log files don't log account creation?

[cosmodog at comcast.net]

On Aug 10, 2004, at 4:52 PM, Derek Atkins wrote:

> jdebert <jdebert at garlic.com> writes:
>
>> cosmodog at comcast.net wrote:
>>> I recently had need to recover some "unsaved" work by "replaying" a
>>> log file.
>>>
>>
>> more or less what I had reported to the list earlier.
>>
>> Was apparently ignored as i got jumped on instead with the assumption
>> that i lacked a backup policy and failed to do backups.
>>
>> You might also get "criticised" for "failing to properly backup".
>
> "save early, save often"...

Add to that  "don't even think about using the log replay feature."

On closer examination my log replay was a miserable failure.  I only 
needed to recover a little bit of work since I do save early and often. 
  But it seems that log reply doesn't just start after your last "save", 
it runs through everything you have done _since you last started GC_.  
So if log replay has shit on its heel it will get tracked all over the 
house. Every transaction in the log that had been created via the SX 
process was corrupted by the replay process - even transactions that 
had been created, accepted, reedited, and "saved" numerous times over a 
period of several days.  After replay, attempting to edit a debit or 
credit in these transactions causes the value to disappear and prints 
"Warning: PrintAmountInternal: Bad numeric." to the terminal.  The 
transactions had to be deleted and recreated.  In fact I gave up and 
went back to my pre replay .xacc file.

If my data is written out as _text_  and reloaded when I restart GC, 
and it  _displays_ in the register just fine, how can it still be in 
such a whacked uneditable state?

The replay feature should be removed as dangerous.  At least the Help 
system should not so cheerfully imply it is useful.  I'm just pissed. 
I'll get over it.

Does anyone find that log replay works?  Anyone rely on it?  Is it just 
incompatible with transactions created via SX and business features?

I am still interested in understanding where is GC hiding the mystery 
transfer account.

Thanks for your help,

Richard

> Seriously...
>
> No, the logger does not log new/changed account information.  Nor does
> it log business feature changes or other metadata changes.  There are
> no plans to fix the logger or log-replay.  Instead, the plan is to
> change to an embedded SQL database which enables "save on commit"
> (read: no more "save" function required).
>
> -derek
> -- 
>        Derek Atkins, SB '93 MIT EE, SM '95 MIT Media Laboratory
>        Member, MIT Student Information Processing Board  (SIPB)
>        URL: http://web.mit.edu/warlord/    PP-ASEL-IA     N1NWH
>        warlord at MIT.EDU                        PGP key available
>