With 1623 topics listed as headers on 33 pages and a page at least to each header, I\'m not about to research this. I have lost every bit of data after a system restore that only went back two days and I had over 200 hours logged on two sulfur’s each. 400+ Hr total ... not the first time.

I\'d like to know how to prevent this and what the cause may have been. Win xp SP 2 auto update is current.

It gets old fast when the data keeps getting lost with no real or apparent way to recover it. Yes I clean the disk defrag and scan the disk daily. So please don\'t ask.

If anyone has any relevant history on this please contact me at siedentopf@copper.net

I don\'t mind the CPU time or the disk space, but if I\'m unable to finish it after starting 20 or so what is the point? I didn’t get a credit of 84.000/Ave 325 by not making some personal effort to this, but I have yet to finish JUST ONE!! I know some don\'t like to blame BOINC for this, but none of my other programs lost data because of the restore; every other program found data created between the dates only BOINC failed to do this. I can not say that it is all working as well as intended.

As far as the FAQ goes I think its time to combine it into something less then it is. I’m not an historian nor do I care to become one, I’d just like the facts please. I’m running 4.19 because the newer updated one, with all the bells and fluff; seems no better and has problems with dial up no matter how it is set … so it seems at least to me. I don\'t need the charts and plots and I really do not care to run anything other then climatePrediction ... so if I can\'t do that, I give up, and I may as well let my putter go back to flying tosters.

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You need to make a backup of the entire BOINC folder to \"restore\" after a failure.
And you MUST suspend BOINC first, so the many files in cp don\'t get out of sync during the long copy process.
<a href=\"http://www.climateprediction.net/board/viewtopic.php?t=2377\"> This</a> thread discusses backups, with links to several other threads.

Keep in mind that the end of phase uploads in sulphur models are big; the first is over 8 Megs, which may take a while on dialup. And with version 4.19, ALL the big files get uploaded in one go at the end.

It has been highly suggested to shut down BOINC and all the processing before doing a defrag. Since you are moving files that are partially in memory at this time, it can lose where the data is on the drive and fail the WU.

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It has been highly suggested to shut down BOINC and all the processing before doing a defrag. Since you are moving files that are partially in memory at this time, it can lose where the data is on the drive and fail the WU.

I\'m not slow of mind, thanks.

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You need to make a backup of the entire BOINC folder to \"restore\" after a failure.
And you MUST suspend BOINC first, so the many files in cp don\'t get out of sync during the long copy process.
<a href=\"http://www.climateprediction.net/board/viewtopic.php?t=2377\"> This</a> thread discusses backups, with links to several other threads.

Keep in mind that the end of phase uploads in sulphur models are big; the first is over 8 Megs, which may take a while on dialup. And with version 4.19, ALL the big files get uploaded in one go at the end.

I\'ve done this, and had no good results. Not only is it impractical to back up1,600+ Megs of data, not all the files care to copy over for some reason. So what is the problem with having BOINC not keep its data as Outlook or any of the other programs do? What did you all miss in creating the program? I have two CPU\'s and I\'m not just backing up one here. No matter how well I try to do it so that nothing is transposed or misplaced, this has never worked. So I ask again; how come BOINC can\'t handle a restore like every other program?

But a system restore is not the only problem, like so many others some times it just drops out and restarts for no reason … and there I am waiting for the files to upload again so in the end it seems those work WU’s can also crash. What did the people that created this mess, miss? Howcome the files need to be backed up for routine windows operations? That doesn’t sound very “background-ish” to me ….

I have even tried to back them on to a file on the hard drive and to disk … nice plan doesn’t work on this end.

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Not only is it impractical to back up1,600+ Megs of data, not all the files care to copy over for some reason.

I\'m puzzled. Admittedly there\'s a lot of data, but are you saying it is impracticable because of a lack of space, or other reasons? It takes a minute of two, but it is a lot of data. As for not being able to copy all the files, I\'m afraid it does sound as if you have not closed BOINC down completely first. Something must be locking the files. To close BOINC you must use File/Exit if in BOINC Manager; just closing the window does not close BOINC.

As for your other comments, I think you might be confusing BOINC and the application. The size is accounted for by the data files generated in climateprediction; they are zipped when it is appropriate, but nothing can be done about the amount of data when modelling the world\'s climate in the way it is being done here. It isn\'t really like your emails. And yes, the program does have its own backup system built in, which is why it may sometimes go back and repeat work, but the backup we are talking about here is a precaution in case that does not suffice.

Data backup is routine in the commercial world and the methods used depend on the application in question. Most wise data managers try to make sure that they have a backup of all their files.

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You write that you did a system restore and lost everything. How can this be? Was BOINC and CPDN running when you took the backup? If so, this would explain it. Backup cannot save all files at the same time, so when a restore is done, files will be out of synch.

I make a regular backup of the entire BOINC folder (while BOINC is down) - about once a week. If something ever happens - and it did happen once - then I can just go back and run it from there.

I run a nightly scheduled defrag (using Diskeeper with smart I/O enabled), and it never interfered with BOINC or CPDN. Windows\' own defragger may be less tactful.

You write that you did a system restore and lost everything. How can this be? Was BOINC and CPDN running when you took the backup? If so, this would explain it. Backup cannot save all files at the same time, so when a restore is done, files will be out of synch.

I make a regular backup of the entire BOINC folder (while BOINC is down) - about once a week. If something ever happens - and it did happen once - then I can just go back and run it from there.

I run a nightly scheduled defrag (using Diskeeper with smart I/O enabled), and it never interfered with BOINC or CPDN. Windows\' own defragger may be less tactful.

The last time I did a system restore I copied all the folders under BONIC to the hard drive, closed everything and ran the restore. I needed to because my FEM (structural analysis program has problems and I do not dea5r run the FEM and BONIC at the same time, very bad move) the system restored and BONIC comes up. I closed it changed out the files at the windows programs and there was nothing there for it to run but I just tossed in some 1.6G of data. So it\'s for some reason unable to read it. Everything else had come back fine. I have never had a problem with the defrag, clean disk or any of that. What I do have problems with is the data just dropping on its own or the program not seeing what should be there after a restore. I have also tried win back up before the restore and then also it can\'t run that. So the few times I should be able to save something, because nothing went to a total crash, it never seems to happen. There seems to be basic problems in the code of the program to not be able to come back after a normal restore, and with backing up the data I have changed programs and venders, nothing. I don\'t know what it is but if it happens again ... I\'m gone ... hate to sound rude but I can\'t see paying the power bill to run BONIC because I’m not using the other programs for the moment, or all night or all week. I just once want to see a WU finish, so this after over a years effort isn’t a waste of time. I hate to say it but this is its last chance. If we all don\'t come up with a fix....

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You need to make a backup of the entire BOINC folder to \"restore\" after a failure.
And you MUST suspend BOINC first, so the many files in cp don\'t get out of sync during the long copy process.
<a href=\"http://www.climateprediction.net/board/viewtopic.php?t=2377\"> This</a> thread discusses backups, with links to several other threads.

Keep in mind that the end of phase uploads in sulphur models are big; the first is over 8 Megs, which may take a while on dialup. And with version 4.19, ALL the big files get uploaded in one go at the end.

I “MUST” … oh okay.????
Tell me what would be a good reason to back up the data after a failure, when I can’t even get the backup to take when BONIC didn’t fail? After more then a year of playing with this it was about “JUST ONCE VERY EARLY” that I did not suspend or close the program to try and back it up on the few times it was still running good before the restore.

At the risk of sounding redundant (something I’m accused of most times) I’m not string hopping down the form to learn anything new that can’t be posted into this string or posted to the main site. Call me prickish that way. The loss of data and backing up are not new issues I’m sure, its about time it got posted to the main site anyway, so no one has to go string hopping, and I’m not doing that.

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Not only is it impractical to back up1,600+ Megs of data, not all the files care to copy over for some reason.

I\'m puzzled. Admittedly there\'s a lot of data, but are you saying it is impracticable because of a lack of space, or other reasons? It takes a minute of two, but it is a lot of data. As for not being able to copy all the files, I\'m afraid it does sound as if you have not closed BOINC down completely first. Something must be locking the files. To close BOINC you must use File/Exit if in BOINC Manager; just closing the window does not close BOINC.

As for your other comments, I think you might be confusing BOINC and the application. The size is accounted for by the data files generated in climateprediction; they are zipped when it is appropriate, but nothing can be done about the amount of data when modelling the world\'s climate in the way it is being done here. It isn\'t really like your emails. And yes, the program does have its own backup system built in, which is why it may sometimes go back and repeat work, but the backup we are talking about here is a precaution in case that does not suffice.

Data backup is routine in the commercial world and the methods used depend on the application in question. Most wise data managers try to make sure that they have a backup of all their files.

Trust me it was closed and not just the window, the task was closed.
Maybe then its own backup isn\'t letting my backup get in .. got a sure fix for that?
I have copys of backups for every thing and I do that once a week, and I scan every day at least once .... no more tears for me ... but to save my life I can not for any reason get BONIC to take a back up. Please remember I exit the program not just the window.

I close the program not just the window I see the data I close evertthing else run the restore replace the data I see it\'s there I start BONIC and it sees nothing. As far as it seems to care ther is nothing there to run. I\'m replacing the data from the windows/programs/BONIC folder....what could it be that is doing that?? Every thing else works no problems.

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> I “MUST” … oh okay.????
> Tell me what would be a good reason to back up the data after a failure...

I\'ll put it a bit simpler:
On a daily/weekly basis, Suspend BOINC.
Wait until it says Suspended in the Work tab.
Exit Boinc.
Copy BOINC folder to somewhere outside itself. Another folder, another drive.
Restart BOINC. If it\'s necessary to reboot the computer to do this, then reboot.

Then, at some time in the future after you have done all this, BOINC or the science app fails:
Delete BOINC folder.
Copy saved BOINC folder to the place where you have just deleted the original BOINC folder.
Restart BOINC. If it\'s necessary to reboot the computer to do this, then reboot.

There are over 40,000 machines crunching away OK, so if YOU are having problems, it\'s either your computer, for some reason, or you are having difficulty understanding how it all fits together.
And, as you have been here since September 2004, you must surely understand it. So that points to your computer hardware / software / or both.
And, as you have 162 results registered in that time, it\'s somthing SERIOUS.

Do you want to try and sort things out, perhaps by reading the two threads on testing and maintenance, and then using the advice, or just leave?
Because I don\'t feel like spending time trying to help people who don\'t really want to be helped.