# Uptick in Lost databasepath **URL:** \ **Category:** Development\ **Created:** [April 8, 2025, 8:14pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415 "2025-04-08T20:14:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![emyoulation](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/emyoulation/32/67_2.png) [@emyoulation](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/emyoulation)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2025, 8:14pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/1 "2025-04-08T20:14:43Z")
Dunno if you’ve been monitoring the support threads but, since the 6.0 release, there have been a surge of lost databasepath preferences. Users here and on Reddit report the same problem. It is relatively simple to resolve (with a quick detour into exploring the `recent-file.xml`). But WHY is it happening? The loss of preferences values might extend beyond the Databasepath… but one’s trees being not visible will be the most blatant symptom. And people using the feature to re-open the last tree might not even notice that. It probably only affects users who have CHANGED from the default too. So that cuts the potential reports further and makes this surge more concerning. - [Family tree not in open dialogue (macOS) in gramps 6.0.0](https://www.reddit.com/r/gramps/comments/1jgeazl/family_tree_not_in_open_dialogue_macos_in_gramps/) (Reddit) - [Available Family Tree Doesn’t Show in Family Tree Manager](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/available-family-tree-doesnt-show-in-family-tree-manager/7412/4) - [Homebrew upgraded to 6.0 - and now the database is gone](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/homebrew-upgraded-to-6-0-and-now-the-database-is-gone/7414/2) - [Database Locked - use force-unlock option](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/database-locked-use-force-unlock-option/7194/3) - [Gramps won’t run – help!](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/gramps-wont-run-help/7375/2) ---
**Author:** ![emyoulation](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/emyoulation/32/67_2.png) [@emyoulation](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/emyoulation)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 6:14pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/2 "2025-04-09T18:14:12Z")
[another one today](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/homebase-variable-is-set-and-verified-but-trying-to-open-the-existing-db-pointed-to-does-not-work/7423) that has a slight variation… using the [GRAMPSHOME](https://gramps-project.org/wiki/index.php/Gramps_5.2_Wiki_Manual_-_Command_Line#GRAMPSHOME) environment variable. ---
**Author:** ![emyoulation](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/emyoulation/32/67_2.png) [@emyoulation](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/emyoulation)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 7:29pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/3 "2025-04-09T19:29:46Z")
This sounds like a potential contributing factor: > [@Homebase Variable Is Set And Verified But Trying To Open the Existing DB Pointed To Does Not Work](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/homebase-variable-is-set-and-verified-but-trying-to-open-the-existing-db-pointed-to-does-not-work/7423/4): > > You set the variable GRAMPSHOME in Windows **before** you install Gramps. When Gramps installs and runs for the first time, it will create the user folders in the location defined by GRAMPSHOME instead of the default location. > > As an example, I set my GRAMPSHOME to `c:\users\public\Genealogy` so that all users on a shared computer had access to all of the same Gramps files. Maybe these people having problems are related to Environmental Variables that were set in previous experiments and are only just now affecting the 6.0 upgrades? ---
**Author:** ![DaveSch](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/davesch/32/40_2.png) [@DaveSch](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/DaveSch)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 7:39pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/4 "2025-04-09T19:39:58Z")
I intalled 6.0 to test (have not made the switch to actually use 6.0) but 6.0 set up the user version folder and recognized the database folder in my user folder set by GRAMPSHOME. ---
**Author:** ![emyoulation](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/emyoulation/32/67_2.png) [@emyoulation](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/emyoulation)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 7:49pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/5 "2025-04-09T19:49:33Z")
Do you think that a `Gramps -v` could help eliminate this as a possible contributing factor? (That is, request that output from the people who reported.. and who report in the future… mis-matched databasepaths after import.) ---
**Author:** ![romjerome](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/romjerome/32/1489_2.png) [@romjerome](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/romjerome)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 7:58pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/6 "2025-04-09T19:58:46Z")
> [@emyoulation](#): > > But WHY is it happening? Path issue? Like ‘Program\_ \_File’ under Windows OS? or any user local profile? ---
**Author:** ![emyoulation](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/emyoulation/32/67_2.png) [@emyoulation](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/emyoulation)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 8:17pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/7 "2025-04-09T20:17:54Z")
> [@romjerome](#): > > Path issue? Like ‘Program\_ \_File’ under Windows OS? or any user local profile? We are talking about the databasepath in the Family Tree tab of Gramps Edit → Preferences Their 5.2 `gramps.ini` value is reportedly not being converted to their 6.0 install. ![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/free1/uploads/gramps/original/2X/8/86a35999c0cc0cf8c3e4bf22b5e6e8fe48216352.png) However, there are a LOT of variables. For instance, let’s explore another far-fetched speculation : A lot of people might have been using the “Remember last Family Tree” and might not have had a valid `databasepath` for a while. But a problem would have only manifested when upgrading because the “Remember” option was ignored. ---
**Author:** ![romjerome](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/romjerome/32/1489_2.png) [@romjerome](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/romjerome)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 8:33pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/8 "2025-04-09T20:33:33Z")
> [@emyoulation](#): > > We are talking about the databasepath in the Family Tree tab of Gramps Edit → Preferences Sorry, I often make “indirect” comment. In my mind, the path is stored into a XML file. How recent paths set into this ‘possible’ dedicated XML file are handled? ---
**Author:** ![emyoulation](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/emyoulation/32/67_2.png) [@emyoulation](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/emyoulation)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 8:48pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/9 "2025-04-09T20:48:40Z")
Media paths ARE stored in the XML archival files and the Gramps Data Model But the databasepath is stored externally in the gramps.ini file and loaded into the live SQLite database files. (I find Gramps **Environmental Variables** to be very conceptually challenging. **Specifically** unclear is: when each variable’s values are applied into the Gramps environment.) ---
**Author:** ![romjerome](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/romjerome/32/1489_2.png) [@romjerome](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/romjerome)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 8:57pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/10 "2025-04-09T20:57:12Z")
> [@emyoulation](#): > > But the databasepath is stored externally in the gramps.ini file and loaded into the live SQLite database files I mean something like: `$ cat $HOME/.gramps/recent-files-gramps.xml` ---
**Author:** ![emyoulation](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/emyoulation/32/67_2.png) [@emyoulation](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/emyoulation)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2025, 9:52pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/11 "2025-04-09T21:52:13Z")
> [@romjerome](#): > > I mean something like: > `$ cat $HOME/.gramps/recent-files-gramps.xml` Yes, as I was repeatedly explaining where to find the `recent-files-gramps.xml` and how to parse it, I wished that there was an easier way. It is reminiscent of the Recent-Items addon by @kku for Select Object dialogs. It would be nice if a pull-down menu could be built from the folders `recent-files-gramps.xml` list of unique paths. Or, more accurately, one level up from those folders. (Since modifying the Gtk File Chooser probably is not an option, so maybe adding a menu to the field in Preferences?) ![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/free1/uploads/gramps/original/2X/1/1af374507813b3c70429b4eb67bd46c64558760c.png) ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/free1/uploads/gramps/original/1X/2ac1e712b7adf612e31ca08a55419f4cf37c0158.png) [@system](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/system)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2025, 9:52pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/uptick-in-lost-databasepath/7415/12 "2025-05-09T21:52:23Z")
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