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Damaged DBF File

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    Damaged DBF File

    I have an application that has been running troublefree for many years. Problems have just started and when I examine the dbf file with the default browse view, I can see that in some of the records, some text fields are showing symbols and random characters instead of the original text.
    There are many programs for sale that claim to repair damaged dbf files, can anyone reccommend a good one please, is it repairable? or would I simply be wasting money trying to repair it.
    Many thanx for any advice.
    David Priest

    #2
    Re: Damaged DBF File

    Hi David,

    Apart from asking about repair software, are you saying that the file has become corrupted by using V10?
    Regards
    Keith Hubert
    Alpha Guild Member
    London.
    KHDB Management Systems
    Skype = keith.hubert


    For your day-to-day Needs, you Need an Alpha Database!

    Comment


      #3
      Re: Damaged DBF File

      Thanx Keith, but no, I do not think it has been damaged by V10, cant work out the reason, power interruption, someone not closing down Alpha properly, virus, dont know.
      David

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Damaged DBF File

        I've been working on a project for several months now and all trouble free until the lastest releases. Among other problems I've now just discovered my main file is corrupt. Images missing, memo file displaying the same type of characters you're seeing. I've got lots of backups but I'll be missing some data.

        Comment


          #5
          Re: Damaged DBF File

          Hi David,

          Originally posted by David Priest View Post
          I have an application that has been running troublefree for many years. Problems have just started and when I examine the dbf file with the default browse view, I can see that in some of the records, some text fields are showing symbols and random characters instead of the original text.
          There are many programs for sale that claim to repair damaged dbf files, can anyone reccommend a good one please, is it repairable? or would I simply be wasting money trying to repair it.
          Many thanx for any advice.
          David Priest
          I think if you have backups, it might be a waste of money, but you need to at least identify the bad data, and they might be helpful with that. But here are some thoughts that might be of some help to you.

          Physical Sources of corruption
          In cases I have seen, it is almost always a hardware issue that is the real cause. Network components like network cables, connectors, NIC cards, and the like. Occasionally, it is bad memory, or a bad motherboard corrupting memory, and one time, a long time ago, it was a very fast hard drive controller.

          Software Sources of corruption
          • Alpha crashes but still kind of works - users keep using it without restarting Alpha and/or windows
          • Alpha reports a stack problem, but users keep using it without restarting Alpha
          • Vista/Microsoft - I just had to throw this one in !:D
          Detection
          • There is an alpha tool in the functions to find index file corruptions, and those should be watched to find when failures are starting to happen. Indexes typically get corrupted 1st, but no one realizes it.
          • Weird locking issues are also indicative of a problem.
          • The more highly typed your fields, the easier it is to find issues. For examples, alphabetic characters in dates, times, or numbers where they shouldn't be.
          • Almost always, the data from within a server is corrupted within physical hard drive blocks, so will typically be in a multiple of 4k depending upon how your drive is formatted.
          • Bad Network issues can be any size of bad data but will be intermittent.
          • Workstation motherboards/memory can also be bad at any size but will also be random.
          Ways to Stop them
          • One way to fix an intermittent problem with the dbf server itself is to have a verify after write option. You pay about 5% speed, but it is worth it.
          • Create a transaction file to indicate changed data, who changed them and when
          • Use better hardware.
          • Separate Memo fields into their own linked table
          • Don't use memo fields. The memo field is more likely to be corrupted than the fields in a DBF. Some people just write text files associated with the record.
          • Use SQL instead of DBF
          Fixing them
          • For NIC cards and network, replace the bad one(s), which is extremely difficult to find unless you have clues like valid user ID and time stamps in the same record where data that was corrupted indicate who changed the data.
          • If you have backups, it is best to restore the corrupted records from an older backup that is not corrupted. You may have to go back progressively till you find one that is good.
          • Use a recovery tool. They are not miracle workers, but sometimes can find some missing/corupt data. I used one a long time ago, but nothing recently. Many have trial versions that show you but don't allow recovery.
          • I offer services that can recover Alpha Five AEX files, some memo files and some dictionary corruptions, as well as process the raw data using a variety of parsing tools to look for problems. Some of these are last resorts, as it can be very time-intensive. Backups are always better!
          Regards,

          Ira J. Perlow
          Computer Systems Design


          CSDA A5 Products
          New - Free CSDA DiagInfo - v1.39, 30 Apr 2013
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          Comment


            #6
            Re: Damaged DBF File

            Originally posted by Davidk View Post
            I've got lots of backups but I'll be missing some data.
            Hi David,
            Look back as far as possible in your backupfiles to find out the first moment you had dataproblems. Maybe you have transfered the data from another computer to the current? Important to be sure about that.

            Ton
            Most things are simple but unfortunately only after the first time

            Comment


              #7
              Re: Damaged DBF File

              Originally posted by csda1 View Post
              But here are some thoughts that might be of some help to you.
              Hi Ira,
              Thanks for your recommendations.
              Do you have - in this context - something to say about defragmenting the hard drive?
              Sometimes it can be necessary, but I remain reluctant to use it, but I can not describe real reason. So I have no better idea than only make one additional backup.

              Ton
              Most things are simple but unfortunately only after the first time

              Comment


                #8
                Re: Damaged DBF File

                Ton,
                It seems that you are stuck on 350 posts to this board and have been for quite a while. ;)
                Mike W
                __________________________
                "I rebel in at least small things to express to the world that I have not completely surrendered"

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Damaged DBF File

                  Striking,
                  I've fixed it now.
                  Must be a Damaged DBF file.

                  Thanks for warning
                  Most things are simple but unfortunately only after the first time

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: Damaged DBF File

                    Ira,
                    Don't use memo fields.
                    I realize that this abstinence would insure that a user would never have a memo field issue....but what would you recommend then for lists that a simple (or even multiple) character fields could not handle?? A text file perhaps outside of Alpha??
                    Mike
                    __________________________________________
                    It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.
                    It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
                    Henry David Thoreau
                    __________________________________________



                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: Damaged DBF File

                      Many thanx to everyone for all the help. Thanx Walt for the file repair.
                      To prevent future problems, we have now installed a regular dated backup system...
                      Thanx again

                      David

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