Address Book wiped clean

[gabe]

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: Intel
Email Client: pop

Yesterday, while using Entourage, a message popped up saying that the database was corrupted. I had to rebuild the database to be able to use Entourage. Then it was OK again.

But Apple Address Book was somehow wiped in the process (they are sync'ed). And Bento Address Book and all the dependent Bento contact entries were also wiped, because Bento depends on Apple Address Book.

I have resync'ed, and so repopulated much of Apple Address Book, but of course Bento related database entries won't automatically reappear.

I do have back ups but don't want to use them until I find out what went wrong. When the database crashed I was editing a contact in Entourage, and I also had Bento open at the same time.

What I want to know is, how can I protect my Bento database, if Entourage should crash again in the future? What settings should I use (Address Book overwrite Entourage or Entourage overwrite Address Book or Merge both) so that I can add data in both Bento and Entourage? And is there anything I should avoid doing?

Many thanks for any help on this …

 

[Corentin Cras-Méneur]

Yesterday, while using Entourage, a message popped up saying that the
database was corrupted. I had to rebuild the database to be able to use
Entourage. Then it was OK again.

So your address book in Entourage is OK?

But Apple Address Book was somehow wiped in the process (they are
sync'ed). And Bento Address Book and all the dependent Bento contact
entries were also wiped, because Bento depends on Apple Address Book.

I believe Bento reads the same address book as the System. I suspect
that ENtourage sent the system that the address book had been entirely
changed after the rebuild but that message didn't go through properly.
As a result, SyncServices wiped out the address book but failed to
re-add all the contacts that made it back after the sync.

I have resync'ed, and so repopulated much of Apple Address Book, but of
course Bento related database entries won't automatically reappear.

That's weird... It looks like a Bento issue though. I don;t have Bento
so I can't really test this.

Isn't Bento supposed to be able to pull events and contacts straight
from the System address book and iCal?

Corentin

 

[gabe]

Thanks for the reply. Yes Address Book is in Entourage 2008. But I need to sync via Apple Address Book to get the information into Bento and vice versa. For example I get an email from a new client and add the contact to my Entourage Address Book.

Whatever is in Apple Address does appear in the general Bento Address Book database. But then (since Bento is a database app) I create other entries that relate to the Bento Address Book.

For example I can create another database of invoices, and in one particular invoice, pick out an address of, say, Mr John Smith from the Bento Address Book.

However, if I wipe John Smith from the Bento Address Book, for whatever reason, it will also disappear from the invoice, and putting another John Smith back in the Address Book isn't going to make it reappear in the invoice - as the relational link is deleted as soon as the Mr Smith entry is deleted (you can't have a link pointing nowhere in Bento).

 

[Diane Ross]

Thanks for the reply. Yes Address Book is in Entourage 2008.

This is confusing. Entourage has an Address Book and there is an Apple
Address Book. With Sync Services turned on, the Entourage Address Book can
sync to the Apple Address Book.

You need to read this article:

BASICS OF HOW SYNC SERVICES WORKS
<http://www.entourage.mvps.org/syncservices/basics.html>

This will help you understand the merge options as well as the "truth"
database. I suspect that the Bento database is actually syncing with the
"truth" and not the Address Book. Regardless, the problems you are having
with Bento have nothing to do with Entourage.

You mentioned,

I do have back ups but don't want to use them until I find out what went
wrong.

You can always work on copies of your backups while you are working through
your problems. Another option is to turn off Sync Services while you are
cleaning up your data. I would get all my data in one primary source. Erase
all other data then turn Sync Services back on.

Troubleshoot Sync Services: reset sync services and start fresh

However, if I wipe John Smith from the Bento Address Book, for whatever
reason, it will also disappear from the invoice, and putting another John
Smith back in the Address Book isn't going to make it reappear in the invoice
- as the relational link is deleted as soon as the Mr Smith entry is deleted
(you can't have a link pointing nowhere in Bento).

This sounds like typical behavior. You would need to rebuild the invoice
after you add John Smith back.

Also some thoughts on your original problem that caused you to rebuild.
Normally, a crash when editing a contact does not result in the user having
to rebuild. Usually quitting all applications and restarting your computer
will clear up the problem.

When Entourage rebuilds your database, it creates a duplicate. Use Switch
Identity and select the old database. It will be named something like this:

Main [Backed up 7-22-2008 13.35]

Immediately turn off Sync Services in Entourage preferences. Are you getting
any warnings that the database needs to be rebuilt?

I'm just suspicious that the rebuild error was a false one.

 

[gabe]

Thanks for the comments Diane

:

Thanks for the reply. Yes Address Book is in Entourage 2008.

This is confusing. Entourage has an Address Book and there is an Apple
Address Book. With Sync Services turned on, the Entourage Address Book
can sync to the Apple Address Book.




Yes it is confusing isn't it! There are three Address Books here, the Entourage one, the Apple one, and the Bento one, and they're all called "Address Book". Typically I input half my data in Bento and half in Entourage, and leave Apple Address Book closed.

You need to read this article:





BASICS OF HOW SYNC SERVICES WORKS






This will help you understand the merge options as well as the "truth"
database. I suspect that the Bento database is actually syncing with the
"truth" and not the Address Book.




I wonder if this caused the corruption in the first place, with Bento open at the same time as Entourage, and both synced, with Entourage effectively writing to Bento via the truth, and Bento presumably rewriting back to the truth, at the same time, couldn't this cause a problem? I will ask on the Bento forum if the truth is involved.

Regardless, the problems you are having with Bento have nothing to do
with Entourage.




Except for the fact that if Entourage hadn't wiped my address book, my data would still be in Bento. However, I think I've understood now that the way to be sure of preserving my data is to turn syncing off, and just use it occasionally, or at least set it to "merge" and then maybe kill duplicates with a script. Having Apple Address Book overwrite Entourage Address Book would also work, but would be inconvenient for me as I couldn't add email addresses from Entourage Mail.



You mentioned,

I do have back ups but don't want to use them until I find out what

went > wrong.





You can always work on copies of your backups while you are working through
your problems. Another option is to turn off Sync Services while you are
cleaning up your data. I would get all my data in one primary source.
Erase all other data then turn Sync Services back on.





Troubleshoot Sync Services: reset sync services and start fresh




Will now try working from Back ups, starting with Bento, with syncing turned off. The resetting of Syncing I had done already, because I had a clean slate to work with (Entourage had turned syncing off anyway after the rebuild) - but I will do it again after restoring the back-ups.

However, if I wipe John Smith from the Bento Address Book, for whatever
reason, it will also disappear from the invoice, and putting another

John > Smith back in the Address Book isn't going to make it reappear
in the invoice > - as the relational link is deleted as soon as the Mr
Smith entry is deleted > (you can't have a link pointing nowhere in Bento).





This sounds like typical behavior. You would need to rebuild the invoice
after you add John Smith back.




This is what I want to avoid in the future - way too time consuming

Also some thoughts on your original problem that caused you to rebuild.
Normally, a crash when editing a contact does not result in the user having
to rebuild. Usually quitting all applications and restarting your computer
will clear up the problem.





When Entourage rebuilds your database, it creates a duplicate. Use Switch
Identity and select the old database. It will be named something like
this:





Main [Backed up 7-22-2008 13.35]





Immediately turn off Sync Services in Entourage preferences. Are you getting
any warnings that the database needs to be rebuilt?




Yes, if I select the old database, it will not open, & I get a message to the effect "Entourage cannot access your data, you must rebuild", and the verify/compact/rebuild window pops up.

I'm just suspicious that the rebuild error was a false one.





-- Diane

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the comments Diane

:

Thanks for the reply. Yes Address Book is in Entourage 2008.

This is confusing. Entourage has an Address Book and there is an Apple
Address Book. With Sync Services turned on, the Entourage Address Book
can sync to the Apple Address Book.




Yes it is confusing isn't it! There are three Address Books here, the Entourage one, the Apple one, and the Bento one, and they're all called "Address Book". Typically I input half my data in Bento and half in Entourage, and leave Apple Address Book closed.

You need to read this article:





BASICS OF HOW SYNC SERVICES WORKS






This will help you understand the merge options as well as the "truth"
database. I suspect that the Bento database is actually syncing with the
"truth" and not the Address Book.




I wonder if this caused the corruption in the first place, with Bento open at the same time as Entourage, and both synced, with Entourage effectively writing to Bento via the truth, and Bento presumably rewriting back to the truth, at the same time, couldn't this cause a problem? I will ask on the Bento forum if the truth is involved.

Regardless, the problems you are having with Bento have nothing to do
with Entourage. Except for the fact that if Entourage hadn't wiped my
address book, my data would still be in Bento. However, I think I've understood
now that the way to be sure of preserving my data is to turn syncing off,
and just use it occasionally, or at least set it to "merge" and then maybe
kill duplicates with a script. Having Apple Address Book overwrite Entourage
Address Book would also work, but would be inconvenient for me as I couldn't
add email addresses from Entourage Mail.






You mentioned,

I do have back ups but don't want to use them until I find out what

went > wrong.





You can always work on copies of your backups while you are working through
your problems. Another option is to turn off Sync Services while you are
cleaning up your data. I would get all my data in one primary source.
Erase all other data then turn Sync Services back on.





Troubleshoot Sync Services: reset sync services and start fresh Will now
try working from Back ups, starting with Bento, with syncing turned off.
The resetting of Syncing I had done already, because I had a clean slate
to work with (Entourage had turned syncing off anyway after the rebuild)
- but I will do it again after restoring the back-ups.

However, if I wipe John Smith from the Bento Address Book, for whatever
reason, it will also disappear from the invoice, and putting another

John > Smith back in the Address Book isn't going to make it reappear
in the invoice > - as the relational link is deleted as soon as the Mr
Smith entry is deleted > (you can't have a link pointing nowhere in Bento).





This sounds like typical behavior. You would need to rebuild the invoice
after you add John Smith back. This is what I want to avoid in the future
- way too time consuming






Also some thoughts on your original problem that caused you to rebuild.
Normally, a crash when editing a contact does not result in the user having
to rebuild. Usually quitting all applications and restarting your computer
will clear up the problem.





When Entourage rebuilds your database, it creates a duplicate. Use Switch
Identity and select the old database. It will be named something like
this:





Main [Backed up 7-22-2008 13.35]





Immediately turn off Sync Services in Entourage preferences. Are you getting
any warnings that the database needs to be rebuilt? Yes, if I select the
old database, it will not open, & I get a message to the effect "Entourage
cannot access your data, you must rebuild", and the verify/compact/rebuild
window pops up.






I'm just suspicious that the rebuild error was a false one.





-- Diane

 

[Diane Ross]

Yes, if I select the old database, it will not open, & I get a message to the
effect "Entourage cannot access your data, you must rebuild", and the
verify/compact/rebuild window pops up.

Then it was a legitimate error. If you find out anything further from the
Bento forum, let us know. Yours is the first request for help involving
Bento.

 

[Guest]

Apologies for the double posting and ridiculous formatting ;-) and thanks for all your help.

To conclude, in case anyone else has the same problem:

I've managed now to restore my related records list links in Bento, using my Time Machine back-ups of
first Apple Address Book (open Apple Address Book, have it selected, enter Time Machine, then Restore All)
then Bento (in Finder go to user/Library/Application Support/Bento/ and enter Time Machine and restore).

Just using the Bento internal "restore from backup" (i.e. not Time Machine) did not restore the database links.

Before doing all this I turned syncing off in Entourage. Now I will delete my Entourage Address Book, turn syncing back on with Apple Address Book set to overwrite Entourage Address Book, and then turn syncing back off again, and only use it intermittently after that.

 

[Guest]

this is my thread on the Bento Forum:
<http://forums.filemaker.com/fmbnto/board/message?board.id=consugint&message.id=631#M631>

 

[Diane Ross]

Apologies for the double posting and ridiculous formatting ;-) and thanks for
all your help.

The formatting seems to be from the web interface settings and not a
personal selection.

Thanks for the feedback and glad to hear Time Machine saved the day. I would
like to point out that having Time Machine backup your Identity on an hourly
basis is not a good idea. It's best to exclude it from Time Machine. Backing
up the database while it is in use can cause corruption and the size of
hourly backups fills up your drive. It also slows down your computer during
this backup stage. See these alternatives:

Entourage and Time-Machine-like backup (creates chronological backup of
Identity can be used by both Tiger and Leopard allowing you to roll back to
previous dated backups.

<http://blog.entourage.mvps.org/2008/01/entourage_and_time_machine.html>

Alternative method to use Entourage and Time Machine (does a once a day or
whatever time period you select)

<http://blog.entourage.mvps.org/2008/01/alternative_method_to_use_entourage_
and_time_machine.html>

 

[Diane Ross]

this is my thread on the Bento Forum:

<http://forums.filemaker.com/fmbnto/board/message?board.id=consugint&message.i
d=631#M631>

One thing you mentioned in your thread was about the time it took to sync
the data between Entourage and Bento. It's usually not instant. Even with
Mobile Me, some items can take up to 15 min. Apple has even agreed to use
different terms in describing Mobile Me.

Nice forum look for Bento. I like the buttons for Solved and Accepted
solution. The Entourage discussion group is not a forum, but an interface to
a newsgroup. Thus we don't get the nice software that most of us are so
familiar with. I would recommend using a newsreader like Entourage to view
the newsgroups instead.

<http://www.entourage.mvps.org/support_options/subnews.html>

 

[Guest]

Thanks Diane - I'll bear the syncing time lag and Time Machine incompatibilities in mind. In fact I don't do hourly Time Machine back-ups, just one-offs, usually when everything is not running, but I didn't know about the Time Machine problem conflict …

 

[Diane Ross]

Thanks Diane - I'll bear the syncing time lag and Time Machine
incompatibilities in mind. In fact I don't do hourly Time Machine back-ups,
just one-offs, usually when everything is not running, but I didn't know about
the Time Machine problem conflict …

If you do want to use it hourly, use the method described here that does a
once daily backup of Entourage. You can use the same method for any database
that you might have excluded.

<http://blog.entourage.mvps.org/2008/01/alternative_method_to_use_entourage_
and_time_machine.html>