Possible workaround for FileMaker database corruption

It is difficult to make assumptions of what exactly went wrong when you are dealing with FileMaker database corruption. One might think of 'Compact, Optimize or Recover'. You might overcome a few cases with this technique and get away with the real problem of data loss. Let's find out various options through which you can effectively handle this type of problem.

Frequently, a FileMaker file gets damaged because of unwanted or unnecessary power surges. When ever the application closes unexpectedly, it s very likely that the file will get damaged. FileMaker 9 Server performs a consistency check that typically includes the following set of actions:

• Verifies the block structures (4K blocks)
• Checks if the next and previous blocks are present.

Now, use the following options to recover FileMaker database in the event of corruption:

• Save a Copy As → Clone:

This command is not exactly to fix any corruption. Instead, it enables you to get the clone or an identical image of your file's structure without any data. The significance of this command is that it deletes or removes all the locale info from the file. The locale info includes all region specific data, such as dates, time, etc.

• Save a Copy As → Copy:

This command would allow for creating a block by block copy of your file.

• Save a Copy As → Compacted:

This command implements the 'Compact and Optimize' technique. This process is performed on a copy of the file, thus helping you to protect or safeguard the original data. You can also find the 'Compact' and 'Optimize' options in the 'File Maintenance' menu.

• Recovery command:

This command will ensure that all the invalid blocks are removed from the file when it is recovered. It performs complete scanning of the file and then validates the data blocks. If it finds a corrupt block, it will simply skip the block. A valid block will have the below properties:

• Each block will have a previous and next block containing data.
• The block will have a length of 4K and should be in correct order.
• The block should not be a duplicate of its preceding one.