Messed up file names

Sat Jan 20 16:36:03 EST 2018

"
>
>
>
"If, by restore, you mean open a different file then use File > Open in
GC.  Then once you are happy that you have the current file open use File >
Save As to save it with an appropriate name and then it should re-open that
one in future.  Keep an eye on the name in the title bar if ever you are
concerned about which file you have open."

Actually, I meant "restore the missing transactions," thinking that some of
those single-dated files had info the newer ones don't, but that is
probably not the case. All missing stuff is still on the Raspberry-Pi I had
copied from, and I'll just have to redo them by hand, I guess. Something I
read in either gnucash-help or the manual-with-tutorial seems to say I
could just copy to switch to a new computer, but I don't think doing that
now is really an option. So, thank you, I'm ready to "Save As."

On Fri, Jan 19, 2018 at 11:27 PM, Colin Law <clanlaw at gmail.com> wrote:

> On 20 January 2018 at 02:24, Gerald Mathias <mathias at hawaii.edu> wrote:
>
>> My thanks to Derek Atkins for some good pointers (and thank you, too, Bert
>> Riding). I'm not sure whether I will finally be able to digest the
>> suggestions sufficiently.
>>
>> Derek said, "On November 15 at 16:19 you made some changes to the file,
>> which generated the log file mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161913.log and a
>> backup file mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161913.gnucash  (which does not
>> appear in your listing, but must exist somewhere)."
>>
>> Maybe somewhere, but as of today, not in /Finances/mygnucash. I did a
>> search and came up empty.
>>
>> I always open gnucash by clicking its icon in Applications > Office >. I
>> use Ubuntu 16.04.) That icon has been there since I installed the program,
>> and I don't know yet how to control what it opens. Maybe when I do the
>> "Save to" bit, but you suggest I save that for after fixing everything
>> else.
>>
>
> When you open gnucash by clicking the icon it will open whatever file you
> had open last. If you use Save As to save it as a new name then the file
> that is open is the the one with the new name, so if you close GC and
> reopen it later then it will open the saved as one, not the original.  Also
> if you open GC by clicking on a gnucash file or if you open a file by using
> File > Open inside GC then that file becomes the current one, so again if
> you close GC and reopen it then it will open that file rather than any
> other file you previously had open.  It displays the name of the file in
> the title bar so you can always see which file you have open.
>
>
>> I have dozens of normal-name .log and .gnucash files from 16 Oct to 15
>> Nov,
>> then nine double-dates from 31 Dec to 09 Jan. After that, loads of files
>> "Date Modified" 14 Jan, single-dated from 20171229 to 20180111, but out of
>> order. Includes one simple mygnucash.gnucash. The last three on 14 Jan are
>> double-dates, and those 20171115s continue through 19 Jan (today, although
>> I haven't actually make any gnucash entries today).
>>
>
>> I've been reading how to restore, including the references you provided,
>> but I won't try until I can see my way past a "warning" or two.
>>
>
> If, by restore, you mean open a different file then use File > Open in
> GC.  Then once you are happy that you have the current file open use File >
> Save As to save it with an appropriate name and then it should re-open that
> one in future.  Keep an eye on the name in the title bar if ever you are
> concerned about which file you have open.
>
> Colin
>
>
>>
>> On Thu, Jan 18, 2018 at 4:19 PM, Derek Atkins <derek at ihtfp.com> wrote:
>>
>> > Hi,
>> >
>> > On Thu, January 18, 2018 8:30 pm, Gerald Mathias wrote:
>> > > I guess I did something dumb. I wanted to move my GnuCash to a new
>> > > computer, so I copied over the mygnucash folder. Now the new files
>> come
>> > > out
>> > > with these weird names:
>> > >
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.20180115171928.gnucash
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.20180115171929.log
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.20180116114841.log
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.20180116115105.gnucash
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.20180116115105.log
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.LCK
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161913.log
>> > > mygnucash.gnucash.20171229114235.log
>> > >
>> > > I guess November 15 is the date I did the copy. Is there any way to
>> get
>> > > rid
>> > > of that part of the naming process?
>> >
>> > STOP RIGHT NOW.  YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.
>> >
>> > Basically, you started with a file named mygnucash.gnucash -- your main
>> > data file.
>> >
>> > On November 15 at 16:19 you made some changes to the file, which
>> generated
>> > the log file mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161913.log and a backup file
>> > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161913.gnucash  (which does not appear in
>> your
>> > listing, but must exist somewhere).
>> >
>> > Then on December 29 you made another change, which resulted in the log
>> > file mygnucash.gnucash.20171229114235.log.  There should have also
>> been an
>> > equivalent backup file.
>> >
>> > THEN, on January 15 at 17:19, you made a mistake.  Instead of opening
>> your
>> > main data file, mygnucash.gnucash, you opened the BACKUP FILE from
>> > November 15.  This resulted in the log file
>> > mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.20180115171929.log and backup
>> > file mygnucash.gnucash.20171115161912.gnucash.20180115171928.gnucash.
>> The
>> > backup was clearly saved one second before the log.
>> >
>> > Then you used the SAME file again on Jan 16 at 11:51.
>> >
>> > This means you effectively forked your data.  Anything you entered
>> between
>> > November 15 and January 15 was "lost" in the fork.  It's still out
>> there,
>> > like the December 29 log file.
>> >
>> > But this all happened because you opened the wrong file -- you opened
>> up a
>> > backup file instead of your main data file.
>> >
>> > > I had also considered starting over, from 2018-01-01 on the new
>> computer.
>> > > Maybe that is the better option? Would simply erasing all the current
>> > > accounts and setting them up anew do the trick?
>> >
>> > While that is an option, there is no need to do that.
>> > First, you need to understand how gnucash stores logs and backup files.
>> > See
>> > https://wiki.gnucash.org/wiki/FAQ#Q:_What_are_all_these_.
>> > gnucash_and_.log_files_filling_up_my_directory.3F
>> > and
>> > https://wiki.gnucash.org/wiki/FAQ#Q:_Why_is_my_file_name_
>> > getting_longer_and_longer.3F
>> >
>> > Once you fix your data loss problem (most likely you could do this by
>> > replaying the log files) then you can just rename your file back to your
>> > main data file.  I recommend you just File -> Save As from within
>> GnuCash.
>> >
>> > Good Luck!
>> >
>> > > 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                 617-623-3745
>> >        derek at ihtfp.com             www.ihtfp.com
>> >        Computer and Internet Security Consultant
>> >
>> >
>> _______________________________________________
>> gnucash-user mailing list
>> gnucash-user at gnucash.org
>> https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user
>> -----
>> Please remember to CC this list on all your replies.
>> You can do this by using Reply-To-List or Reply-All.
>>
>
>