Error In Count of Individuals

The first thing to do when you believe that records are lost is to get an accurate count of individuals. Click on Help on the menu bar and select General Information, or click on the Legacy Home tab and look at the Statistics Box on the right side of the screen. (Don’t rely on the Name List count because it will be higher if the options to Include Alternate Names and/or Include Married Names are selected.) Next, consider these facts:

1. Some actual errors in the count of individuals can be fixed by checking and repairing the family file. Click on File on the menu bar and select File Maintenance > Check/Repair and proceed with the repair.

If the error messages occur during the Check and Repair process, click No to finish with the repair.  Do Check and Repair twice if errors are found. If the program works, you can stop here.  No further repairs are needed.  If the program is still gives you bad counts or errors, proceed with the following steps:

Export your records into a new Legacy family file:

   (1) Click File on the menu bar and select Export To from the file menu.
   (2) Choose Legacy File from the submenu and proceed.
   (3) Give the file you will export to a new name and click Save.
   (4) The Export screen will open. Please click the large Start Export button. (If you get a message about sources, click Don't Assign a Source.)
   (5) Use the new family file and delete the old one when you are satisfied with the results.


2. The highest RIN number does not necessarily equal the total number of people in a family file. There are often gaps in the RIN sequence due to deleting and merging. Gaps in the RIN sequence can also be come about by importing. This may give the impression that there are fewer records than before. You can also manually renumber RINs if you have the Deluxe Edition (Click Tools on the menu bar and select Renumber RINs.)

3. If you have Windows 8 or Windows 7, is the User Account Control set to “Never Notify?”
 
Windows 7 and Windows 8 employ a User Access Control (UAC) feature called the VirtualStore which is designed to add an extra layer of security protection for applications installed under the Program Files folder. All changes made to files in, and any attempt add files to, the Program Files folder and sub-folders (directory and sub-directories) are protected and require special Administrative permission.

Because UAC is designed to ensure that Program Files remains completely unchanged from when applications were initially installed, it prevents the family file from being added to. Please visit http://support.legacyfamilytree.com/article/AA-00897 for the solution.

4. A file has become corrupted and actual data has been lost. This is pretty rare but not unknown. The chances of this happening can be greatly reduced with regular file maintenance. Don’t wait for error messages to start appearing. (Click File and select File Maintenance > Check/Repair). If your file is corrupted, restore your family file from the backup copy.

5. Some Legacy users inadvertently have two or more nearly identical family files that are saved in different locations on their computer. If they added people into family file “A” saved in the Data folder today, but open family file “B” saved in the Documents folder tomorrow, they may incorrectly conclude that Legacy has lost the new individuals they just added. Check the location of other family files by visiting http://support.legacyfamilytree.com/article/AA-00901.

6. When the comparing the file size of two or more family files, the size as measured in megabytes is NOT a good indicator of which file contains the most or least individuals. Check and Repair and File Compacting will reduce a file size by deleting unused/unreferenced data without affecting the number of individuals in the files. Also a file of 1 million people with only “bare bones” information can have a smaller file size than a file with 900 thousand people rich with lengthy notes, many sources, many events, etc. Do not delete family files with a smaller file size without first opening them and verifying the actual counts of individuals and families.

The best defense against data loss is to backup your file regularly. You may need to restore your data from your backup copy if there are problems in your current file. For detailed backup and restore guidance with helpful pictures please visit:

LEGACY: Please see the article "How to Backup a Family File and/or Media Files in Legacy" at http://support.legacyfamilytree.com/article/AA-00868.

LEGACY 7.5 OR EARLIER: Please see the article "Backing Up a Family File in Legacy Family Tree 7.5" at http://support.legacyfamilytree.com/article/AA-00485.