Uploading files in file system: text work others don't

[carlof]

Dear Xataface users,

I have been preparing a Xataface application for a while under Debian testing. Everything was working. Now I have to put it on the actual machine again under Debian testing and I can upload only text files and no others. First I copied the two working directories (my application and Xataface) on the new machine. I had errors. So I downloaded the latest 1.1.2 version of Xataface and used that. Everything seems to work apart from the file uploading.

When uploading a text file (tried with .txt and .html) everything works and the file goes where it is expected to go. When uploading other files (.exe, .tar.gz, .zip) using the same field link of the same table, Xataface does not issue any error and say that the new record was successfully written or modified. Yet, when I view the details there is no link to the file and when I check the directory where the file is meant to be I cannot find any file.

This is the relevant part of the field.ini of one of the tables, but the same problem appears in all the tables:

[reference_file]
Type = container
widget:type = file
widget:label= "Reference"
widget:description="For instance the file with the nominal coordinates of the jig reference system"
[notes_to_reference]
widget:label="Notes for this reference"

I have tried to change the path to savepath = ../../../../../../../tmp . No success;
I have tried to restrict to one of the extensions that do not work, i.e. allowed_extensions = zip. No success.
I have tried to rescrict to one of the mime types that do not work, i.e. allowed_mimetypes = application-x/zip . No success.
I have tried to locate in the systems if there is some log file with some error message written in it. No success.

Do you have any idea and suggestion on what to do?

The application is for a research project related to metrology. The users should be mechanical engineers and operators of manufacturing machines and instruments. The application is meant to work on a dedicated wireless LAN isolated from the the rest of the world or in stand alone on a single PC (it has to be decided, but not by me). I'm telling you this for giving you the context.

Any suggestion is most welcome.
Thank you for your patience in reading this email.

Best regards,

Carlo

[shannah]

This is likely an issue with the maximum file upload size specified in your php.ini file. Check out
http://drupal.org/node/97193

For information on increasing the upload limit.
-Steve

[carlof]

Thank you very much Steve,

For your detailed and prompt assistance both via forum and email and thank you for Xataface. It was exactly as you said.

Just for the benefit of potential other beginners as myself. I have found the location of the actual php.ini used by making a one-line text file whatevername.php in /var/www with the following content:

<phpinfo>

Then pointing the browser there, i.e. http://localhost/whatevername.php

This gave the path of the php.ini used (on Debian testing Lenny, not surprisingly, /etc/php5/apache2) and the values actually used for the variables mentioned in the link provided by Steve.

After changing the values of the variables in the php.ini file, the Apache2 web server must be restarted for the new values to be in place. On Debian Lenny this is done, again non surprisingly, with the command in a root bash shell:

carlo:/var/www# /etc/init.d/apache2 restart

that is, executing the bash script apache2 in the directory /etc/init.d/apache2 giving the parameter restart.

Please forgive me if this is too basic for the participants to this forum, but just in case it may.

Best regards,

Carlo