Database Upgrade Error/ Zotero Crashing on Start-Up after Update

I updated Zotero on launch today. I get this error message when starting Zotero:

Database upgrade error

Error: Error(s) encountered during statement execution: attempt to write a readonly database [QUERY: DELETE FROM itemTypesCombined] [PARAMS: ] [ERROR: attempt to write a readonly database]
Zotero.DBConnection.prototype.queryAsync@chrome://zotero/content/xpcom/db.js:705:13
From previous event:
this.init@chrome://zotero/content/xpcom/zotero.js:414:25

Z prompts me to update. There are no updates.
Then Z shuts down.

I tried reinstalling Z and the Firefox connection to no effect.
  • That suggests that your Zotero data directory is no longer writable by your OS user account. This could be due to file permissions or security software.

    If this is an institutional computer, you should ask your IT department for help.
  • It's a personal computer.
    I deleted Zotero and reinstalled to no effect.

    I checked the permissions on:

    /Applications/Zotero.app/Contents/MacOS/zotero

    and they are set to read/write.

    Is there another file that needs permissions checked?
  • It’s about the data directory — follow the link I gave above. It has nothing to do with the app itself, and reinstalling wouldn’t make a difference.
  • edited today at 12:33am
    Thanks.
    I had tried that but the link says the directory should be in:
    /Users/username/Zotero

    But I have no such file or directory in my
    /Users/username/

    directory. (And I replaced "username" with my actual username).
    I'm using Mac Sequoia 15.5
    Searching for "zotero.sqlite" yields nothing either.
    Is there another file to search for?
  • That would mean you either weren’t using Zotero on this computer or you accidentally deleted the data directory, such as when trying to clean up disk space. And then separately, the permissions are incorrect in your home folder, preventing Zotero from creating a new, empty data directory there.

    You can fix the permissions on the home folder using File → Get Info in Finder, but the rest obviously only you would know about.
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