unable to download orders

[Barry W]

Hi

Apologies for any daft questions but I'm new to this.

I'm suddenly unable to download orders. All I get is 'no orders to download' , no 'ok' button just a 'cancel' button and an hourglass.

Following recent threads I ftp'd to the site and there are five *.ord files.

How do I recover these orders?

I'd be very grateful for a solution.

Thanks
Barry

[cdicken]

Actinic will always try and retrieve all *.ord files it finds in its 'acatalog' folder. The fact it is not trying makes me wonder whether you are ftping into the same 'acatalog' folder as Actinic is looking at. Try placing a test order and see if you see a new *.ord file created. Then try and retrieve it

Is there anything odd about the ord files? Do they have a file size other than '0'? Are they all from the same day

[Barry W]

Hi
I did do a dummy order and I can see it in acatalog with four others all have sensible order numbers.

Following other advice (GW GREEN) I checked 'Path from CGI-BIN to acatalog Directory'
this contained 'files/local/home/toyboxuk/acatalog/'
I changed this (my idea) to match catalog url (http://cgi.toyboxuk.force9.co.uk/acatalog/)
I've now got no retrieve arrow.

Regards
Barry

[Jan]

You need to upload your site now because you have changed your network settings, the download arrow will be enabled again after you have done that.

Regards,

[Barry W]

Hi Jan

I tried to update the site but it stuck part way leaving me to end task to get out. now I get this message:

The path from the cgi-bin to the acatalog directory is not correct.
It appears as if the acatalog directory does not exist on the remote host.

Possible Cause:
The path from the cgi-bin to the acatalog directory is not correct.
The acatalog directory has been
removed or renamed.

when I try to update.

I tried:
Run the Web | Configure Web Site Details. Check "Confirm Each Setting" and verify that the setup looks correct. Verify that the acatalog directory exists on the web site and is readable by the web server. Then try to refresh the site.

but it's no better and I may have made things worse.

Regards
Barry

[Jan]

The path from cgibin to acatalog is usually a relative path (eg. ../acatalog), I would suggest doing the following :

1) contact your host and ask for a sample Actinic import file and then make sure that yours matches theirs.

2) post your network settings (minus passwords etc) here for people to take a look at.

3) Send G W Green your network settings if you haven't already done so because he is the real expert on Actinic setup and I don't know whether he is on here or not.

It looks to me (and on this subject I haven't really got a clue) as if your server paths have changed and a few orders have been left behind. To check this, place a dummy order and before you download it check the dir you have been checking to see whether the new .ord file appears in the directory.

Regards,

[Barry W]

Hi Jan

yes path is relative /acatalog/

I can't even place an order now - I get
Error opening configuration file files/local/home/toyboxuk/acatalog/A000.cat. No such file or directory

but there is a new order on the site since the problem started yesterday

My network settings are

catalog url: http://cgi.toyboxuk.force9.co.uk/acatalog/
cgi-bin url: http://cgi.toyboxuk.force9.co.uk/cgi-bin/
path from cgi-bin to acatalog directory: files/local/home/toyboxuk/acatalog/

server host: cgi.force9.net
ftp path to cgi-bin: /cgi-bin/
path from cgi-bin to acatalog: /acatalog/
path to perl shell: /usr/bin/perl (I may have inadvertently changed this)

Is there anything else?

Regards
Barry

[cdicken]

THe knowledge base article HERE gives some example settings for Force9 - these are they:

SCRIPTID	1
SCRIPTEXT	.pl
SMTPHOST	relay.force9.net
CGIBINURL	http://www.my.net/cgi-bin/
CATALOGURL	http://www.my.net/acatalog/
WEBSITEURL	http://www.my.net/
PATHFROMCGITOCATALOG	../acatalog/
FTPPATHFROMCGITOCATALOG	./acatalog/
FTPHOST	cgi.plus.net
FTPUSERNAME	MyUserName
FTPPASSWORD	MyPassword
PATHTOCGIBIN	/cgi-bin/
CODEBASE	./
PATHTOPERL	/usr/bin/perl
USEPASSIVEFTP	false
IGNOREPASSIVEERRORS	true

Comparing these to what you have...

catalog url: http://cgi.toyboxuk.force9.co.uk/acatalog/

This URL looks OK.

cgi-bin url: http://cgi.toyboxuk.force9.co.uk/cgi-bin/

Again, this looks fine.

path from cgi-bin to acatalog directory: files/local/home/toyboxuk/acatalog/

Try ../acatalog/

server host: cgi.force9.net

Fine.

ftp path to cgi-bin: /cgi-bin/

Fine.

path from cgi-bin to acatalog: /acatalog/

Try ./acatalog/

path to perl shell: /usr/bin/perl (I may have inadvertently changed this)

This looks fine.

[Barry W]

great thanks!

that gets me able to upload files ok.

now I'm back to my original problem that I've got orders up there that won't come down.

this is getting desperate. Is there any other way of getting orders off the site?

Before download attempts to start I get a warning that some files have changed - oldprod.fil and oldtext.fil although I've only just uploaded?

Regards
Barry

[cdicken]

Have you placed a test order. Did it work? Were you able to retrieve it?

Also, doing a 'Web | Refresh Website' should get rid of the error message you mentioned.

[Barry W]

Hi Chris

Yes I have done two test orders, one sunday one yesterday.
They're both up there but won't come down.

Yes I uploaded again and got rid of the warning - thanks.

Now what for my orders?

If I install another copy of Catalog on another machine with a snapshot am I likely to take the problem with me?

Regards
Barry

[Barry W]

Sorry for second post.

I'm on dial-up so I have'nt tried a complete site refresh as I can't imagine how long it would take.

Is this likely to be more successful than installing another copy

Regards
Barry

[cdicken]

A refresh would replace any missing files that may be affecting your order download, so it is worth doing.

Have you also been in contact with email support about this yet? If not, then it may be worth registering an email support query at http://www.actinic.co.uk/support/register.htm as they will be able to take a more in-depth look at your server.

[Barry W]

Hi Chris

Yes I'm having a parallel conversation with GW Green.

My site can only be accessed through dial-up so he can't look at it.

I'm keeping refresh as a last resort.

Regards
Barry

[cdicken]

Well, problems like this can normally only be diagnosed by looking at the web site so that might be a problem. It's sort of like a mechanic not being able to look under the bonnet of the car.

Hopefully you will be able to get this sorted by Gary talking to your web hosting company. We'll see.

The refresh is always worth doing, and it will not make things worse.