ProjeqtOr – Troubleshooting access to portal (and then upgrade) – Resolved

Posted on May 28, 2021 by Paul

Overview:
I had installed ProjeQtOr, which is a comprehensive project management application, on my IONOS system. Haven’t used it in a while, but now I’m getting this error when I do:

http://projeqtor.paulgarth.name/view/main.php
ERROR : An error occurred on 2021-05-28 at 17:51:56

Lessons Learned:
-While it’s easy to focus on doing PHP upgrades en masse, it’s important to remember that unused apps may eventually fail because of version requirements
-Don’t forget that FTP apps (like Filezilla) are not full document management systems – more like file transfer systems
-When it asks for the “Admin” account, to be accessed during the upgrade process, use the “Admin” account….

Forum check:
There is a good chance that the current version I have installed is incompatible with my current version of PHP for this application. PHP is currently at 7.4. I had originally installed around 1/23/16, which at that time was version 5.2.1. Current Projeqtor version is now version 9.1.4. My original notes show I had PHP 5.5 and possibly version 7 of ProjeQtOr. Even if I have to recreate a new database it’s worth it, as I don’t remember putting much into the system back then, anyway. Based on the screenshots of current product, this all looks very slick.

Action Steps:
-Downloaded last stable release – version 9.1.4
-Quick check of the manual.
-A forum post, asking about upgrading – just replace the previous files. The database will be preserved, and updated if needed by new version.
– Unzip projeqtorVx.y.z.zip to the web server directory
– Run application in your favorite browser, using http://yourserver/projeqtor
– Enjoy !
-Ran Filezilla (my preferred FTP tool). Yup. Version I had originally installed was 7.3.1. I’m also seeing the .ZIP file in the IONOS directory, so I must have uploaded the .ZIP file vs. first unpacking the file. UPloaded the projectqtorV9.1.4.zip file to web directory. File was just over 50MB. For reference, the installer for prior version was 32MB.
-Need to unzip the installer .ZIP file. Logged into IONOS and went into WebSpace; found the installer; selected; Actions – Unpack; selected the projeqtor folder. Came back saying unpacked.
NOTE: This is a much faster method of unpacking .ZIP files. In the past, I’ve manually unpacked on my local Mac, and then used Filezilla to copy the files up to the webspace. Now, the trick is to copy the .ZIP file up with Filezilla and then use the UNPACK feature within IONOS Webspace to do the unpacking.
-From web-browser (Firefox); projeqtor.paulgarth.name/projeqtor
-Database Type – MySql
-Database Host – was 127.0.0.1. and changed to
-Database Host –
-Database User and Password –
-Database schema name: kept as projeqtor
NOTE!!! This was a mistake to do. The correct answer is to put the Database Name, which looks close to the Database Username.
-Default language – English
-Default time zone – changed to America/Los_Angeles
-Currency – initially set to what looks like Euro symbol; no pull-down picks; manually entered a $
-Current position – changed from after to before
-Kept all directory settings as before and saved

Error: Syntax error or access violation: 1044 Access denied for user
Note: I’m seeing Database Schema name (default is projeqtor) – changed to what I have as database name
THAT FREAKIN’ DID IT!!! Logged in as admin with username and password
Now it’s saying, “Upgrade in Progress”. In top right it says V7.3.1 -> V9.1.4
Waiting…. I’m not sure how to know when the the “Upgrade in Progress” is completed.

Waiting for too long… Then I realized something. When the .ZIP file was unpacked it went into a \projecqtor folder. That means that the original files were not copied over. That means that I’m upgrading nothing right now.

Went back into IONOS to see about make a copy of \projeqtor over the old files in root folder
Note: Had to manually copy down the new folder to my local Mac and then upload manually to original folder. This sucks. Next time I’m just going to manually unpack and upload, unless there was a way within IONOS – but, it was asking me to say “Yes” for every file, which would have taken ages.

NOTE: I was freakin’ not logged in as the Admin account. Now it’s upgraded.

Posted in ProjeQtOr Project Mgmt, Web Development | Leave a comment

Growing peppers from seed

Posted on April 4, 2021 by Paul

20210404 – So far so good. Seeds were planted in a small trainer pot. Stuff is sprouting up. Initially, just used a mister. Now I’m giving more water, until I see some appear on dish below. Nearly ready to transplant to a bigger pot and move outside. Most likely will hand-pick off the smaller shoots. Lessons learned from the Roma tomato plant transplant is to not pull the various shoots/roots apart – just transplant everything in place. See what happens.
20210405 – Decided to transplant – basically move in place – from trainer pot to a larger pot. So far so good. Still keeping plant indoors for now. Relatively cold outside.

Posted in Peppers, Plants | Leave a comment

Charles Duhigg; Power of Habit; Keystone Habits; GTD

Posted on April 3, 2021 by Paul

I remember years ago, when at DavidCo, Charles Duhigg came out with a book called, “Power of Habit”. I had skimmed through the book, but can’t say I did a deep dive. Now I’m interested to take a closer look.

Just watched him chat with David Allen at the GTD Summit (2019, Amsterdam) where he brings up habits, as it relates to GTD.

David then keyed on Keystone Habits, which was covered in the book. My basic understanding is the keystone habits are habits, if executed consistently, can yield several benefits. I’m sure it’s actually more concise than that.

The two keystone habits that David says he consistently uses are: Inbox Zero and the Weekly Review.

I’m really good at working my email Inboxes (several) to zero, but have had challenges with my physical Inbox. I challenged myself to pull everything out and see what’s in there. Now I have a couple small projects which are basically to file invoices and receipts. The benefit was that I found a bunch of stuff that I had “lost”.

The interesting observation, now that I have a clear Inbox/InTray is a sense of release/calm. I now know that if I place anything in there, it will be easily seen and taken care of.

Weekly Review. Well, that’s one area that I have completely fallen off the wagon. I do have my Weekly Review Checklist, and I’ve captured all the various pieces of paper around my desk. Now it’s just a matter of going through the process of asking, “What is this”, “What’s the Next Action”, etc.

For me, the initial task is to consistently address the Weekly Review. It may take a couple weeks or a month to completely be clear and current, and that’s OK. I’ve observed myself not start something, because I couldn’t see the end in site with a speedy turnaround – that’s not realistic.

Posted in GTD (Getting Things Done), Habits | Leave a comment