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If your computer that was previously running inFlow stopped working for some reason, but you still have access to the hard drive, you might be able to recover your inFlow data, even if you didn't explicitly make a backup beforehand, by looking to see if inFlow automatically made a backup file.  Here's how:



Option 1: Try Using Auto-Backups
Look for automatically created backup files.  Browse to the following directory:
     Windows XP:  C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\inFlow Inventory\Backup\
     Vista or Windows 7:  C:\ProgramData\inFlow Inventory\Backup
     (ProgramData or Application Data folders may be hidden, so copy and paste or type the folder name)

There you may see some files that are named something like inFlow_autobak_yyyy_mm_dd__hh_mm.ifi

These are automatically created backup files, tagged with the date of the backup.  You can copy these files to a safe location and then use Restore Data on a new installation of inFlow to revert to this database. 

Please note that any information entered since that last backup will be lost.



Option 2: Try using the database files directly
If option 1 didn't work, there is one more possibility.  Please make a copy of the following 2 files:

Database File:
     Windows XP:  C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\inFlow Inventory\inFlow.mdf
     Vista or Windows 7:  C:\ProgramData\inFlow Inventory\inFlow.mdf
     (ProgramData or Application Data folders may be hidden, so copy and paste or type the folder name)

Database Log File
     Windows XP:  C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\inFlow Inventory\inFlow_log.LDF
     Vista or Windows 7:  C:\ProgramData\inFlow Inventory\inFlow_log.LDF
     (ProgramData or Application Data folders may be hidden, so copy and paste or type the folder name)

If you're reinstalling inFlow, you can uninstall/reinstall it.  After that, try loading inFlow; if you still see your data there, then you're done!  Otherwise, continue on with restoring the data.

To restore your old data, start by stopping the SQL Server service, as follows:

1)  Open the Services window.
     Windows XP, click Start --> Run --> type services.msc
     Vista or Windows 7, click Start --> type services

2)  Scroll to SQL Server (INFLOWSQL) and click Stop to stop the service.  (Leave this window open for now.)

3)  Copy the two files that you made a backup of into the corresponding folder on the new machine:
     Windows XP   C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\inFlow Inventory\
     Vista or Windows 7  C:\ProgramData\inFlow Inventory\
     (ProgramData or Application Data folders may be hidden, so it's best to copy and paste or type the folder name)

4)  Restart the service by going back to the Services window you opened and click Start.

Now your data should be restored.  Open up inFlow on the new machine and take a look!