Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[MusicHawk]

I have several MC libraries, different locations/folders/etc. MC 20.0.49 is not handling them correctly.

As I migrated through the various versions of MC, either the new version would automatically pick up the old version existing libraries, or I'd manually add them via Library Manager.

But in 20.0.49 that method no longer works as it used to, and perhaps does not work at all. But it should, according to MC's library dialog, which says: "Enter a path to an existing library, or enter a path with no files in it to create a new library".

That's how I've always done it. It works perfectly in 19.0.163 on the same computer, same library, but fails with 20.0.49.

Steps:
1. Open Library Manager, select Add Library
2. Select Local Library, Browse to the location of the existing library.
3. Click OK.

What I expect is that MC loads the library that exists at that location. Instead, MC says "Cannot create a new library at the specified location. The directory must be empty." MC's ability to recognize the "existing library" situation is broken.

PS: Restoring a backup is not suitable for me because MC restores to a library location of its choosing, along the user path, instead of where the library existed when the backup was made. So it is a backup of the media data, but it is NOT a backup/restore of MC's full configuration. This messes up my backup procedures, and a bunch of other practices I've devised over the years. I have always stored my MC libraries at a custom location, NOT where MC puts them be default, because I regularly copy all the library files (field definitions+contents) to another PC via a nightly automated process. It only copies changed files, and does not involve the time and steps of MC's backup and restore system (nothing against it, but it's not useful for my situation). By using a consistent library location, I avoid having to diddle with my copying process when a new version of MC comes along, or if the PCs have different user names, etc.

If MC20 can once again allow what the Library dialog instructs --  "Enter a path to an existing library" -- everything will return to normal. I hope this Library behavior is a bug hat can soon be fixed.  

[JimH]

File > Library > Restore?

[MusicHawk]

Update: I confirmed the problem ON TWO PCS: MC 20.0.49 will not load an existing library, it always treats the path as the location to create a NEW library, which then fails. However, on both machines MC 19.0.163 correctly loads an existing library path.

Along with fixing MC20's broken Load Existing Library ability, I'd really like the ability to edit the libraries location at any time, manually moving the files. (Didn't this used to be possible in earlier MC?)

Or, at the least, store the library location in a Backup and put it back in that location upon Restore, and/or ask the user to verify/change the library location for Restore.

[Matt]

Could you go through a step-by-step to reproduce?  Because I just loaded multiple libraries from multiple paths without an issue.

[MusicHawk]

Matt, it's mysterious in that the same PCs, same library, same path, can load in 19.0.163 but not 20.0.49. Steps are simple:

1. Open Library Manager, select Add Library
2. Select Local Library, Browse to the location of an existing library.
3. Click OK.

I tried this with two different libraries at different locations, the same libraries I can open with MC 19. But MC 20 always believes I'm trying to create a library at that path, which it then refuses to do.

My libraries are NOT where MC would put them by default (user path), they are on the same drive M: where my music files are stored. I've used this arrangement with MC for a decade, no problem.

Both PCs are running Windows 8.1 Update, and I don't know of any rights or access issues.

In fact, on both PCs, my Main library was *already* loaded and being used reliably in MC20. I'm pretty sure that load was done automatically when I installed MC20 and it read my MC19 configuration. It's my subsequent manual attempts to load libraries that are failing.

I was happily using my Main library, then my wife requested Christmas music. The problem appeared when I tried to load my once-a-year Christmas music library, and failed. I can load that library in MC19 but not in MC20. Then when I tried to switch back to the Main library that had been in use in MC20, I ran into the same problem -- on both PCs. But in MC19 I can load the Main library (so I can still play music).

The question is, why would MC20 behave differently than MC19? What else should I be checking?

[Matt]

This isn't happening for me.  Could we get other JRiver folks to test like Yaobing and Hendrik?

[Hendrik]

I can open existing libraries just fine as well.

[MusicHawk]

Update: I just rebooted everything and NOW it works, I can load the libraries in MC20. (I had tried rebooting last night when the problem arose, it didn't help then.) So I'm clueless, but guessing that Windows 8 was somehow preventing MC20 from accessing the library (sort of, because MC20 was able to see the path was not empty). I wonder if there's a timing matter, where Windows imposes restrictions that later "go away"?

Anyway, for now I'm back in business, thank you for investigating.

I still have a question/wish about library location upon Restore. Didn't the restore library path used to be user-controlled? Or the library location changeable later?

[Yaobing]

It works for me too.  I was able to open any previously created library.