File Compact and Optimize

[Greg Hains]

Hi.

Is it possible to invoke these commands/routines from within a script - thus keeping the database fairly tidy automatically?

Greg

[Vaughan]

No, apart from the "Save a Copy As..." command.

There has been some doubt cast upon these commands. Because they work on the *current* file there has been a suggestion made that they may in fact worsen data corruption if any exist in the file.

[gdurniak]

yes, the current thinking is that the File Maintenance options probably should never be used. FileMaker no longer finds them beneficial. This was confirmed at DevCon this year.

greg

[Greg Hains]

This feedback leads me to believe I shouldn't use them. They looked encouraging because the file was smaller and still worked. Deceiving.

Thanks guys.

Greg

[Søren Dyhr]

May one ask as to why this urge have occured? If say it's normalization you're after isn't it usually a scripted matter, rather the opposite.

I would say pretty large solutions easily can be carried around on a USB-dongle/stick.

If the attempt to make a compressed copy, is a desire to make the thingy more agile, is the answer perhaps not what you wish to hear - namely you have designed with an inadequate relational structure. I apologize the mercy-less question here, what is you field/table ratio??

Know that filemaker intellectuals have toyed with:

http://www.fmforums.com/forum/showtopic.php?tid/175168/fromsearch/1/hl/ginko/tp/1/

But your desires for spreadsheet'ish behaviours like in this thread:

http://www.fmforums.com/forum/showtopic.php?tid/187093/post/251951/hl//fromsearch/1/

Doesn't suggest that ginko'ing is arriving in one of your solutions immidiately. BTW the answer to your 4 unanswered questions in that could be found by reading this thread:

http://www.fmforums.com/forum/showtopic.php?tid/176396/post/204083/hl//fromsearch/1/

--sd

[Tori Mitchell]

Oh gee... I can't remember exactly which order optimize puts the file in but compact definitely removes the data 'holes' put in by deletion from a solution. This *will* reduce the size of the file but may not be a good option due to the fact that it leaves no room for inserts. Thus, if you modify the contents of a data object to beyond the current allocated storage, it will have to shuffle quite a few bits around to get the new data placed.

Optimize simply puts the file back in the proper order after a number of r/w/d operations. It's not a bad thing to use but... *shrug*.

Once again, this info is from FMDC this year... filtered through my shoddy memory.

[gdurniak]

the theory is, that "corruption" is often due to mis-labeled file "blocks", or bad block "pointers". Since "File Maintenence" is designed to shuffle blocks around, it tends to make any problem in the file completely irreparable

if you subscribe to FileMaker's Tech Talk, search for "damaged files weber", to find a very long, and interesting thread on this, from last March

and yes, we never did really answer the original question, but it's not a good idea anyway

greg

[Vaughan]

"... we never did really answer the original question"

Oi!

"No, apart from the "Save a Copy As..." command."

[gdurniak]

Vaughan,

sorry about that!

(if we awarded points, you would get them)

greg

[Vaughan]

LOL I was only pulling your chain.

"if we awarded points, you would get them"

Cool. I've still got my five stars from the "old" Forums. : (The joke was that I had ten stars when everybody else was limited to just five.)