, whichever is earlier. After expiration, if you elect not to upgrade or are unable to upgrade to a version of Microsoft Money that continues to support Microsoft Money 2005 Internet-based Services, you will not be able to automatically update your accounts and investment values in Microsoft Money 2005. You will still be able to view and edit your financial data in Microsoft Money 2005 and to manually update your accounts and investment values. Microsoft may from time to time without notice, automatically download and install onto your computer updates for Microsoft Money, including updates necessary for you to continue to use the Internet-based Services.

Some of the features of Online services can be found at FAQ Article498

To work around this issue, you must upgrade to a later version (Microsoft Money Plus is the latest version).

Note: Microsoft Money UK products did not expire on this date. They will now expire in December 2009.

Change in UK 2005 version expiration?

In recent weeks, the UK product page for Microsoft Money which can be found here was changed to indicate a new date for the expiration of online services.

The date quoted at the bottom of that page is now 31st December 2009 - which is just over 2 more years worth of service.

This will mean that updates continue to work until that date - definitely for new users, but potentially for existing users too.

The linked internet based services policy has not been updated at the time of writing this comment.