Cannot See Library After Updating Calibre to 2.8

[eucalyptus]

Hello!

I wonder if anyone can advise me on how to fix this?

I've never had an issue with Calibre until last night, when I updated it to 2.8. Suddenly, it shows just a blank list for my library, even though the library location is still the same. I've tried changing the library location and back again, but it doesn't work.

It looks like this:



and I have no idea how to make it start showing my library again?


*Edit: I tried adding some new books, and it displays them fine. But it isn't displaying my old books.

[mbovenka]

Originally Posted by eucalyptus

Hello!

I wonder if anyone can advise me on how to fix this?

I've never had an issue with Calibre until last night, when I updated it to 2.8. Suddenly, it shows just a blank list for my library, even though the library location is still the same. I've tried changing the library location and back again, but it doesn't work.

It looks like this:



and I have no idea how to make it start showing my library again?


*Edit: I tried adding some new books, and it displays them fine. But it isn't displaying my old books.

If you are sure the directory is the correct one (i.e. there still are book subdirectories in there) you might try a Restore Database.

Take a look at this link.

But a Calibre upgrade does not touch your libraries on disk. Not even a full uninstall or 'Delete Library' within Calibre itself will do that, so something else must have happened...

[theducks]

I agree with mbovenka

A normal install never replaces a library with an empty one.

A Normal Uninstall leaves behind anything that belongs to the user (as opposed: to the system). This includes: The configuration folder (and sub folders) , ALL Libraries, Auto-add folder.
Note: These are PER (logon) USER. The Library might be in a 'public' space, but settings,PI's are per user (And bad things can happen if you use the OS switch-users with calibre open for each user on the same Library)

If your OS search did not find any trace of metadata.db, your search is bad: because it should have found the 'Empty Library' that you see. Additional LOCATIONS are THE other (possible) libraries

Libraries don't automagicaly appear on the Quick Switch list. You must use calibre to visit them for them to appear (there is also a limit on how many the list remembers). Just because they don't show, does not indicate that they don't exist.

[eucalyptus]

Originally Posted by mbovenka

If you are sure the directory is the correct one (i.e. there still are book subdirectories in there) you might try a Restore Database.

Take a look at this link.

But a Calibre upgrade does not touch your libraries on disk. Not even a full uninstall or 'Delete Library' within Calibre itself will do that, so something else must have happened...

Thank you, that helped a lot! I couldn't figure out how to do the restore (could not find it in the toolbar) but managed to get the old metadata.db back from a cloud backup.

[eschwartz]

Originally Posted by theducks

Libraries don't automagicaly appear on the Quick Switch list. You must use calibre to visit them for them to appear (there is also a limit on how many the list remembers). Just because they don't show, does not indicate that they don't exist.

Calibre should remember all libraries. The main dropdown however will only display the 5 most-often-used. The Quick Switch list should remember every library it ever used (until/unless deleted).

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by eucalyptus

Thank you, that helped a lot! I couldn't figure out how to do the restore (could not find it in the toolbar) but managed to get the old metadata.db back from a cloud backup.

@eucalyptus - Its at Library icon->Library maintenance->Restore database

What it does is to reconstruct the database (metadata.db) from the metadata.opf files in the book folders and the metadata_db_prefs_backup.json in the library folder.

BR