I just started using Manager Desktop yesterday and very happy with what I see but ran into a problem trying to change the location of the Application Data files.
I wanted to put them in a folder in my Google Drive so clicked the About Manager tab, clicked the Change button and selected the folder I had created in my gDrive. That resulted in an error message that the folder was empty and I should copy the files from their original location to the new folder, which I did. I then selected the new folder again and all seemed to be OK.
I did quite a lot of configuration work in what I thought were the new files then quit the program. Today, when I opened Manager, all my config work had disappeared even though the Application Data folder was set to my gDrive folder. I’m pretty sure the gDrive files were used yesterday because the timestamps on them are consistent with when I closed down Manager yesterday.
The data I’m seeing now looks like what was in the original Application Data folder before I changed it. Just to confuse things more, I see a post on the releases channel dated 4/2 that the desktop no longer places the data files where it used to and that I would be prompted for the location when creating a new business. That didn’t happen and the screenshot in that post has New and Open buttons which aren’t what I see.
The above is all using Manager 17.6.39 on OSX 10.0. Any ideas on how to fix this, especially without losing all the configuration data I entered, would be most welcome as I’m anxious to start working with Manager.
Try clicking on the “Add Business” button and then “Import Business”. Then navigate to the original location of your Application Data and import that business. If that is not the correct file, then try importing the file in your gDrive. Manager is good about not losing data, so you should be able to recover it.
That was for a previous version. The New and Open buttons have been removed so ignore any posts referring to them.
Other users have reported issues with using a cloud service and MacOS. I don’t know the outcome of that, perhaps other users will respond. See this post:
Thanks for the suggestions but unfortunately, none of that seems to work. One thing I just noticed is that the error message I get re my new folder being empty does not have the complete path to the folder in it. It goes as far as the folder containing my selected folder but does not include the selected folder itself. That could be an error in the error message of course.
I’ll try a bit more but at this stage, I’m thinking of just deleting all the app data files and starting from scratch.
Don’t give up yet. Everything you do in Manager to alter a setting, enter a form, create a customer or supplier, etc., is instantly saved as long as you click Update or Create. Your configuration work was applied to an accounting file somewhere. The challenge is to locate it. Read the Guide on the application data folder carefully for ideas. Pay particular attention to the section on identifying current business files.
Unfortunately, it is very difficult to troubleshoot a problem like this remotely. We get only the limited information you tell us and can make no experimentation.
OK, well this is going nowhere. I tried everything suggested and read the guides you linked to with no change so I decided to start from scratch. I quit Manager and deleted the Manager folders from the default and gDrive locations, then ran Manager again
As expected, it prompted me for a business name which I supplied. Finder showed that a Manager folder had been created in the default location with some files in it.
I then quit Manager and copied the files in the default Manager folder to my gDrive folder, ran Manager again and tried to change the App Data folder to my gDrive folder - same error message about no data files even though Finder clearly shows files in it. I also tried the same thing with a Manager folder on my desktop in case it was a gDrive problem, but same error message.
I’m still suspicious that the path to the new folder in the error message is incorrect, missing the actual folder itself and I cannot key in a path to the filed, only browser for it.
I definitely appreciate your point about only having what I tell you to go on but I think this latest try is about as simple as I can get. I was really hoping Manager would work for me but if I can’t get it to use files in the location I want them to be, I can’t use it.
Everybody who has had this problem has two things in common - using Mac and Google Drive.
Suggestion, just leave the Manager created files in the default folder (for now) and place your business files in the gDrive, open Manager and try changing Application Data path.
First, will Manager work ok with the Business files in the default folder, if yes, then at least Manager itself is not the issue, it becomes an Application Data path issue
Per one of my post, I tried changing the path so a folder on my Desktop and got the same error so I don;t think gDrive is part of the problem.
I’m not sure what your second suggestion means. That’s exactly what led to the error in the first place.
Yes, Manager works fine using the default file location but the organization I’m doing accounts for won;t allow me to store its data files on my personal computer, they have to be on gDrive…
Here’s a screenshot of the error message. Notice that the path to the selected folder does not include
“/Manager” at the end, which is the folder I actually chose.
Try naming the folder on your gDrive Manager rather than Accounts. Then repeat the setup, or at least make sure that all files that were in your data folder in the default location are in the one on gDrive. Make sure the application data path points to that renamed file and try again. This is just a wild idea, but perhaps the program is looking for a folder named Manager.
I can see all the folders in my gDrive so don;t think this is the issue. Also, I tried using a Manager folder in a “normal” folder on my computer rather than gDrive and got the same error.
As a newcomer to the forum, I’m not sure if the developer(s) hang out here or not but from reading other posts, it looks like perhaps “lubos” is a developer? If so and he/she is following this thread, please let me know how to proceed with this issue. I am happy to provide whatever info is needed to help troubleshoot it but unfortunately this is a showstopper for me.
