[GNC] Strange message on launching app

Wed Mar 17 14:07:24 EDT 2021

Finbar,

I'm running GnuCash Version 4.4 on Windows 10 Pro.

I have a single GnuCash file, called Alan, which I store in a GnuCash folder
in my Documents folder, i.e. C:\Users\<ME>\Documents\GnuCash\Alan.gnucash.

Also in this folder are large numbers of Alan.gnucash.yyyymmddhhmmss.gnucash
and Alan.gnucash.yyyymmddhhmmss.log files, 30 days' worth controlled by the
setting in preferences. If GnuCash is open there is also an Alan.gnucash.LCK
file.

To minimise risk of loosing my data I have daily automatic backups of my
data, which includes my GnuCash files, to a NAS.

Under normal circumstances I have no problems, apart from occasions when
GnuCash complains that the LCK already exists when I start it which I can
usually tie up with GnuCash not having been closed correctly.

However, I do get some problems of my own making. When I new version of
GnuCash is released and I'm ready to install it. For example when I was
ready to install GnuCash Version 4.4 I used File -> Save As to save a backup
as Alan - Pre V4.4.gnucash, closed GnuCash, installed Version 4.4, restarted
GnuCash, and then ran Actions -> Check & Repair.
It's usually the next day when I release that I have a problem, as I'm using
the WRONG file. GnuCash remembers the last file it used, which in the above
situation is Alan- Pre V4.4.gnucash rather than Alan.gnucash.

Reading through your problems I suspect you've used File -> Save As at some
point and this has exacerbated your problems with files.

Alan A Holmes

-----Original Message-----
From: gnucash-user
<gnucash-user-bounces+gnucash=alanaholmes.me.uk at gnucash.org> On Behalf Of
Mahon Finbar
Sent: 16 March 2021 14:08
To: John Ralls <jralls at ceridwen.us>
Cc: Gnucash Users <gnucash-user at gnucash.org>
Subject: Re: [GNC] Strange message on launching app

OK, I found the GNU FEB 12 2019.gnucash file saved on 19.2.2021, but not the
others. Anyway if that is the "good" backup that should be OK? It only has
362kb in it.

As it happens the file wasn't in a Gnucash....LCK folder, there were two
files on 8.3.2021 with the same name and time and date, but in different
folders, one of which was empty.... and lots of other stuff on an around
that date.....

The storage of GNU files has always been a bit of a mystery to me, they seem
to shuffle around, a search of files with .gnucash results in more than 600
answers!!

OK, if I uninstall and reinstall will it find the 'good' backup mentioned?

Thanks so much for your patience and help.

Finbar

On 15/03/2021 17:03, John Ralls wrote:
> The trace file associated with a crash just means that GnuCash got far
enough into the program to open it before trying to load the library linked
to libgncmod-app-utils.dll. That's not meaningful.
>
> "GNU FEB 12 2019.gnucash" is a very odd name for a book, but OK. The
existence of a lock file from the 8th means that that's when you last
successfully opened the file, and that the full name is "GNU FEB 12
2019.gnucash.20210219151108.gnucash.LCK" means that you've been working with
a backup file since mid-afternoon on 19 February. The other two files aren't
from GnuCash; perhaps they're download or cache files from your browser?
>
> Navigate to the folder where "GNU FEB 12
2019.gnucash.20210219151108.gnucash.LCK" is and look for "GNU FEB 12
2019.gnucash", "GNU FEB 12 2019.gnucash.20210219151108.gnucash", and files
of the form "GNU FEB 12
2019.gnucash.20210219151108.gnucash.YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.gnucash" which will be
backups of your GnuCash sessions since you opened the backup file instead of
the original.
>
> Regards,
> John Ralls
>
>
>> On Mar 15, 2021, at 7:13 AM, Mahon Finbar <mahon.finbar at neuf.fr> wrote:
>>
>> OK, I appreciate that, thank you.
>>
>> However, in trying to find the last backup file before uninstalling, I am
finding some very strange file dates and times in the list.
>>
>> For example - gnucash.trace.3JC5Z0.log - on 14.3.2021 - a time when I
could not get the app to load, [with the same message as originally].
>>
>> I don't seem to have any backups, which according to the help file 
>> should read as .YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.gnucash
>>
>> The 'latest' file in the list is GNU FEB 12
2019.gnucash.20210219151108.gnucash.LCK on 8.3.2021 and I have several -
https___bugs_gnucash_org_enter_bug_cgi_product=GnuCash files on the same
date, as well as several -
{7C5A40EF-A0FB-4BFC-874A-C0F2E0B9FA8E}_gnucash_doc_gnucash_README_win32-bin_
txt files dated the same date, 8.3.2021.
>>
>> The file names don't seem to align with the help file data.
>>
>> Any ideas?
>>
>> Thanks Finbar
>>
>> On 13/03/2021 19:47, John Ralls wrote:
>>
>>> The important thing is to make sure that you don't restore an old
version of GnuCash dlls. The most straightforward way is to leave
executables out of the backup plan because you can always download them
again from their respective sources. A bit less simple is to have a separate
backup set for them so that you can easily roll back after an update or
restore more quickly after a disk failure.
>>>
>>> Regards,
>>> John Ralls
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> On Mar 13, 2021, at 6:06 AM, Mahon Finbar <mahon.finbar at neuf.fr>
>>>>   wrote:
>>>>
>>>> OK, I'll try that, thanks.
>>>>
>>>> I have the most recent version for Windows 10, afaik. Haven't recently
downloaded any update and have been using the current version for a while,
like since last q 2020. Could be a storage glitch, I suppose.
>>>>
>>>> Should I make a specific backup? I have backblaze for backup, but do I
need to ensure files are the latest?
>>>>
>>>> Finbar
>>>>
>>>> On 12/03/2021 21:08, John Ralls wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> You don't say what version of GnuCash, but GnuCash 4.x renamed
libgncmod-app-utils.dll to libgnc-app-utils.dll, so it seems that you have
some leftover bits from an earlier installation. Try uninstalling GnuCash
with Apps & Settings then delete the installation directory--it defaults to
C:\Program Files (x86)\gnucash--before reinstalling GnuCash 4.4.
>>>>>
>>>>> Regards,
>>>>> John Ralls
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>> On Mar 12, 2021, at 3:20 AM, Mahon Finbar <mahon.finbar at neuf.fr>
>>>>>>   wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Oops the screen grab didn't transfer -
>>>>>>
>>>>>> "the procedure entry point gmc_scm_call_1_symbol_to_string could not
be located in the dll C:\programfiles(x86)\gnucash\libgncmod-app-utils.dll"
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On 12/03/2021 10:52, Mahon Finbar wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Sorry, sent this with the wrong email address.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> A Windows message? Using W10, no recent change with Gnucash.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Needs task manager to get rid of the message.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Finbar
>>>>>>>
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