desperate masters student needs help finding library

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  • aecortes1
    if that is my library what should i do next
  • noksagt
    edited July 9, 2016
    Possibly. Within that zotero folder, you should see files named: zotero.sqlite and zotero.sqlite.bak and you may see additional files named, e.g. zotero.sqlite.1.bak.

    These are the database and database backup files.

    Please provide the names, dates, and sizes of these files.

    With firefox closed, you can make backup copies of these.
  • aecortes1
    zotero.sqlite SQLITE File - 5/21/16 9:01 am - 1860 KB
    zotero.sqlite.1.bak - 5/15/16 9:03 am - BAK File - 1892 KB
    zotero.sqlite.bak - 5/21/16 8:42 am - BAK File - 1860 KB
  • noksagt
    edited July 9, 2016
    Were you last able to access your zotero data in May? Was your library fairly small (less than a few hundred references)? If so, that's probably your old data. The page https://www.zotero.org/support/zotero_data#restoring_your_zotero_library_from_a_backup, linked to above, gives you the procedure, but briefly:
    1. On old computer, with Firefox closed, copy the entire zotero directory to your external drive
    2. On new computer, find your zotero data directory.
    3. Decide what you want to happen with any references you've added on the new computer. If you want to keep them, then backup your zotero data directory & also enable syncing. If you haven't added anything important, proceed.
    4. With Firefox closed on your new computer, copy zotero.sqlite and the storage directory to a temporary directory on your desktop.
    5. Now copy the storage directory and zotero.sqlite from your old desktop that you stored on the external hard drive to your zotero directory on the new computer.
    6. Relaunch firefox to verify Zotero is working with your old library
    7. Now setup syncing and backups to your external drive so you don't run into this scare again.
  • aecortes1
    i last added to the library in May. I have been focusing on data analysis in spss since then. I have to leave in about five minutes. why is zotero not recognizing my library? Or is that a whole other thread?
  • aecortes1
    Thanks very much for your help!!!! it is very much appreciated!!!! You can't imagine how relieved I am....
  • noksagt
    why is zotero not recognizing my library?
    More investigation would probably lead to an answer. This can happen if you creates a new user account in Windows, created a new profile in Firefox (which can happen if you've updated Firefox or use their reset function, described above), or modified the setting that specifies where zotero data is stored.
  • aecortes1
    I was able to get the library loaded on new computer!! thanks so much for your patience and your assistance!!

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