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Why did upgrading to 4.8.7 lose my database?

NevWG
over 5 years ago

I have been using BC 4.7 for some time, and decided to upgrade to 4.8.7, and subsequently (without using 4.8.7) to 4.8.8

I keep my database on Dropbox, so that it is accessible to all my devices. When I upgraded, my folders, lists and items reverted to a much earlier version of the database, missing most of my later additions. I went to my laptop, with its WiFi off, and the database there was fairly recent, though not completely up-to-date. After some attempts to restore in various ways, I eventually used Time Machine to revert to BC 4.7 and all is now well: my folders, lists and items are again complete. However, I don't feel I want to upgrade. 

I don't understand how the upgrade could have somehow found an earlier version of the database: the name of the database was unchanged.

This was how 4.8.8 saw the database:

This was how the laptop (4.7) saw apparently the same database:

And this is how BOTH devices now see the -- correct -- database:

The location of the database in Preferences was unchanged.

Any ideas?

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to SUSSAMB

    That's what happens when the images get very small and scroll off the bottom of the window!

    THIS is how 4.8.8 saw the database. Other two images as before. Sorry!!

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to NevWG

    I'm still no wiser.  What can happen when you update is the new version points to the wrong database, so users think they've lost everything.  Without fully exploring your system I can't say what happened in your case, especially as you're using dropbox.  What you could do of course is backup from within 4.7.1 then restore from the backup when you update.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to SUSSAMB

    No, it's a mystery. When I found that the laptop (on 4.7) did still have an almost up-to-date version of the database, I did a backup of that, which I then restored to the desktop (on 4.8), but it made no difference. I simply don't understand. However, as reverting to 4.7 seems to have worked, I think I'm simply going to leave it at that until a later upgrade. Thanks for having a look anyway.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to NevWG

    It looks to me like the new version reverted to the default location (on your HD), so that Library was out of date. You need to tell it where to find the current Library (in this case, Dropbox) using Preferences --> Advanced. 

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to danham_

    As far as I remember, I did check in Preferences where v4.8 located the database, and it was in Dropbox. I've now reverted to 4.7 and so I can't go back and check, but what you suggest certainly sounds logical. If I get up the nerve to re-update to v4.8, I shall check very carefully!

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to NevWG

    Did you check on your Mac for the contents of Library -> Applications Support -> Garmin -> BaseCamp -> Database...?

    In that Database folder will probably be multiple folders, one for each time you upgraded BaseCamp. Mine has folders named 3.3, 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 4.5, 4.6, and 4.8. It's possible that you have a folder 4.7 and a folder 4.8. If so, perhaps try temporarily renaming or relocating the 4.8 folder so that you can change the name of the 4.7 folder to '4.8.' Then restart and try BaseCamp again. You might just see all of your old 4.7 data. (Seems to me that's what I did, since I have no 4.7 folder.) I suppose I could delete all of the older folders, too, but didn't want to mess with a good thing...

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to daknudsen

    There is indeed a 4.7 folder, but there is no 4.8 folder. I may look into this (if I have the nerve!). Thanks.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to NevWG

    Looks like possibly a quick fix, then. Just rename the 4.7 folder to 4.8 and restart your Mac and launch your BaseCamp ver 4.8.8. This may have been exactly my experience, as I have no 4.7 folder... I must have just renamed it 4.8.

    I'm not running Dropbox, but it would appear that if the above is successful, then you would have a working database folder to move there, or point to, or however it's done...

    Do you run Time Machine for backups? If so, you can mess around all you want in that Database folder and if things go south, you can always restore it from a backup of a day earlier.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to daknudsen

    I wonder if the database that you identify in Preferences actually points to Application Support>Garmin? I may try all this. I do use Time Machine (which is how I retrieved BC 4.7), but I exclude Dropbox from Time Machine, because it has its own roll-back.