Couldn't find 'Global Prefs'. Application will exit

Our institution has two Specify7 servers. One of them currently in use is in version 7.3.0, we prepared another server in version 7.9.2 that received a copy of the base that is in the 7.3.0 server.

When we logged in to specify7.9.2, the error shown in the article below occurred. We applied the solution as described which resolved the problem.

We carried out the test on the desktop version and were able to successfully log in to this database, which is on the server that hosts specify 7.9.2.

The problem is that when we try to log SP6 back into the base that is hosted on the Specify7.3.0 server, the following message appears:
Specify thinks you are already logged in.
If you are certain no one is logged in with your user nbame , click ‘Override’.

When clicking on the ‘Override’ button the following error appears:
Couldn’t find ‘Global Prefs’. Application will exit.

Could you help us with this problem?

Hi @Andre,

I am glad to hear that you were able to successfully resolve the error that occurred when logging into Specify 7.9.2 by following the solution provided in our article.

Based on the error message you have shared, it seems that the application is unable to find the ‘Global Prefs’ and therefore cannot proceed. This could be due to a number of reasons, such as a corrupted file or an incorrect configuration, but it is most likely due to the preferences app resource starting with #Global Prefs not being present in the database.

It’s unclear why logging in with a newer version of Specify 7 would cause this issue, as there is no logic in newer versions that would remove this resource.

To help you resolve this issue, I would recommend trying the following steps:

  1. Check the server configuration and ensure that the ‘Global Prefs’ file is present at the “Institution” level in the app resources hierarchy in Specify 7.9.2.
  2. If the file is missing or corrupted, try restoring it from a backup or reinstalling the server.
  3. If the issue persists, please provide us with more details about the server configuration and any recent changes that may have been made.

You can also send us a backup so we can investigate further or check this ourselves!

Hi @Andre,

After doing a fresh restore of the database you sent to me on my local system, I was able to log in as Juliano after first logging in as testuser in Specify 6.8.03. Can you try to log in as another user and let me know if the issue persists?