Error in darktable compile

Software darktable
1

I compiled the development version from git. No errors on compile. When I tried to run it, it has the following error:

[init] database version of `library.db’ is too new for this build of darktable. aborting

I am running stable version of Debian.

TIA for help

2

Are you using the configdir option with a particular config directory for your compiled version?

3

I followed the install for git in the darktable install. I have done it many times with no problem.

4

I mean, when you launch a compiled version of darktable with the command line, you can specify a config directory.
I advice you to have a different config directory for the compiled version than the standard one, in order not to mess with the database of the stable version that you may have installed.

What happens here is that you used a very recent version of darktable, and then use an older version with the same configuration directory
The recent version updated the library.db database, and the older version cannot read it anymore, as the database is too new for it.

You can get rid of the error either by deleting the library.db so that darktable can generate a new one (WARNING, if you do that, all tags, collections etc will be lost), either by specifying a new config directory using the commandline so that darktable can work on a different config directory (this will preserve the library.db file: you will be able to read it on a recent version of darktable).

5

Thanks for the detailed explanation. I am afraid I do not know how to create a config directory, and what needs to be in it. If I upgrade debian to testing, do you think it night work? I am not afraid of messing up debian as I have a backup image.

6

ok. I restore my debian system, and reinstall darktable and it is working properly. I guess I must have messed up my debian system.

1 Like
7

When you specify a directory using the configdir commandline option, darktable creates it if needed :wink: So you don’t have to worry about what to put inside :slight_smile:

Restoring your backup, you have restore the /home/username/.config directory, which is the one darktable uses by default. It restored your library.db database to an older version, that’s why you don’t get the error anymore

8

Thanks. What is the name of configdir and where should it be?

9

The default configdir is in /home/username/.config/darktable (replace username by your username).

If you use the configdir option you can have the config directory wherever you want