error message 'no compatible backend was found for file...'

[Derek Atkins]

Hi,

The file you included (in the other message) is not a GnuCash file.  The
.gnucash.gcm file extension means it is GnuCash Metadata (gcm), which is
GnuCash's internal metadata about your actual file.  You should open your
real datafile, which should be named gnu2013.gnucash.

-derek

On Tue, January 22, 2013 9:10 pm, Hans Neus wrote:
> Hi Derek,
>
> Thanks for your reply. I did use the xml backend, and the file is not
> zeroed. It did auto-save periodically, and I saved as well regularly.
> Find enclosed the file that is not accepted.
>
> Via 'properties' (right click on the file) I tried to restore an earlier
> version but no success either.
>
> Thanks, Hans
>
>
> On 22 Jan 2013, at 12:24, Derek Atkins wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> prihans <prihans at me.com> writes:
>>
>>> My notebook crashed when I was working on my Gnucash. I did save the
>>> last
>>> inputs just before the crash. After re-starting my notebook, it seems
>>> that
>>> the file somehow got damaged, as the program gives following error:
>>> 'no
>>> compatible back-end was fund for file .........'
>>>
>>> I tried to open this gnucash file in another computer that has Gnucash
>>> installed, which failed as well, giving the same error message.
>>>
>>> I tried to restore an earlier version of the same file, from the day
>>> before
>>> (via file properties - earlier versions) and no success.
>>>
>>> The program does open other (older) Gnucash files that were saved under
>>> another name.
>>>
>>> Is there a way to restore the damaged file? It contains a lot of
>>> important
>>> new information that will cost me weeks to recover...
>>
>> I'm sorry you had a system crash.  One main thing you didn't say was
>> what OS/Distro you are running.
>>
>> You should look at the file in question.  What's the size of the file?
>> If the system crashed at an inopportune time it's possible that the file
>> got zeroed out.  If you're using the XML backend (which is the default)
>> then GnuCash will generate backup files with every 'save', so you can
>> backup to your previous 'save' by looking for the latest file that's
>> named "foo.YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.gnucash" in the same location as your main
>> data file, "foo".  (I.e., replace "foo" with the name of your data
>> file).
>>
>> If you find that your data file is of zero length then you can just copy
>> the latest backup .gnucash file over the main data file and restart
>> gnucash.  Then it should load the recovered backup data.
>>
>> Hope this helps.
>>
>> If you are not using the XML backend then please let us know because
>> then you might have bigger issues.
>>
>>> Please remember to CC this list on all your replies.
>>> You can do this by using Reply-To-List or Reply-All.
>>
>> -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
>
>


-- 
       Derek Atkins                 617-623-3745
       derek at ihtfp.com             www.ihtfp.com
       Computer and Internet Security Consultant