What's up with orphaned tags??

[bubbalicious]

I asked about tags/labels on 11 Mar, but problem not fixed.
Here's more info from configuration: 73,748 orphaned tags, label style=name column, storage=use volume serials.
As I said before, the only reason I use yellow label on file name is to visually verify info has been sourced/cited in my genealogy program, and I work off of two external SSD drives with these files.
Just in case you need to know for an answer to my questions, tag.dat is kept at: C:\Users\...\AppData\Roaming\XYplorer\tag.dat

What's up with the orphaned tags? How to fix?
Does tags storage need to be "relative to tags database?"
Other than this annoying issue, I love this prog and have used it for some time.
Thanks for your help.
Nikki

[highend]

Post all serial numbers of your drives and an small subset of orphaned tags from the tag.dat database file?

[bubbalicious]

Posting serial numbers is probably not necessary. Let me tell you, as succinctly as possible, what I did after my last post:
(Just for grins, I had to see if this would work; nothing was changed in configuration file)

On the left pane, I could see the tag.dat file; on right pane, I had my main SSD drive plugged in:
1) I yellowed the files in the 1790-1840 folders;
2) I ejected the drive;
3) I plugged the main SSD drive in again on right side, and the files I had previously yellowed were still yellowed!;
4) I yellowed the files in the 1850-1950 folders;
5) I ejected the drive;
6) I plugged the main SSD drive in again on the right side, and the 1850-1950 files were still yellowed!
7) I ejected the drive
I did the same procedure as above with the backup SSD drive, and files were already yellowed.

Just a moment ago, before posting this reply to you, I plugged in the main SSD again, and files were still yellowed. Yay!

Is this just weird, or what? I'm not complaining, mind you, now that the program seems (for the moment?) to be doing what it was before the last few program updates.
Thank you for your reply, and if things with labeling go wonky again, I'll let y'all know.
Nikki

[highend]

This behaviour doesn't really make sense if the tag.dat is running with serial numbers.
If some files are tagged on drive with serial <x> they wouldn't appear tagged on a different drive with serial <y> (if they weren't tagged specifically on that second drive before), regardless if they use the same file / folder structure...

[bubbalicious]

Yeah, I thought it didn't make sense either, being that I hadn't yellowed the backup drive yet, and they're two different SSD's with two different serial numbers. I'm totally mystified.
I'm not sure if any of this tagging thing has anything to do with program updates? Just a thought.
BTW, I'm a licensed user, have Win10 Pro Home, and I don't know if Win10 has anything to do with any of this either. The software had been doing tagging just fine until recently....and now it seems to be okay again.
Grrrrr!!!!!!
Nikki

[highend]

- Yellow one file (and remember it's full path) on external drive 1 (whatever that would be)
- Menu | File | Settings Special | Save Tags
- Disconnect drive 1, attach drive 2
- This file now really shows up in yellow?

If yes, open the belonging tag.dat file with a text editor, search for that file name with full path.
Copy out all lines where the search finds a match

Post these lines here

Make sure that drive 1 and 2 are connected at the same time
Show a screenshot of Computer / My PC with the view mode set to "Details" so that I can see all serial number
Attach the screenshot as well

[bubbalicious]

Okay, here's the info you asked to see in a screenshot; see attachment.
Nikki

[highend]

You upper three lines are borked... Valid paths can't contain a second ":"...

Regarding serials: Probably the external case provides it (and not the drive inside of it).
In your case it's maybe not that bad, you want the tags to be equal on them anyway.
Otherwise one case would need to be reflashed to change the serial number (depends on the case if there is end user software for it to do this)

Make a backup of your tag.dat!

Menu | Tools | Configuration...
Information | Tags
Click the Options... button
Database Check...
Don't set the checkmark, OK button
Click the OK button in the next step, save your settings again

[bubbalicious]

Thanks for your reply! Appreciate your time and effort.
In regard to the serials: not sure it's worth doing a reflash or reformatting of backup drive. BTW, they're both onn SSD's, 256GB, USB.
Will make backup of tag.data, per your instructions.

Here's another option also to not having the same manufacturer for main and backup drives: I'll just go buy a *different brand* for the backup drive; a Samsung or Western Digital. What say you?
Nikki

[highend]

or reformatting of backup drive

I don't think that wouldn't solve it. The chances that two serials are the same is... Extremely low

I'd choose the Samsung...

[bubbalicious]

Samsung it is; I have a couple of those; they're good.
Nikki