Skip to main content
QuickBooks Logo The QuickBooks Web Connector (QBWC) integration automatically syncs your Cedar ARMS invoices to QuickBooks Desktop as Sales Orders. This keeps your accounting records in sync without manual data entry.

​
Overview

This integration requires QuickBooks Desktop (Pro, Premier, or Enterprise). If you use the cloud product, see QuickBooks Online setup.
The integration works by:
  1. Running on a schedule you configure in QuickBooks Web Connector
  2. Fetching invoice charges that are eligible under your configured QBWC billing statuses
  3. Creating or updating Sales Orders in QuickBooks Desktop
  4. Tracking sync status to ensure data consistency
By default, only Invoiced charges are eligible, so they are fetched after invoice finalization. Cedar can also configure QBWC to include Assigned charges for synchronization before finalization.

​
What is QuickBooks Web Connector?

QuickBooks Web Connector (QBWC) is a free application from Intuit that enables third-party applications like Cedar to exchange data with QuickBooks Desktop. It runs in the background on your Windows computer and periodically syncs data between Cedar and your QuickBooks company file.

Official Setup Guide

Intuit’s official guide for installing and configuring QBWC

Download QBWC

Get the latest version from Intuit Developer

Troubleshooting Errors

Fix common QBWC error codes (QBWC1005, QBWC1006, etc.)

Programmer's Guide (PDF)

Detailed technical documentation from Intuit

​
Prerequisites

Before setting up the integration, ensure you have:
  • QuickBooks Desktop (Pro, Premier, or Enterprise) installed
  • QuickBooks Web Connector installed — download from Intuit and follow their official setup guide
  • Administrator access to both QuickBooks and your Cedar account
  • Customers configured in QuickBooks with names matching the GL numbers in Cedar
  • Service items configured in QuickBooks matching your Cedar service types
If you’re new to QuickBooks Web Connector, we recommend reviewing Intuit’s official setup guide first. It includes screenshots and detailed instructions for installing and configuring QBWC.

​
Setup

1

Request QBWC credentials

Contact Cedar support to enable the QuickBooks Web Connector integration for your account. You’ll receive:
  • A QWC file (QuickBooks Web Connector configuration file)
  • A password for authentication
Keep your QBWC password secure. It provides access to sync data between Cedar and QuickBooks.
2

Add the application to QuickBooks Web Connector

  1. Open QuickBooks Web Connector
  2. Click Add an Application
  3. Select the QWC file provided by Cedar
  4. When prompted, open your QuickBooks company file
  5. Authorize the Cedar application to access your QuickBooks data
3

Enter your password

In QuickBooks Web Connector:
  1. Find the Cedar application in the list
  2. Click in the Password column
  3. Enter the password provided by Cedar support
  4. Check the box to save the password
4

Test with manual syncs first

Before enabling automatic sync, run several manual syncs to verify the integration works correctly:
  1. Click Update Selected to run a manual sync
  2. Check that the sync completes without errors
  3. Verify Sales Orders appear in QuickBooks matching your Cedar invoices
  4. Review the data mapping (customers, service items, amounts)
  5. Run 2-3 more manual syncs to confirm consistency
If the sync behavior is not what you expect (wrong customers, missing items, incorrect amounts), do not enable auto-sync. Contact Cedar support at support@cedarai.com to resolve any issues before proceeding.
5

Enable automatic sync

Once you’ve verified the integration works correctly with manual syncs:
  1. Select the Cedar application
  2. Set the Auto-Run interval (e.g., every 30 minutes)
  3. Enable Auto-Run
We recommend syncing every 15-30 minutes during business hours to keep your accounting data current without overloading the system.

​
How Invoices Are Synced

​
Invoice to Sales Order Mapping

Each Cedar invoice becomes a Sales Order in QuickBooks:

​
Charge to Line Item Mapping

Each charge on an invoice becomes a line item:
The line item description includes the railcar number (e.g., “BNSF 123456 | Storage | Railcar Storage”) to help you identify specific equipment on the invoice.

​
Sync Behavior

The examples below distinguish the default Invoiced-only policy from a connection configured to include Assigned charges.

​
New Invoices Under the Default Policy

Under the default Invoiced-only policy, finalizing an invoice makes its charges eligible:
  1. The next QBWC sync picks up the new invoice
  2. A new Sales Order is created in QuickBooks
  3. The sync status is tracked to prevent duplicates
When Assigned is enabled, eligible Assigned charges can synchronize before invoice finalization. QBWC creates or updates the Desktop Sales Order using the charges whose statuses are currently enabled.

​
Updated Invoices

When eligible charges are added or removed from an existing invoice:
  1. The QBWC sync detects the change
  2. The existing Sales Order in QuickBooks is updated
  3. Line items are replaced with the charges that remain eligible under the configured billing statuses

​
Unfinalized Invoices Under the Default Policy

Under the default Invoiced-only policy, unfinalizing a synced invoice makes its charges ineligible:
  1. The QBWC sync detects that the invoice no longer has eligible charges
  2. The Sales Order is deleted from QuickBooks
  3. You can re-finalize and synchronize it again when ready
When Assigned is enabled, unfinalization does not necessarily delete the Desktop Sales Order. The Sales Order remains and is updated as long as at least one charge remains eligible under the configured billing statuses. QBWC deletes it only after no eligible charges remain.

​
Configuration Checklist

Before syncing, ensure the following items are configured correctly in both Cedar and QuickBooks. Most sync errors can be resolved by checking these settings.

​
Cedar Configuration

1

Set up General Ledger (GL) Numbers

Each Customer Location in Cedar must have a GL Number configured. This GL number is used to match the customer in QuickBooks.In Cedar ARMS:
  1. Go to the Customer Location settings
  2. Find the General Ledger Number field
  3. Enter a value that matches the customer name in QuickBooks (or note it to create a matching customer in QuickBooks)
Charges without a GL number on their customer location will not sync to QuickBooks. They are intentionally skipped to prevent errors.
2

Configure Service Types

Each Service Type used on charges must match a Service Item name in QuickBooks exactly.You can either:
  • Update service types in Cedar to match existing QuickBooks items, OR
  • Create new service items in QuickBooks to match Cedar’s service types
Common service types include:
  • Storage
  • Switching
  • Demurrage
  • Handling
3

Verify Rate Configuration

For accurate rate and quantity display in QuickBooks:
  • Charges with rate information will show the rate and calculated quantity
  • Charges without rate information will show the total amount as the rate with quantity = 1
To ensure rates sync correctly, configure your rates in Cedar’s rate management. The rate is extracted from the charge’s rate information.
4

Confirm the Billing Status Policy

The default QBWC policy synchronizes only Invoiced charges. Under that policy:
  1. Create charges in ARMS
  2. Assign charges to an invoice
  3. Finalize the invoice to set charges to “Invoiced” status
Cedar can configure QBWC to include Assigned charges when your accounting workflow needs an earlier sync. With that configuration, Assigned charges can appear in QuickBooks before invoice finalization. Ask your Cedar administrator which statuses are enabled for your connection.

​
QuickBooks Configuration

If you already have customers and service items in QuickBooks, you can skip creating new ones and instead update the GL numbers and service types in Cedar to match your existing QuickBooks data.
1

Match or Create Customers

Each GL number in Cedar must correspond to a Customer in QuickBooks. You can either:Option A: Update Cedar to match QuickBooks
  • Set the GL number in Cedar to match an existing QuickBooks customer name
Option B: Create customers in QuickBooks to match Cedar
  1. Go to Customers → Customer Center
  2. Click New Customer & Job → New Customer
  3. Enter the Customer Name exactly matching the GL number in Cedar
Names must match exactly, including capitalization and special characters.
2

Match or Create Service Items

Each service type in Cedar must correspond to a Service Item in QuickBooks. You can either:Option A: Update Cedar to match QuickBooks
  • Change your service types in Cedar to match existing QuickBooks service item names
Option B: Create service items in QuickBooks to match Cedar
  1. Go to Lists → Item List
  2. Click Item → New
  3. Select Service as the item type
  4. Enter the Item Name exactly matching the Cedar service type
3

Verify Active Status

Ensure customers and service items are Active in QuickBooks. Inactive items will cause sync errors.

​
Quick Reference: What Must Match

The GL numbers and service types in Cedar must match the customer names and service items in QuickBooks. You can update either system to make them match — whichever is easier for your workflow.
Already have customers and items in QuickBooks? Instead of creating new ones, you can update the GL numbers and service types in Cedar to match your existing QuickBooks data.

​
Troubleshooting

For QBWC-specific error codes (QBWC1005, QBWC1006, QBWC1007, etc.), see Intuit’s official guide: Fix common Web Connector errors
  • Verify your password is entered correctly in QBWC
  • Ensure the password hasn’t expired (contact Cedar support if needed)
  • Check that QuickBooks is open and logged in during sync
Charges require a General Ledger (GL) Number on the customer location to sync. Check that:
  1. The customer location in Cedar has a GL number configured
  2. The GL number matches a customer name in QuickBooks
  3. The charge has a billing status enabled for your QBWC connection
The default policy requires Invoiced charges. Assigned charges are eligible only when Cedar has configured that status for your connection. Charges without a GL number are intentionally skipped to prevent errors in QuickBooks.
The customer name in QuickBooks must exactly match the GL number configured in Cedar. To fix:
  1. Check the GL number on the customer location in Cedar
  2. Ensure a customer with that exact name exists in QuickBooks
  3. Create the customer in QuickBooks if missing
  4. Verify the customer is Active (not inactive)
Each service type in Cedar must have a matching Service Item in QuickBooks. To fix:
  1. Check which service types are on the failing invoice in Cedar
  2. Create matching Service Items in QuickBooks (Lists → Item List → New → Service)
  3. Ensure the names match exactly (case-sensitive)
  4. Verify the item is Active
The integration extracts rate information from the charge’s rate configuration:
  • If rate info exists: displays the rate and calculated quantity (amount ÷ rate)
  • If no rate info: displays the total amount as rate with quantity = 1
To fix, ensure your rates are properly configured in Cedar’s rate management.
This can happen if a sync was interrupted. The next sync will automatically update the existing Sales Order instead of creating a duplicate.
If invoices are stuck in a pending state:
  1. Close and reopen QuickBooks Web Connector
  2. Click Update Selected to force a manual sync
  3. Contact Cedar support if the issue persists
This happens when an invoice no longer has charges eligible under your configured QBWC billing-status policy. Under the default Invoiced-only policy, unfinalizing an invoice makes its charges ineligible and the corresponding Sales Order is automatically deleted from QuickBooks.To restore it under the default policy, re-finalize the invoice in Cedar. It will synchronize again on the next run.

​
Best Practices

Keep QuickBooks open

QBWC requires QuickBooks to be open and logged in during sync. Consider running it on a dedicated workstation.

Sync during business hours

Schedule syncs during times when QuickBooks is actively used to ensure the company file is open.

Review sync logs

Periodically check QBWC logs for errors and address customer/item mapping issues promptly.

Configure GL numbers

Ensure all customer locations have GL numbers configured before finalizing invoices.

​
Getting Help

If you encounter issues not covered here:

Related topics

QuickBooks OnlineAccounting IntegrationsIntroductionWorkflow Effect WebhooksTrain Arrival Webhook