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File will not open

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    #1

    File will not open

    Database will not open on new computer.
    I am running Alpha 5v4 and am transferring files to a new computer by burning CDs. Each of my databases will open on the new computer except one. They all open on the old computer. All I get is a dimmed-out default icon with the name underneath. No icons for forms, browses etc. I tried copying the .dbf file to a new folder and when I double click on it get the message, �Unexpected file format.� It also will not open from previous backup CDs and from a floppy I copied the files to. It will open in the old computer but always the same results on the new one.
    As a last resort, I burned a new disc and did not close it so that it could be written to. The database opens from the CD on the old machine but returns the same results as before on the new computer.
    Is there a fix or will I have to re-enter all my data?
    Frank Mills
    Tags: None
    #2
    RE: File will not open

    Frank,

    Three things come quickly to mind.

    1) Verify that the entire collection of database files is no longer marked 'read only' after the transfer from CD. As others have noted, many CD burners automatically set the read only attribute when creating a CD.

    2) View the 'details' of the tables in your misbehaving database. Since they're showing 'dimmed out' it's likely Alpha Five is expecting to find them in a different folder than that in which the database itself now resides. You may have to copy the tables to the new database folder and 'add' them to the database all over again. This kind of problem results when the original database includes tables that are located in folders different from that in which the database, itself, lives.

    3) An error may have occurred in the process of burning the CD.

    -- tom

    Comment

      #3
      RE: File will not open

      Tom,
      Thanks for your prompt reply to my problem. I followed your suggestions and none of the files was �read only.�
      I added the .dbf file to the existing database with the dimmed out icon and the default icon displayed OK and all forms, browses etc. The only problem is that when I attempt to open any of them the message, �Unable to find or open memo field� is displayed.
      Can you fix this one?
      Frank

      Comment

        #4
        RE: File will not open

        Hi Frank,
        Your transferred copy is missing the .fpt file(s) which are the memo files. Copy those over too and all should be well.

        Mick

        Comment

          #5
          RE: File will not open

          Mick,
          Thanks for your suggestion about the .FPT files. Each of my databases is in its own folder and there is no .FPT file in the problem program on the old or new computer. However, it opens OK on the old computer.
          I searched my C drive for .FPT files and the only one I found with the correct name was in an Alpha 4 folder. I copied it into the new computer with no positive results. I found a file, shared.fpt, and copied it in also with no results.
          Apparently, it is finding the correct .fpt file somewhere in another folder. If this theory is correct, is there a way to find the path?
          Frank

          Comment

            #6
            RE: File will not open

            Frank,

            On the old computer it's possible to get the details showing the path to each table that's in a database using the Alpha Five control panel.

            Select the Tables and Sets tab page, and then right click on white space in the tabbed object. Select View, and then Details.

            -- tom

            Comment

              #7
              RE: File will not open

              Tom,
              I've tried to find a .FPT file to allow me to open my database without success.
              The basic question is, "If a database with a memo field will open without a .FPT file on one computer, why won't it open without a .FPT file on another computer?"
              Frank

              Comment

                #8
                RE: File will not open

                Frank,

                I'm at a loss to explain what you are reporting.

                It's odd that the only FPT which you found was in the Alpha Four directory. Alpha Four uses DBT files for memo data, not FPT files.

                When Alpha Five reads a DBT file for the first time it saves it as a new FPT file.

                The presence of the FPT file in your alpha Four directory suggests that part of your original (old) database is mapped to the Alpha Four folder. This can be verified by checking the details for each table in the problem database, as I have outlined previously. If my surmise is correct I suggest that you copy the DBF, CDX, and FPT files out of the alpha four folder and store them in the folder where your alpha five database resides. Then 'drop' the table from your database. Then 'add' your table to the database, being careful to refer to the copy that now lives in your database folder. This should remove the hard coded path which probably now is present in your database dictionary. Your database should work normally on the old machine when this is finished. I suggest that you verify that. Then copy the entire database to your new machine.

                It's imperative that you create safety backups of the problem database before undertaking this suggested solution. Since I'm not there at your workstation I'm making some assumptions about the existing situation, and they may be wrong.

                -- tom

                Comment

                  #9
                  RE: File will not open

                  Tom,
                  I have tried all of your suggestions within the limits of my computer knowledge but still cannot open my database.
                  After searching all .FPT files on my old computer C: drive the only one with an appropriate name was in Alpha4V4 folder, as I reported previously. After copying the file into the folder on my new computer without success, I made a folder Alpha4V4 and copied the .FPT file into it, thinking that that was the path it was looking for. That did not work.
                  Lastly, I deleted the .FPT file to the recycle bin, leaving no .FPT files with a name appropriate to the problem database anywhere on my old computer. It still opens and displays the memo field.
                  Thanks for the time you spent on this. I decided to print everything from the old computer and re-enter it on the new one.
                  Frank

                  Comment

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