Libraries locking up / iWork Pages locking Aperture ?

Question

Level 1

0 points

Libraries locking up / iWork Pages locking Aperture ?

Hi,

my company uses a shared AFP volume where multiple Aperture libraries are stored. For some time now, users report that they cannot open some libraries. They appear to be locked or corrupt.

Repairing permissions or rebuilding the database does not help. Sometimes it helps to restore a library from a backup, but this solution is not permanent.

I checked:

file permissions. They are correct, on both server and clients
file system. It's OK.
Aperture and OS X versions. Both up to date: Aperture 3.5.1 and Mavericks 10.9.2 13C64
Caches. Cleaning them does not help.
Aperture preferences. Resetting does not help.

When comparing a locked library with a backup, all files and folders look OK. But there's a weird thing:

Inside the Database/apdb folder, there are hidden files with the suffix -conch. Am I right that they are some kind of SQLite lock files?

However, when I delete them, they get re-created instantly.

Each time I tried deleting them, I investigated the file owners of the re-created -conch files. Most of the users didn't have Aperture running, but all of them had an open instance of Pages.

What's the link between Pages and Aperture? And how can I prevent Pages to lock up Aperture libraries?

Any suggestions and comments are welcome.

Thank you

Fritjof

Aperture 3, OS X Mavericks (10.9.2)

Posted on Mar 3, 2014 3:02 AM

Reply

Answer 1

léonie

Level 10

194,743 points

Mar 3, 2014 4:06 AM in response to FritjofB

How are your users accessing the Aperture libraries? From the same user account or from different accounts? Simultaniously?

Or only one user at a time?

Inside the Database/apdb folder, there are hidden files with the suffix -conch. Am I right that they are some kind of SQLite lock files?

The files don't have anything to do with Pages. I am seeing the same files inside a small test library on a server, browsing from a Mac, where I don't even have Pages installed.

When an Aperture library is opened on a shared volume, a file "lockfile.pid" will be created in the apdb folder. This lock will be removed, when the library is closed again.

The problem appears to be your general set-up. Aperture is neither a network database nor a multi-user database application. If you access Aperture from different user accounts, the permissions inside the Aperture library will change and you have to run the Aperture Library First Aid tools "Repair Permissions", before another user can access it from a different account.

Also, an Aperture library on a shared volume is not supported. The Aperture library needs to be on a volume formatted MacOS Extended (Journaled), or you are risking database curruption. And it should be locally connected. Network access is not supported.

See Apple's recommendations:

Use locally mounted Mac OS X Extended volumes for your Aperture library

To share a library see: iPhoto: Sharing libraries among multiple users

The iPhoto recommentation will also work for Aperture.

Léonie

Reply

Answer 2

FritjofB Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 3, 2014 4:47 AM in response to léonie

Hi léonie,

thanks for your reply and for the links. At the moment my first concern is to revive the dead libraries. After that I'm going to reconsider the whole Aperture set-up.

Each user has his own account. Aperture prevents simultaneous access by different users to a single library, so there's max one user for each library at a time.

The files don't have anything to do with Pages. I am seeing the same files inside a small test library on a server, browsing from a Mac, where I don't even have Pages installed.

If it's not Pages, then perhaps a component used by Pages or the OS? Those -conch files have to come from somewhere.

I really have to check if the -conch files reappear when no other users are logged in.

File permissions / ownership doesn't seem to be the issue either. The volume ignores file ownership, and if I adjust permissions / ownership to a certain user, the user still can't open the library. The options in the First Aid tools have no positive effect. Sometimes after rebuilding a library the user can open it, but all images and metadata are gone.

What makes me think is that two months ago (or so) there were no problems. The libraries worked just fine...

Fritjof

Reply

Answer 3

FritjofB Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 6, 2014 5:12 AM in response to FritjofB

Small update for anyone who's interested:

If an Aperture library is locked and there's no one who is actually accessing it, you can unlock it by deleting the .*-conch files in the package directory Database/apdb of the library – at least this works in my case.

At the moment I am pretty sure that the -conch files reappear because of cleptomaniac iLifeMediaBrowser plug-ins on the client computers. Those plug-ins seem to access any available Aperture library und thus lockem them for other users.

See this thread for more info on iLifeMediaBrowser plug-ins and com.apple.MediaLibraryService.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5827270

Reply