Please Help! The URNs in my database have started to duplicate themselves. This is causing havoc with the related databases. How can I stop the URNs from repeating themselves?

What the heck is a "URN"?

An urn is where people keep ashes of cremated dead relatives.

A URN is a unique number given to every record in a database. It is used in our case to link people stored in one database with different subject areas stored in another database. The database automatically assigns a new URN to each new record created. I have the field set to be unique and it is unmodifiable. And, yet, the database has suddenly started to create duplicates in this field.

If sound like someone is using the Keyboard Cmd D instead of Cmd N to make new records. Either get a ruler and smack there little fingers or script these functions to buttons and eliminate the ability to Keyboard (menu) access.

HTH

Lee

Never mind, I've sorted it out. The problem arose from some old records that were imported from another database and the URN numbers from that database were also imported instead of allowing the current database to assign new numbers, so these numbers were not indexed. I have sorted out a 'work-around'. I'm going to set change the field definition to start assigning URN numbers at a number higher than the highest existing number.

This is why just using what you call the URN (and what Filemaker calls the Record ID) is insufficient for creating relationships.

One suggestion made on these boards, oh, many moons ago, was to create a calc field that concatenates the Record ID, the CreationDate and the CreationTime. That way, each record's key field will be unique.

The thread is in the articles forum. It is very worthwhile reading.

http://www.fmforums.com/threads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=articles&Number=41246&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=365&fpart=1