Zotero not working after update

adavis785
After my desktop app updated last week to the latest version, it won't start up and I get
these error messages. It says there's a database upgrade error. I've tried reinstalling Zotero several times, but get the same message every time. I'm afraid my tech skills have a sharp decline after that point, so I'm hoping someone can help me know how to get my app working again. Thanks.
  • dstillman
    What are the filenames, sizes, and dates of zotero.sqlite* files within your Zotero data directory?
  • adavis785
    I can't tell. When I click the "Show Data Directory" button, it doesn't do anything.
  • dstillman
    That suggests that there's a problem with the folder, but the data directory is just "Zotero" in your home directory. You can find it in Finder or click on your desktop (to activate Finder), go to Go → "Go to Folder…", and type ~/Zotero.
  • adavis785
    Here's what I can tell from my folder.
  • dstillman
    OK, make a backup of those files in a temporary directory on your desktop, and then try deleting zotero.sqlite.tmp.
  • adavis785
    Looks like I'm still getting the same error messages when I delete that file.
  • dstillman
    The same error message? "No such file or directory" for zotero.sqlite.tmp? Is the zotero.sqlite.tmp recreated?
  • adavis785
    Yes, exact same error message. And yes, the file is recreated.
  • dstillman
    @adavis785: Sorry, wrong link — ignore my previous message. Can you generate a Debug ID for Zotero startup?
  • adavis785
    When I put the code into the Terminal, it just gives me the same error.
  • dstillman
    That's not going to fix anything, but if you do it right it should open up a separate window for debug output logging.
  • adavis785
    It tries to open up the window, but just gets the same error message like this.
  • dstillman
    OK, then you can use -ZoteroDebugText instead, save the output to a text file, and either post somewhere or email to support@zotero.org with a link to this thread.
  • dstillman
    edited January 28, 2020
    zotero(3)(+0000002): Global schema needs update from 4 to 5

    zotero(3)(+0000000): HTTP GET resource://zotero/schema/userdata.sql

    zotero(3)(+0000001): HTTP GET resource://zotero/schema/userdata.sql succeeded with 200

    zotero(3)(+0000002): Backing up database 'zotero'

    zotero(4)(+0000004): PRAGMA main.locking_mode=NORMAL

    zotero(4)(+0000273): PRAGMA main.locking_mode=EXCLUSIVE

    zotero(1)(+0000014): Error:

    Unix error 2 during operation move on file /Users/[…]/Zotero/zotero.sqlite.tmp (No such file or directory)
    (No stack trace)
    From previous event:
    Zotero.Schema</this.updateSchema@chrome://zotero/content/xpcom/schema.js:162:15
    Unlikely to help, but have you tried restarting your computer?

    If that doesn't work, are you running any sort of security software that might be interfering with normal disk operations? I don't think we've ever received a report like this.
  • adavis785
    I've restarted it a few times, and I've tried reinstalling a few times, too. I don't believe I have any security software.
  • dstillman
    edited January 28, 2020
    As a temporary workaround just to open Zotero again, you may be able to fix this by going to your Zotero profile directory, opening prefs.js in TextEdit, and adding this line:

    user_pref("extensions.zotero.backup.numBackups", 0);

    Then save the file and try again.
  • adavis785
    That worked! Thanks!
  • dstillman
    OK, so unfortunately that does leave Zotero's automatic backups off. You can try resetting that preference from the Config Editor in the Advanced pane of the preferences and see if it happens again, and either you can switch this back off or we can debug further at that point.
  • adavis785
    I don't know how to do that in the Config Editor. That looks like it's beyond my computer skills.
  • dstillman
    Open the Config Editor, type in numBackups to filter for that line, right-click the line, and choose Reset. It should set it back to the default of 2.
  • adavis785
    Ok, I reset that line, quit Zotero, then re-opened it and it seems to open fine. Does that mean it's fixed?
  • dstillman
    No, Zotero doesn't create a backup every time. It was doing it for you before because there was a database upgrade. It also tries to do it every 24 hours, but those are allowed to fail silently. So you might get the startup error again the next time there's a database upgrade.
  • adavis785
    Ok, good to know. Thanks.
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