4308116 was my old computer, since 2008. 7562380 is the new one, bought a month ago. Had switched at the start of the month, but now that I had to reinstall I decided to also turn the old one back on for a couple of days and let them run in parallel, the fact that it was less than 2k under 3 million credit nagging me. So did that, downloaded some WUs on the old one, switched back to the new, reinstalled Windows and BOINC, and I see that it redownloaded some of the WUs already downloaded on the old one (also giving me the estimates for it). Check here and sure enough, what I had downloaded shows up as abandoned and only the old computer has WUs in progress now. Its details have also been replaced with those of the new one, so changed CPU and all. What gives?

Pretty pissed about it. Any way to get it back to normal, have those now-supposedly-abandoned WUs be reactivated and accepted when the old one (currently not connected to the Internet) will report them, so I'll then be able to "retire" it properly, with its own details left here, while the new one will get back to its own number and get its own WUs?

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Off the top of my head, the only way I can think of this happening is if you copied the BOINC folder from the old machine to the new machine and it attempted to re-use the machine ID.

Otherwise, if that's not the case, perhaps someone else might have some insight to share.

Hi,
If you change the operating system and/or the computer name, it effectively becomes a new computer.Boinc cannot identify this computer as the one that has done work before, anymore.

Changing computer name does not always lead to a change in the SETI computer i/d, because the server that allocates numbers knows nothing of computer names.
The "rules" for getting a new name include operating system (most changes), CPU family (AMD/Intel...), and a few more (but not GPU type or number)

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

So, the computers just need to be "merged".

I actually am wondering whether an old BOINC folder was there where I put the data folder for the new one now. It USED to be on that partition of that drive (since I'm using the same HDDs), but I was pretty sure I deleted it and initially had the data folder of the new install there, before moving it when I added the 2nd drive as well. So if I only copied instead of moving, what should have been there would have been an old (from May 2) empty BOINC data dir made on the new computer, but no way to know for sure now.

So, about a fix, if I let the new computer crunch under the name of the old till it finishes the current batch of downloaded WUs, then turn the old one back on (turned it off now, as there was no point to keep it on - also, with case fans moved to this one, it was getting quite hot) and have it update once, will it add its data (parts, stats) back where it belongs, just to have the "proper" entry left there? And then if I turn off BOINC for a bit and copy the data dir from before the reinstall (yep, still have it) over the current install's data dir, will this one be seen once again as its own entry, created at the start of the month?

(That probably sounds more complicated than it is.)

And no, they definitely shouldn't be merged, the old one would just poof then.

About name, they do have the same name. OS is the same on both (but the old one had Vista first, so switched to 7 at one point and it kept its number), CPU differs, Core 2 Duo E8400 vs. Pentium G3440, but both Intel.

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I'm wondering ... What if client_state.xml was deleted?

Would it rebuild the file from the server and retain work in progress? And gather new CPU info?

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I'm wondering ... What if client_state.xml was deleted?

Would it rebuild the file from the server and retain work in progress? And gather new CPU info?

First client_state_prev.xml would be used. If both are missing. Then you have a brand new installation of BOINC.
However if your hardware, OS, & machine name are the same the server will setup you back up with the previous ID. Then if resend is enabled you would get your in progress tasks.

I lost a drive in a machine a few months back. After installing the same OS & setting it up again. I was surprised that BOINC identified the machine & assigned it the previous ID. Resend were off at the time. So I think it marked the tasks as abandoned.

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SETI@home classic workunits: 93,865 CPU time: 863,447 hours
Join the [url=http://tinyurl.com/8y46zvu]BP6/VP6 User Group[

[quote]-[ snip ]-

Then if resend is enabled you would get your in progress tasks.

-[ snip ]-

Greetings HAL9000,

Hal, where is this 'resend' of which you speak? I looked in my preferences and even in the 'client_state_prev.xml' file. That file is HUGE! I did not scan the whole file since it looked like it would take me about 3 months to do so. ;)

Keep on BOINCing...! :)

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CAPT Siran d'Vel'nahr - L L & P _\\//
Winders 11 OS? "What a piece of junk!" - L. Skywalker
"Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." - T'Plana-hath

Resend Lost Tasks is a server function that the Project Admins can turn on and off as needed.

If I understand this correctly, whenever your computer contacts the servers to report completions and/or request new work, the request includes a copy of the client_state.xml file, which lists ALL the Tasks for that project currently in progress or waiting to run on that computer. The servers compare that list to what the database shows you should have. Any tasks listed in the database but not on the client_state list are considered "lost", as in lost in transit from the servers to your host computer.

If Resend Lost Tasks is turned ON, the "lost" Tasks will be resent to your computer. If the function is OFF, the "lost" Tasks will be marked "Abandoned", and the Tasks will be re-issued to another host computer.

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Donald
Infernal Optimist / Submariner, retired

Resend Lost Tasks is a server function that the Project Admins can turn on and off as needed.

If I understand this correctly, whenever your computer contacts the servers to report completions and/or request new work, the request includes a copy of the client_state.xml file, which lists ALL the Tasks for that project currently in progress or waiting to run on that computer. The servers compare that list to what the database shows you should have. Any tasks listed in the database but not on the client_state list are considered "lost", as in lost in transit from the servers to your host computer.

If Resend Lost Tasks is turned ON, the "lost" Tasks will be resent to your computer. If the function is OFF, the "lost" Tasks will be marked "Abandoned", and the Tasks will be re-issued to another host computer.

Actually, if the function is OFF, the servers do not do the database query necessary to determine if there are lost tasks. If there are any, they eventually time out at their deadlines.

Also, although a sched_request_[project].xml contains a lot of info taken from client_state.xml, it's not all. The list of tasks on the host has only the few details needed, for instance.

                                                                  Joe

Resend Lost Tasks is a server function that the Project Admins can turn on and off as needed.

-[ snip ]-

Greetings Don,

Ok, in a nutshell, it's something we have no control of. Could be why I could not find it. ;) Thanks Don! :)

Keep on BOINCing...! :)

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CAPT Siran d'Vel'nahr - L L & P _\\//
Winders 11 OS? "What a piece of junk!" - L. Skywalker
"Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." - T'Plana-hath

Actually, if the function is OFF, the servers do not do the database query necessary to determine if there are lost tasks. If there are any, they eventually time out at their deadlines.

Also, although a sched_request_[project].xml contains a lot of info taken from client_state.xml, it's not all. The list of tasks on the host has only the few details needed, for instance.

                                                                  Joe

Thanks, Joe. Appreciate the correction.

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Donald
Infernal Optimist / Submariner, retired

All right, seems to have been solved the way I said. After clearing the current batch (and a few more, as the initially downloaded batch would have finished when I wouldn't have been at the computer), rebooted in safe mode, copied the new computer's BOINC folder from before the reinstall, rebooted normally, new computer seen as its proper entry again. Then booted up the old one again, reset project just to make sure it won't trip over itself with duplicate WUs (though they were in fact the originally downloaded ones) done by that one as well before turning it off, had it download just 2 WUs so it'll have something to report on its own at the end, once it finishes them, and it put its own details back into its entry. Each computer has its own in progress WUs.

I still don't see how the old computer's folder might have still been there when I installed BOINC on this one the 2nd time, but as long as it worked, don't care anymore.

And yeah, I was wondering about that resend option as well, looked for it everywhere. Thanks for the clarification.

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