[v3.1] Failed to retrieve data from the project file.

Audacity Help Forum Windows
1

First time I’ve ever had any issues with corrupted audacity files but I saved the file and then closed it. When I came back and reopened the file maybe an hour later I was presented with the following error: https://i.gyazo.com/194a66a4bf98ca44085bcc655d7d7a1c.png

With the full program details being:

{
    "timestamp": 1635802099,
    "event_id": "e9c27d463d0a32489eb63025cb89abcf",
    "platform": "native",
    "release": "audacity@3.1.0",
    "contexts": {
        "os": {
            "type": "os",
            "name": "Windows",
            "version": "10.0.19043"
        }
    },
    "exception": {
        "values": [
            {
                "type": "Error_Opening_Project",
                "value": "Failed to retrieve data from the project file.\nThe following command failed:\n\nSELECT dict || doc FROM project WHERE id = 1;",
                "mechanism": {
                    "type": "runtime_error",
                    "handled": false,
                    "data": {
                        "sqlite3.query": "SELECT dict || doc FROM project WHERE id = 1;",
                        "sqlite3.rc": "11",
                        "sqlite3.context": "ProjectGileIO::GetBlob::step",
                        "log": "9:28:19 PM: sqlite3 message: (1) no such table: project in \"SELECT 1 FROM project LIMIT 1;\"\n9:28:19 PM: sqlite3 message: (11) database corruption at line 69874 of [1b256d97b5]\n9:28:19 PM: sqlite3 message: (11) statement aborts at 4: [SELECT dict || doc FROM project WHERE id = 1;] database disk image is malformed\n9:28:19 PM: DBConnection SetDBError\n\tErrorCode: 11\n\tLastError: Failed to retrieve data from the project file.\nThe following command failed:\n\nSELECT dict || doc FROM project WHERE id = 1;\n\tLibraryError: database disk image is malformed\n"
                    }
                }
            }
        ]
    }
}

Luckily my backup setup was able to restore to a previous version where it remained uncorrupted. I’m just wondering if this is an issue I can expect to see more often since the release of 3.1 or it’s just a random 1/1,000,000 kind of error. If it helps I can provide a download link to the corrupted file. If this does happen to me again in the future is there a way I can recover the project at all?

2

Have you tried updating all necessary drivers upon your upgrade? It may be a bug on their part though. Try checking this [Link Removed] and see if the drivers there will help. I’ve been using it for a while now, and there’s no errors on my machine since. Hope it’ll help :slight_smile:

3

It is extremely dangerous to install drivers from unofficial sources. Always use official sources for drivers (in most cases this will be the manufacturer’s website).

Also note that advertising is not permitted on this forum.

4

Backups are always good. I’m glad to hear that your backup worked in this case. :smiley:

Actually, sqlite3 was introduced with the Audacity file restructuring in 3.0.0. And RC code 11’s (corrupt database) have been occurring since that time. The particular format for your error was introduced around 3.0.3. You can search the forum for reports of these 3.0.3 & later errors by searching for “sqlite3.rc”: “11”.

Note that prior versions of Audacity had different manifestations of file and data errors, which was the driving force for the change to sqlite3 database.

5

Luckily my backup setup was able to restore to a previous version where it remained uncorrupted.

As a side issue, how did you do that? We strongly recommend safety copies and backups of a show in the event Something Goes Wrong and the current edit is unrecoverable.

There are two methods I know of. Export perfect quality WAV copies of all raw, original recordings; and Audacity > File > Save Project > Save Backup with a unique name. Save Backup is new and it creates a Project with no hard links to the current edit. It’s stand-alone.

Koz

6

For my backups I use Google’s Drive for Desktop (formerly known as backup & sync). I use it more for if my hardware fails or if I delete a file accidently. I just got extremely lucky that a previous save had been backed up and because of Audacity’s GIANT file size it hadn’t yet finished uploading the corrupt version.

So I simply downloaded the version from Google Drive and it was fine.

7

Also a follow up on this I also found that when opening some files that had previously worked just fine I was now presented with “Audacity failed to read from a file in C:.” https://i.gyazo.com/7ba38df93ffd67d8d60fbcd68cbf5e33.png

and this was the problem details:

{
    "timestamp": 1635872665,
    "event_id": "4aee115a533e364cae3d719f9ad5f07a",
    "platform": "native",
    "release": "audacity@3.1.0",
    "contexts": {
        "os": {
            "type": "os",
            "name": "Windows",
            "version": "10.0.19043"
        }
    },
    "exception": {
        "values": [
            {
                "type": "File_Error",
                "value": "Audacity failed to read from a file in <path>.",
                "mechanism": {
                    "type": "runtime_error",
                    "handled": false,
                    "data": {
                        "sqlite3.rc": "11",
                        "sqlite3.context": "SqliteSampleBlock::Load::step"
                    }
                }
            }
        ]
    }
}

This happened to 3 previous files. I believe all were created using version 3.0.5 if that helps. All with the exact same error

8

If you happen to encounter a “sqlite3.rc”: “11” = corrupt database, it is probably best to exit Audacity before loading another database. These errors are supposed to be rare enough that any program actions after this are pretty well untested.

I would be curious to know if you can reproduce the error on 3.1.0 but not on 3.0.5. If you can do that, we have something to show the developers.

As I say to other 3.x.x users who encounter deadly errors. If you care to zip up your .aup3 file and upload it to a file sharing service and post (or PM me) the link, I’ll take a look at it. In this case, I am pretty busy, so it might not be until the weekend.

9

Ensure that you only use that for backups and not for “live” projects.
.AUP3 project files are databases, and there’s a risk of database corruption when using “cloud” services with the storage medium. Before opening a project in Audacity, ensure that it is in a normal folder on the computer’s internal drive.

10

Unfortunately it still gives me the same error message whether I’m running 3.1.0 or 3.0.5. I managed to retrieve a working copy through my backup tool but thanks for the offer to help.

Ya I always work off my local machine and the backup service just live copy’s all my files to the cloud. I never work off the cloud.

11

I would be curious to know if you can reproduce the error on 3.1.0 but not on 3.0.5. If you can do that, we have something to show the developers.

I think what he meant was whether you can create a Project crash from a healthy show on both Audacity 3.0.5 and 3.1. Not if you can bring your existing crash back to life.

We know once the data is scrambled, recovery requires serious effort. And even with extraordinary measures, you may get scrambled show segments, very possibly not something you can use to reconstruct an intact presentation.

For example, one crash recovery brought much of a damaged stereo show back from the great beyond, but scrambled Left and Right sound. So reconstructing the show may have been possible by manually editing the whole thing…in six second chunks. That may be valuable if you have the only known interview with the governor…

Koz