Rolling up/combining multiple files into 1 or 2 files (dbs)

[Larry Schultz]

Question re: rolling up a 49 file solution into 1 or 2 files. 2 files would be for a separation model. Are there currently any tools to aide in this conversion? I'm thinking NO! My plan was to copy in all the tables, then create layouts, copy value lists, etc.. Now add relationships. After this bring in the scripts, fixing the broken ones. Then, either fix broken calcs, lookups, etc, OR re-import the fields. Next, copy/paste layouts...... and on and on..... ANY IDEAS?

[bcooney]

https://dbservices.com/articles/upgrading-filemaker-pro-part-2-file-consolidation/

[IdealData]

49 files is obviously not a simple solution - determine if you really need to consolidate first.

I've been running a 30 file solution for 20 years and have considered the consolidation route also. Originally I had nearly 40 files to deal with but I did consolidate some of them because they were merely "utility" files. I even created a new file to hold all the "contacts" from 5 other files simply from an interface perspective only (it makes sense in this instance).

One of the benefits of a multi-file solution is that you can develop in different files at a time and deploy them individually. Possibly important if you have more than one developer!

Some years ago I had a chat with a very experienced developer that retails a significant application; he said it nearly killed him and actually migrated a 30 file solution in 2 consolidations because he had to maintain a deliverable product.

Break the problem down to smaller chunks that you might deliver as "modules" (like my contacts?)

Factor in your migration path too - you need to get the data from your production system to the new version ultimately.

The final product will likely be somewhat different to the end-user current experience so, once again, consider delivering in smaller units to take the pressure off yourself and ease the users into the new world.

[Wim Decorte]

Consider splitting the files up along the lines of what is static (data that does not change much) and data that is dynamic (that does change a lot).  Doing so has benefits in FMS' backup speed and disk space requirements.  Obviously the more data you have the bigger the benefits; if your files are potentially huge then stuffing everything into 1 or 2 may lead to slow backups and those often lead to people not doing enough backups...