12 replies to this topic

[David Finnigan]

I am publishing my RM tree online at my own website. There are no problems with the actual publishing process or the resulting website.

 

My problems relate to managing the large number of files involved in the website that is created. Currently there are almost 15,000 people in my tree - and I can only see this getting larger.

 

My first problem was doing updates. Using an FTP sync involved replacing every file (probably 20,000) in the website (as each file gets a new date even if there are no changes) - a very time consuming process. I have got around this problem by comparing the old files with the new files and working out which have changed in size, or are new, since the last update and then only copying these over.

 

This all worked fine until I had to delete some files from the website. I can do this manually BUT as there are a large number of files in each folder the FTP software WILL NOT display all the files in each folder. This apparently is a server limit - often set at 2,000 files (fortunately my host is set to 10,000 files - but that is still not enough). This means that there are a large number of files that are not visible - so I cannot delete them.

 

My ISP has advised me that this limit cannot be changed for my site.

 

Is anyone else experiencing this problem? If so, how do you work around it? How do people manage a website with a large number of people in the pedigree (I'm sure there are others with larger trees than myself)?

 

Is the solution to split my tree in two - one for myself and one for my wife?

 

Thanks for any help that anyone can provide.

 

Regards

David

[Jerry Bryan]

Which FTP software are you using? It took me many years trying many different mainstream FTP packages, both free and not free, to find one that's really acceptable. The one I settled on is FileZilla, which is free. I can't guarantee that it will solve all the problems you mentioned, but I think it would help with a lot of them.

 

I am like you in that I publish only to my own site. There is much of my site that is not produce by RM, and the portion of my site that is produced by RM contains pre_RM6 web pages - the old static ones that have been deprecated. Even though they are old fashioned and deprecated, they actually meet my needs much better than do either of the two newer ways that RM supports to generate Web pages. I don't update my RM generated Web pages very often so my updates automatically are not as as time consuming as yours. But I still find doing the updates via FileZilla not to be overly burdensome. Your mileage may vary, and I fear that  you are going to report that you are already using FileZilla.

 

Jerry

[David Finnigan]

Thanks for these comments Jerry. I use CuteFTP but unfortunately I have tried other software, including FileZilla, without success.

 

The ability to see all files (not just the first 2,000 files) appears to relate to a server configuration parameter - that I have no control over (and also my ISP cannot change).

 

David

[Jerry Bryan]

I wonder if the 2,000 file limit on seeing your files is based on your root folder and its subfolders or if it's based on the current folder you are looking at and its subfolders. If the former, you may have to get a new provider. If the latter, you may be able to separate your uploads out to several different high level folders and their respective subfolders, each of which has less than 2,000 files.

 

My site presently has 9,699 files and is hosted at godaddy.com without problem. A lot of my files were produced by RM, but the number produced by RM is still somewhat less than half of the total. It is the case that if I regenerate a tree created by RM, then the whole tree has to be uploaded from my PC to my site because of the creation date issue that you mentioned. But it really goes pretty fast and I can start it and walk away from it if I wish. The only thing that really takes a couple of hours is if I do a total rebuild of my site for all files irrespective of their creation date.

 

Jerry

[David Finnigan]

The server limit is the number of files that will be displayed in each folder.

 

I don't believe that I can 'split' the files in the 'data/person' folder (the largest folder and the only one causing me a problem) as I believe this would upset the mechanics of the javascript. Maybe an RM support person can comment on this possibility.

 

Last time I uploaded all the data in my tree it took most of a day! Internet speeds in Australia are not the best in the world.

 

David

[Don Newcomb]

Does your webhost support the prerequisites for hosting TNG? (PHP & MySql?) If so, you might consider setting up a TNG site. They are much more functional than the basic website that RM produces. The TNG site software is pretty economical.

 

I have a personal site that's hosted by my e-mail service as a free bennie. They don't support PHP & MySql, so it's just a copy of RM's Publish Online site. Fortunately, the host software allows uploading a Zip file to create a website. They only count the size of the site and not the thousands of tiny files RM creates. 

[Trebor22]

I just had a look at my site and some folders contain more than 2000 files and I can see them all so it obviously varies between hosts, perhaps an alternative is the best option?

[David Finnigan]

Certainly the limit will vary between hosting sites - mine is currently 10,000 files (which still isn't enough).

 

Moving to another host might still be problematic, ie trying to find out what their limit is before moving. My current ISP had no idea what I was talking about initially.

 

Maybe I will need to try a different type of website. I'm currently including everyone that is an ancestor of my children and all the collateral lines.

[robertjacobs0]

john Cardinal's GedSite program makes wonderful, flexible web sites from RootsMagic GEDCOMS. He also offers a FamilyHistory Hosting service which accommodates all those files. See http://www.gedsite.com./en/index.htm. There are links to user-made sites which show some of the possibilities.

[David Finnigan]

I will have to investigate these alternate website creation options and consider how to proceed.

[Don Newcomb]

john Cardinal's GedSite program makes wonderful, flexible web sites from RootsMagic GEDCOMS. He also offers a FamilyHistory Hosting service which accommodates all those files. See http://www.gedsite.com./en/index.htm. There are links to user-made sites which show some of the possibilities.

 

Interesting. Does GedSite create static files, unlike TNG, which requires PHP and MySQL? In other words, it works with just about any web server?

[robertjacobs0]

So far as I know, yes. GedSite creates the site files in a directory on one's own machine. They are uploaded from there to a server. GedSite has a built in facility for sending them to FamilyHistory Hosting, but they could be uploaded to any server via FTP or some other transfer program. The file index.htm starts the site.

 

There are a few site examples linked at www.gedsite.com/en/index.htm  or you can see mine (with which I am inordinately pleased) at www.jacobsbackstory.com.

 

For more detailed technical information about GedSite you should probably consult John Cardinal himself. His e-mail address is referenced at the bottom of the GedSite page.

 

 

Robert

[Trebor22]

GedSite - I believe you can download the programme and try it without payment but only a few people from the Gedcom are processed, might allow you to evaluate if it meets your needs.

Bob