Urgent Merge Request Error

[BilstonBob]

I’m trying to copy a site live from a client PC, which has been deployed via a snapshot that I created. Both my laptop and the client’s PC are using Actinic Business 7.0.5 FJBA and a Claranet Soho package. I have other client’s using the same set-up and their sites work fine. I have uploaded and tested the site extensively from my own laptop with Claranet and it has been working fine uploading and downloading test orders and shared SSL.

Since deploying the site on my client’s PC I have been unable to unload the site without error. It goes through the upload process until the end. I then receive a ‘Merge Request Error’. I have deleted the .cat and .fil files from the local machine and server but still get the error. I have compacted the database and re-uploaded, but still get the same error. I have tried purge and refresh and delete the perl, .cat and .fil files but still get the merge error. I have also checked the permissions on the acatalog and cgi-bin folders which are set to 755. I have reset them to 777, but this makes no difference.
I have tried re-uploading from my laptop and it works fine. So I tested the client’s Actinic network settings and I receive the following errors:

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Actinic received an request forbidden error from the web server. The server is not properly configured to allow Actinic to run CGI scripts from the cgi-bin. Run Web | Configure Web Site Details... to review your web site configuration.
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The test script failed to execute on the web server. The error could be caused by several things. Check the path to the Perl shell, the CGI script extension, the path to CGI-BIN, and the CGI-BIN URL. This error could also occur if your web site is out of disk space or your web server is not configured to accept POSTs to CGI scripts.
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I find this odd as they should be fine and are the same as my laptop. Also when I’ve tried using the site, after uploading from the client PC, the site appears to work, but I can’t download any orders. I get the following error:

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Actinic received an request forbidden error from the web server. The server is not properly configured to allow Actinic to run CGI scripts from the cgi-bin. Run Web | Configure Web Site Details... to review your web site configuration.
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I’m stumped as to what could be causing the problem. The client’s connection is through a network server and this is really the only difference I can identify. I can FTP to the Claranet servers using my client’s PC and CuteFTP without any problem.

Does anyone have any suggestions? I just get the feeling it’s something really obvious?!

Thanks

Anthony

[jont]

Have you tried the old trusty changing the id script number and reloading the site?

I sometimes get the odd merge request error with Clara but the site is OK and I can retreive orders so I put it down to the connection timing out - not had the issue since moving to a 2mb connection

[BilstonBob]

Jont, forgot to mention that I'd done that in my list of things I've tried.

Any other ideas?

[Bruce]

Anthony,

Is the setup such that you will be uploading changes etc to the site and the client is going to download and process the orders? If so I would suggest best not to upload from both machines, restrict the options on each end. Business Settings | Options | Allow on this PC or while deploying the snapshot. The client restricted to Order Processing and yourself having the other options.

Then go into Help | Troubleshooting | and do a "Web Site Purge and Refresh". Once the refresh goes through, send over a new snapshot to the client with only the suitable options.

Kind regards

[BilstonBob]

Thanks for the response Bruce.

I originally set this up on my laptop for development and testing. The snapshot was deployed on the client's PC for full order processing and site maintenance. The customer wants to take me out of the loop and so do I .

Any other thoughts?

[Bruce]

Anthony,

In that case, I would suggest FTP'ing to the acatalog folder and look for and .ord or .occ files and remove them to another place so they can be replaced later. On the Clients PC do the "Web Site Purge and Refresh", once completed replace the .ord and .occ files and you should be all fine.

Kind regards,

[BilstonBob]

Great I'll give this a go on Monday as I don't have remote access to their network yet.

Thanks

Anthony

[BilstonBob]

Bruce

I'm afraid this still didn't work. I can copy the site up, but it fails with a merge request error at the end. As before they can't download any orders and I've also noticed the site search isn't working either. The price updates they made to the site have been copied live though?!

If I check the network settings it says they're not correct, but these are the same as my version and the same as other Actinic Claranet hosted sites I've set-up in the past?

Help appreciated.

Anthony

[jont]

Had a similar issue yesterday with CLARA and a brand new site upload. The testing wizard would not pass - I uploaded the site but the checkout and search scripts were not found on the server - I did a full purge and refresh and that worked. The network test still fails but I am able to upload, receive orders and confirmation emails are going through.

Seems that on the CLARA server changes end of last year they definitely did something which is slightly different to previous site installs. I know CLARA reported an issue on their homepage yesterday which made some virtual servers disappear.

Have you asked your client to purge and refresh or are you doing it remotely. Worth a try as worked for me yesterday. I sometimes get the "merge request error" at the end of an upload but everything works fine and orders arrive without issue - I put this down to CLARA servers timing out as the next upload (often the same day) merges fine!

[BilstonBob]

Thanks Jont.

I travelled to see my client today, as I have remote access problems with their server too! I tried Bruce's purge and refresh suggestion from the client site, I'm sure I'd already tried this, but it didn't work. I still get the merge error at the end of the upload.

The search facility has a problem, but everything else works OK. They can't download any orders, which is the real annoyance, and the thing I need to fix quickly.

Claranet say there's nothing wrong, as the upload process worked fine from my laptop. It's curious that the network test doesn't work, yet the site uploads?!

Any more suggestions welcome.

Anthony

[BilstonBob]

Anyone else got any thoughts on what could be causing this?! Comments especially welcomed from Bruce, Chris, Nadeem, Tracey.

Cheers.

[cdicken]

The only thing I can think of is there is something funny with the client's connection to the internet which is blocking Actinic from making http calls to the web server (http calls to the web server are made during the merge request, and also during order download). This is either something on the router or some firewall which is blocking the http calls.

With the router, there is a setting called 'MTU' (maximum transfer units) which needs to be set to 1500. If that changes nothing it is also worth turning off any firewalls just for the duration of a network test to see if it then passes. That will help pinpoint the problem.

[BilstonBob]

Cheers Chris.

At least it gives me something to go back to them with. I'm trying to pursuade them to work on a stand alone PC, just to eliminate the server.

[BilstonBob]

It's been a while but I thought I'd better give an update on this.

I finally got some answers from the client's network support team, which weren't the answers I'd hoped for. The MTU is set to 1500 and the firewall was closed to allow FTP from the machine, but I still get the merge request.

I'm now going to ask that the site be set-up on a standalone PC. Fingers crossed that this will resolve the error. I'll post an update when it's done.

[BilstonBob]

It looks like the router/server was the cause of the problem. I finally got the client to provide a spare office PC and copied the site up without error on the first attempt! For future reference the router is a Draytek Vigor 2600i.