Moving application to a new computer

[Marc Reicher]

Hello All,

I have a question about moving an application from one computer to another.

I have my main computer and a laptop. I want to set up A5 on the laptop as a backup and for testing. All the associated files of the database (I believe) are in one folder.

First question:

How do I initially set up the application on the laptop so that it has an empty database.

Next question:

As time goes on I will make updates to my application, adding fields, changing rules etc. How will the laptop database keep up on the changing definition?

Also, what steps (and which files) do I copy (and not copy) when i want to put a new application over to the laptop each time I make changes without losing the data that is already there?

thanks for your time in advance

marc

[davej]

Marc,

1. Copy the database folder from the main computer to the laptop (keeping the folder names the same on both computers works best). I use a USB flash drive for this.

2. How do I initially set up the application on the laptop so that it has an empty database.
marc

2. Load the database on the laptop, open the control panel, click on Table on the Alpha menu bar, Utilities and then Empty the Table. Check the Pack table after emptying? checkbox (this will get rid of the space that the just deleted records took up). Repeat for all the tables and when you are done, the laptop will have the same database, but all the tables will be empty.

3. As time goes on I will make updates to my application, adding fields, changing rules etc. How will the laptop database keep up on the changing definition?
marc

3. There are a number of ways to do this, but I find the easiest way is to copy the entire folder from the main computer to the laptop and name it "name_11_30", substituting your name for 'name' and the then current date for '11_30'. This works best for me with the added advantage that I can go back to the previous (or older) copy of the database.

4. Also, what steps (and which files) do I copy (and not copy) when i want to put a new application over to the laptop each time I make changes without losing the data that is already there?
marc

4. Not sure what you mean here. If you are talking about copying an update to a database from the main computer to the laptop, 2 answers that. If you are talking about a different database, just copy it as I explained above in 1 above.

Good luck

[cawalton1]

Moving application which has several folders?

Dave, my problem is similar to Dave's except that I have my application drawing from several folders. I would prefer to consolidate into one folder, since the other folders are no longer used fro their original use, but merely copying them to the applcation did not move the data. The application still goes to the older folders.
I've had the church library on my computer for years, but it is now time to move it to the church where I can train some one to take it over. I have licenses for both home and the church.
My application got messed up a couple of time in the past by power failures and a mother board meldown and I am now replacing my C drive.
As far as I can tell, I've got a mess here.

[davej]

Moving Application to Another Computer

Clifford,

Having an application (current PC term is database) drawing data from tables in multiple folder is, at best, problematic. You should copy everything relating to the specific database (the tables, memo files, etc.) into the same folder. Use Windows Explorer to do that. When you are done, open the application, go to the control panel and click on the Tables/Sets tab.

Anywhere on the white space, right click the mouse and select Add Table/Set.... You will see a list of all the tables in the current folder. Select the tables you want from the left side and add the to the right side. When you are done, click OK and close the dialog. Now, on the CP, you will see the tables that you just added to the database. Adding tables in this manner is different from just copying them into the folder.

You should now be able to access the just added tables just like any previously existing tables. Test the access until you are comfortable that everything works as it should. What you might want to do is navigate to the 'older' tables wherever they reside and rename them. I usually add an 'x' as the first letter of the name. Test the database again and, if anything is still looking back to the old folder, you should get an error message telling you that the file doesn't exist, or cannot be found. You might have some minimal cleaning up to do, but it shouldn't be much.

When everything works, you can then delete everything that you added the 'x' to.

When you replace the C drive, make sure you name the new drive exactly the same as the old one, or Alpha will choke. Assuming you are running Windows XP, click Start, Control Panel, System and on the System Properties window, click on the Computer Name tab.

If you have any problems, give me a call and I'll do my best to talk you through the process - 318-949-4342 - I'm in the CTZ (Louisiana).

Dave

[DickJames]

As time goes on I will make updates to my application, adding fields, changing rules etc. How will the laptop database keep up on the changing definition?

Also, what steps (and which files) do I copy (and not copy) when i want to put a new application over to the laptop each time I make changes without losing the data that is already there?

Marc --

I have been developing an application on one computer and testing it on another for about a year. As long as you don't add new tables or fields, you can use the standard backup utility in A5 (Tools, Backup/Restore in Control Panel), but only back up the application files -- (uncheck the data files) -- and then restore the application files on your laptop. Your previous test data should remain.

If you add tables or fields on your development computer, then you must also add them on your test computer. You can do this manually or you can do it programatically. I found an Xbasic routine in the help files which I copied and put on a button. Whenever I add a new field, I programatically add the field using a5_add_fields_to_table(). You might look this over in the help files.

-- Dick James

[cawalton1]

Dave, thanks. I have them all in one folder now, EXCEPT one. I have not been able to copy/move/add etc. this one dbf. I'm giving up now. I've got to move on to getting this application onto another computer.
Thanks again.

[cawalton1]

Dave, more problems. When I used backup to create a copy to transfer to my second computer, and then used restore, the OLD, not wanted folders showed when listing details in the "tables" display.
Does this mean that I was not successful in moving the files in the first place?

[davej]

Moving Application to Another Computer

Clifford,

Dave, more problems. When I used backup to create a copy to transfer to my second computer, and then used restore, the OLD, not wanted folders showed when listing details in the "tables" display.
Does this mean that I was not successful in moving the files in the first place?

If the old unwanted folders show along with the newer wanted folders, the restore was successful, or you wouldn't see the new file names.

In the CP, you can right click the tables/sets that you do not want and select 'Drop Table from Database' and that will get rid of them.

Assuming both computers are running the same OS and both have a copy of A5V6, I woluld suggest that you either use a USB flash drive, or do the transfer across your home network (if you have one). I've never personally used backup/restore (one reason being that the only drives that seem to be available are drive A and any installed hard drives), so I can't speak to any possible issues using that method. I do know that if you use a CD as the transfer medium, some of the files are set to 'Read Only' and you have to change that. All in all, I've just found that copying to/from a USB drive is simple and fast - especially when the two computers are not co-located.

Dave