Family Historian User Group

I posted this as a reply to the Version 7.0.19 upgrade alert post, but thought it might be missed there, therefore this new post.

This warning is for anyone synchronising FH using mklink Directory Junctions

I used the FH "Check for updates" route to install the upgrade to version 7.0.19 - it failed mid install with a message, saying it couldn't find the Source Templates ProgramData directory, the install program then closed, totally corrupting my version 18 install!

I have reported the issue to CP - including raising a serious concern that there is no "fail safe" to protect the existing install when the upgrade fails - I am awaiting a response.

The upgrade process does have the decency to put a copy of the upgrade file in the "Downloads" directory. I have now completed the upgrade by removing the Directory Junction links and copying the relevant directories back into the ProgramData directory. I need to do the same on my laptop and the recreate the links.

Have you tried downloading the program direct and reinstalling? The program downloaded from the install7 page is exactly the same program the upgrade process uses so there should be no problems.

There are a few possible reasons for a failure, but the most likely is a problem with one drive or the junctions preventing the update from continuing.

I suspect Calico Pie will state they do not / can not support the use of those options during in the installation routines.

I never use the in-app upgrade procedure, as I think it is more reliable to download the exe and install from that (as administrator). It also gives you a way back if a major flaw in the new version comes to light (hopefully not, but it has happened in the past).

Directory junctions are preserved in this process. The only time I ever need to re-establish them is if I do a complete uninstall first, including deleting the settings folders and registry setting that the standard uninstall leaves behind. For this situation, I have a saved command script that I simply run as administrator.

Thanks for the warning though. It will be a useful addition to the KB description of junctions to recommend upgrading directly from the exe file.

Jane wrote: ↑

02 Mar 2023 11:28

Have you tried downloading the program direct and reinstalling? The program downloaded from the install7 page is exactly the same program the upgrade process uses so there should be no problems.

Yes I have - I made this post mainly to alert others using Directory Junctions, not as a cry for help.

My major concern is that the FH version 19 upgrade install program is so badly built that, when it hit a problem, it did flagged it up, but then switched off, leaving a badly broken FH 18 for me to repair myself!

Most "upgrades" of other programs I have used, at least have the courtesy of ensuring that, if an upgrade fails, you still have the old version working.

It is impossible to build an installer to cover every eventuality.

Especially when users such as yourself are using complex and heavily customised systems with directory junctions and network shares.

I suspect the likely the problem was caused by One Drive locking files the installer needed and had no reason to expect to be locked.

Personally I have given up on One Drive and now only use SyncThing, which is easy to pause while installing to keep everything synced.

FYI: OneDrive is easy to pause too!
Just click the OneDrive cloud icon in the Notification area, click the cog menu icon top right and choose Pause syncing.
It is just as easy to resume syncing.

Jane wrote: ↑

02 Mar 2023 14:56

It is impossible to build an installer to cover every eventuality.

It only has to cover one eventuality - i.e. A failure of the upgrade to install --- for whatever reason. And it only needs to take one action -- Roll back to the condition before the install started.

In this case the installer identified the problem - and flagged up what caused it -- but then it just pulled the plug, leaving me to sort out the resulting mess myself!

Much more complex installs like Windows updates roll back if there is a problem - yet a relatively trivial (by comparison) install of FH doesn't!

Jane wrote: ↑

02 Mar 2023 14:56

Especially when users such as yourself are using complex and heavily customised systems with directory junctions and network shares.

There is nothing at all "complex" or "heavily customised" about my system. I am using directory junctions on just four directories as per the instructions / recommendations in the FH Knowledge Base. So, nothing that FH does not understand / recommend and which it should cater for.

Regarding directory junctions - I very rarely synchronise FH between laptop and PC, as I don't use the laptop version very often. FH is principally installed on the laptop as a ready reserve if my PC crashes. With the FH custom files (e.g. Queries, Reports and Plugins) in the OneDrive directory I can switch to my laptop and continue working.

Little.auk wrote: ↑

03 Mar 2023 10:14

I am using directory junctions on just four directories as per the instructions / recommendations in the FH Knowledge Base. So, nothing that FH does not understand / recommend and which it should cater for.

For clarity, the FHUG (not FH) Knowledge Base is neither produced nor endorsed by Calico Pie -- so the presence of information on directory junctions is not a recommendation by CP. It is written and maintained by FHUG users, wholly independent of CP.

There may be two separate issues here - the robustness or otherwise of the installer (and it’s likely to be a third party product rather than something written by CP), and problems created by the 15-20 year-old basic architecture of FH that was devised before cloud storage became common.

Personally, I think there are elements of FH that don’t play well with modern systems, such as constantly updating the extremely large image cache file and the huge number of small individual configuration files in its settings. Neither of these are conducive to rapid syncing, but they were designed in a different era and for different reasons.