Error message after in-app update on Linux

This discussion was created from comments split from: Zotero 4.0 doesn't update.
  • Great !

    But when the installation initiated under 4.0.29 (Standalone) via "Check for Updates.." on an x86_64/Ubuntu_16.04 platform does not complete after either restart or full system reboot because (as the error message implies) one is to make sure no other version of Zotero is running, one should check what exactly ?

    This is new inasmuch as all prior Zotero upgrades proceeded uneventfully, i.e. Zotero-related-file permissions were never checked nor intentionally changed. What does Zotero during upgrade expect in terms of permissions - or is this a blind alley ?

    I should add, in the course of upgrading one activity was observed: the 4.0.29 desktop-shortcut (Zotero) icon was removed prior to restart.

    Any hint will be appreciated ! Thanks in advance !
  • edited July 16, 2017
    Ansgar: I'd guess that it's not actually the updater saying that but Zotero itself, and that you still have Zotero for Firefox running and using the same database. Install the new Zotero Connector for Firefox from the download page. (When we actually push 5.0, we'll also be pushing the Connector for Firefox, so this will only be an issue for people who upgrade manually in the interim, and the hope is that most of them will have read the announcement and see that they should download the connector too.)
  • Thank you for the early-morning reply !

    " ... and using the same database"

    If the path to the data is /usr/share/zotero/5ukl2p4l.default/.... , does 5.0.4 take offence at 5ukl2p4l ?

    As the 5.0.4 GUI is yet to come up, I have not been able to set this path under Preferences. Is there a config file that can be accessed via Linux command line, enabling one to force this path prior to running the application ?

    Wow, 5:44 AM -> dedication of the highest order !
  • I'm not clear if you have followed the other part of Dan's instructions, i.e. install the 5.0 Firefox connector in Firefox? (and no, the random string in the filepath to the data folder is standard for 4.0, so that wouldn't be a problem)
  • Yes, first the Firefox connector was installed. When 5.0.4 still did not launch, yielding the same error message that prompted the message of 10 PM yesterday, Dan's comment on the "same database" triggered my alarm.

    Is there a simple debug option other than sifting through the syslog file that would permit insight in which step flags the error message ?
  • Let's start with the actual message you're receiving.
  • Thanks for sticking with this issue, Dan !

    Software update failure
    The update could not be installed. Please make sure there are no other copies of Zotero running on your computer, and then restart Zotero to try again.

    Same pop-up message since the beginning, never changed.
  • edited July 16, 2017
    Oh, OK, so that is from the updater itself. But /usr/share/zotero isn't the standard location for the Zotero profile, so I'm guessing you installed this originally using some third-party package. We can't help you with that, so if you want to use the built-in update function instead of an updated package you'll need to install the tarball from our download page (and, if that creates a new profile in ~/.zotero and makes a new data directory in ~/Zotero, move your old data directory to ~/Zotero).
  • You are correct, Dan ! Original Zotero install occurred around 2012 via the Sebastiaan Mathot ppa.
    Has not been a problem until now.
    When Sebastiaan gets to revector his ppa to the new 5.0.4 URI, we will be happy to upgrade by his method again.
  • It seems the ppa is updated now.
    https://forums.zotero.org/discussion/comment/279934

    I guess we just need to update it to have the new version of Zotero and all personal configurations (personal location and so on) ?

    Thanks,
    Sara
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