[GNC] Installing 3.11 in Windows

[Stan Brown (using GC 2.6.19)]

Thanks to all the folks who have responded to this thread! I think I now
have a usable workaround for the inability to install multiple GC
versions in the same Windows computer.

On 2023-08-03 7:55 AM, Stan Brown (using GC 2.6.19) wrote:
> But telling you why I'm reluctant to use Vagrant has given me an
> idea. I don't need to set up multiple VMs, but rather snapshots of
> one VM.

Short version: a clone (as opposed to a snapshot) as I progress each
stage up the upgrade ladder. This preserves older versions of my data
files safely. Details are below, for those interested.

On 2023-08-03 9:36 AM, Kalpesh Patel wrote:
> Why not just clone that VM and call it a day? No fiddling, no nothing!
> Snapshots grow as more changes are made and there are performance
> penalty related to it, especially if they are nested which would be
> the case here. From my past experience in virtualization world, IMHO,
> snapshots are not efficient, especially for long term testing.
> Snapshots excel when taking current copy and then restoring back that
> copy if things go sideways but not to run as an actual live VM off of
> it. Run a clone -- clone cost more in terms of hard drive space but
> from performance perspective it is much better trade off.

At first I thought it wouldn't make much of a difference in my very
specialized use of this VM -- which will also be short term, not long
term, a matter of a few days at most. But on further reflection I think
cloning will probably be as simple or simpler. And even with cloning I
have the same ability to go back in time because I can always make a new
clone from the older version. (This depends on my not doing anything to
the first machine after I snapshot or clone it, but I wasn't planning to
anyway.) I do remember with VMWare, when I worked in an office,
snapshots seemed to drag down performance.

Luckily I have plenty of disk space, about 60 GB free in the partition
where I keep my virtual machine, a fast processor, and 16 GB RAM. The VM
uses only 12 GB, and I won't need to maintain more than two or three
clones at any one time.

On 2023-08-03 8:28 AM, Adrien Monteleone wrote:
> I was just about to suggest snapshots when I read this reply. If you
> want to stick with on OS for all machines, virtual or real and keep your
> infrastructure simple - that's what I would do.
> 
> Of course, those snapshots will deviate by more than just GC if you
> don't keep them all up to date regularly.

The only application on the VM is GC, and there are no Windows updates
because no Internet, so GC is the only potential divergence. I'm aware
of it, and during this process I'm planning to keep transactions on
paper only, then enter them at the end of the process. Not terribly
efficient, but minimizes confusion and gives me extra incentive to
finish the upgrade process.

> And if you're light on physical hardware resources or concerned about
> background services, check out BlackViper.

I'm aware of BlackViper and have used its recommendations for workaday
machines. I haven't noticed any performance issues on the current VM
that I've been using once or twice a month since last winter, so haven't
felt the need to tweak it.

On 2023-08-03 9:08 AM, Michael or Penny Novack wrote:
> But you may have some control where gnucash stores data. Not
> necessarily directly in you user home directory but optionally within
> a directory within your user home directory. And always remember, ...
> you could add another "ordinary user". The computer does not "know"
> that these two users are the same human.

Yes, I had thought about that. Windows 10 does not make it easy to
create a new user without that user having a Microsoft account, and it
would create a huge amount of cruft like "Downloads" and "Music" and so
forth. I might have put up with all that, but it was a non-starter
because GC's installer wouldn't let me specify an install location. I
may go that route after the upgrade, to separate my personal reports and
settings from the nonprofit's, but probably not.

Stan Brown
Tehachapi, CA, USA
https://BrownMath.com