Probelm syncing #67113997

MrDCFP

My library won't sync. Every time I press the sync button, I get the following message.

Invalid last sync id "

I use a webDAV to backup onto dropbox, but I can't see any problems there. Does anyone know what's going on?

dstillman

There are a whole bunch of issues in that report.

First, you have your Zotero data directory stored in Dropbox, which you absolutely shouldn't do, and this has resulted in your having many files in conflict. You should move your data directory out of Dropbox immediately, reset your translators and styles from the Advanced pane of the Zotero preferences, and check your database integrity (also in Advanced), though there may be other problems left behind as well.

The syncing problem above is likely unrelated—that would have to do with whatever you're using for WebDAV, which may be broken—but you'll need to address the Dropbox issue first. (I'm also not clear on why you're using both Dropbox and WebDAV. If you want to use Dropbox for file syncing, it's possible to link in just the 'storage' within your Zotero data directory, which should be fairly safe, but you can't have the whole data directory in there.)

Once you've resolved the Dropbox issue, see this thread for more details on the WebDAV problem (if it's still relevant): https://forums.zotero.org/discussion/29205/unexpected-sync-error-after-upgrade-to-406/

The directory on your WebDAV server is also called "Zotero" instead of the required "zotero", and that's causing another problem in your error report.

MrDCFP

Thank you for your message, Dan. I think there's some sort of confusion because my Zotero data directory is stored on my hard drive, not on Dropbox. I used to have it on Dropbox, but I moved it months ago -- before this problem started.

I now back up my data through DropDav, which is linked to my Dropbox account. Currently, the file stored on my Dropbox is named "zotero" with a lowercase "z".

I reset my translators and styles, and checked my database integrity (it said there were no issues).

I have looked at the thread you linked to, but when I open the "lastsync.txt" file, there is no data in it. It is 0 bytes.

dstillman

Ah, sorry—I saw lots of conflicted files in the error report but didn't notice that they were no longer actually stored in Dropbox. In any case, if you did the resets and checked database integrity, you should be OK now.

For the other two issues:

I have looked at the thread you linked to, but when I open the "lastsync.txt" file, there is no data in it. It is 0 bytes.

Zotero stores that file with data in it, so if it's empty something may be wrong with your WebDAV software. You can try deleting it and resetting file sync history in the Sync->Reset pane of the Zotero prefs.

Currently, the file stored on my Dropbox is named "zotero" with a lowercase "z".

This is from your error report:

[JavaScript Error: "Error: DAV:href '/Zotero/2AQBC4FZ.prop' does not begin with path '/zotero/' in Zotero.Sync.Storage.purgeOrphanedStorageFiles()" {file: "chrome://zotero/content/xpcom/storage.js" line: 331}]"

The WebDAV software is claiming that the directory begins with "Zotero".

MrDCFP

Thank you again, Dan. I deleted the lastsync.txt and reset the file sync history. However, this did not resolve the problem.

I don't understand why the error report has the "zotero" file with a capital "Z". I can see in my Mac's finder that the file 2AQBC4FZ.prop is stored in the proper, "zotero" with a lowercase "z" file.

Also, the zotero program created that file itself. When you select "Sync attachments in My Library using WebDAV," you have no option but to have the file named "zotero". Finally, when I click the "verify server" button, it tells me the server configuration is verified.

dstillman

These are bugs in your WebDAV software, then. Zotero works with properly functioning WebDAV servers, and I'm afraid we can't debug problems with individual servers. For the second issue, Zotero is just looking at the file list from the WebDAV server.

I'd like to confirm the first issue, though, since this behavior changed in Zotero recently (to work around bugs in other WebDAV servers). Could you provide a Debug ID for the first two syncs after doing a Reset File Sync History?

Finally, when I click the "verify server" button, it tells me the server configuration is verified.

Verify Server won't catch all potential problems, unfortunately, though we're adding more checks to it.

MrDCFP

Here are the two Debug codes after resetting and trying to sync:

754074133
1057188467

So do I need to contact my WebDAV provider about this problem? What should I tell them?

dstillman

Those are Report IDs. I need Debug IDs.

MrDCFP

My apologies.

Here is the Debug ID after resetting and doing two syncs: D1961542125.

dstillman

(3)(+0000001): HTTP GET https://dav.dropdav.com/zotero/lastsync.txt

(3)(+0002235): HTTP GET https://dav.dropdav.com/zotero/lastsync.txt succeeded with 200

(3)(+0000000):

(3)(+0000000): HTTP DELETE https://dav.dropdav.com/zotero/lastsync.txt

(3)(+0000916): HTTP DELETE https://dav.dropdav.com/zotero/lastsync.txt succeeded with 404

(3)(+0000000): HTTP GET https://dav.dropdav.com/zotero/lastsync.txt

(3)(+0001517): HTTP GET https://dav.dropdav.com/zotero/lastsync.txt succeeded with 200

(3)(+0000000):
This is clearly broken. The server is claiming that lastsync.txt exists and is empty after saying it doesn't exist in response to a delete request.

As for the other thing, all the files are indeed being listed as being in "/Zotero" in response to a PROPFIND request:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<D:multistatus xmlns:D="DAV:">
<D:response xmlns:ns0="urn:uuid:c2f41010-65b3-11d1-a29f-00aa00c14882/">
<D:href>/zotero/</D:href>
<D:propstat>
<D:prop>
<D:getlastmodified ns0:dt="dateTime.rfc1123">Sat, 03 Mar 2012 13:19:36 GMT</D:getlastmodified>
</D:prop>
<D:status>HTTP/1.1 200 OK</D:status>
</D:propstat>
</D:response>
<D:response xmlns:ns0="urn:uuid:c2f41010-65b3-11d1-a29f-00aa00c14882/">
<D:href>/Zotero/2AQBC4FZ.prop</D:href>
<D:propstat>
<D:prop>
<D:getlastmodified ns0:dt="dateTime.rfc1123">Thu, 11 Oct 2012 13:43:13 GMT</D:getlastmodified>
</D:prop>
<D:status>HTTP/1.1 200 OK</D:status>
</D:propstat>
</D:response>
<D:response xmlns:ns0="urn:uuid:c2f41010-65b3-11d1-a29f-00aa00c14882/">
<D:href>/Zotero/2AQBC4FZ.zip</D:href>
<D:propstat>
<D:prop>
<D:getlastmodified ns0:dt="dateTime.rfc1123">Thu, 11 Oct 2012 13:43:12 GMT</D:getlastmodified>
</D:prop>
<D:status>HTTP/1.1 200 OK</D:status>
</D:propstat>
</D:response>

I'm afraid you're on your own beyond this. We're really not able to debug problems with broken WebDAV servers. You'll have to talk to your WebDAV provider or switch to a different one (or use Zotero File Storage).

dstillman

I'm curious to know, though, whether your server passes verification in Zotero 4.0.8, now available. I added an extra check for servers that claim that missing files exist, though that may not be the issue in your case.