Hi all,
I’m aware there are a number of similar threads but none seem quite the same (and nothing I’ve read has fixed the current problem). So apologies if this is a duplication but I’m desperate for some help/advice.
Short version: Using a Core connected to Nova. At the moment, I can only see music I have added to the Downloads folder. I can see the MQ folder but it appears empty (it had about 1.5 to 2 TB of ripped CDs last weekend).
Long version: Until yesterday everything appeared to be working fine. I have a mixture of ripped CDs and downloaded music on a Core (combined around 2 - 2.5 TB). Occasionally, when ripping a CD the meta data wasn’t recognised so I’d open the MQ folder, copy (using MacBook Pro) the data across to the Downloads folder and use Metadatics to fill the meta data.
Yesterday, I couldn’t access the MQ folder. On the Mac finder it just claimed it was empty and the Naim app suddenly showed only the music in the Downloads folder.
I have tried the various switching off/on routines (including router … but as I can see the download folder and the Music folder and even the MQ folder, connectivity doesn’t seem to be the issue).
Tried to do a back-up before a factory reset and the Back-up got to 900% before I cancelled it (it seemed a bit odd!). Now looking at the back up disc much of the MQ folder has folders for Artists but they are empty (and some of the data appears in a file called recycled).
Did a factory re-set and no change - both app and Mac finder can see the Core, but the app only recognises music in the Download folder and using Mac finder I can see both Music and Download folder. I can see content of Download folder, I can open Music Folder and see the three folders HQ, LQ, & MQ but MQ claims to be empty.
When I use the Mac to look for the Core it no longer has an icon … just a ? (not sure how relevant that is).
Thanks in advance for any help/info
Gareth
Hi Gareth welcome to the community! I will try to help you.
It’s hard to know quite what has happened, so also hard to suggest fixes.
When you copied an album from the MQ to the Downloads folder, what did you do after you had used Metadatics to change the metadata? What did you do about the unaltered copy still in the MQ?
Regarding the reset to factory settings, this doesn’t do anything to the internal hard disc except it’s no longer defined as the Music Store. So after the reset of the Core, did you redefine the Music Store in the Core Settings?
Hi David,
Have been using the Core for a couple of years with the same workflow and no problems. This time ripped the cd, it was recognised so I expected to find it in the ‘unknown’ folder in the ‘MQ’ folder but couldn’t see any folders in inside ‘MQ’. Initially thought it was just network connection but the fact the ‘Downloads’ folder is still fine indicated that wasn’t the problem. After all the on/off routines still no luck. So I thought I back-up but that behaved very odd. So did factory re-set. Ignored the delete all option and it still shows MQ as empty but Downloads as fine.
Since then I tried another cd rip. Core ripped it but it is unknown (not recognised) by data Base but at least visible on app. But still can’t see anything in mq folder when looking via the Mac.
Hope that kind of makes sense (at least as a description of what happened…not necessarily as why).
Cheers
Gareth
Ps
Sorry for delay in replies but timezones
Just to try and clarify the problem. Below are screenshots of what I can see on the Mac … I understand that this is probably a symptom not the actual problem but it is the easiest way to look at the drive.
As you can see the folders are visible and the Downloads folder is still populated (Screen 1.png).
But the MQ folder is empty (Screen2.png). A week ago, it contained at least 4 times as many folders/music (the bulk of the 2 TB of music on the Core.
Yesterday, after all this had occurred I tried to rip another CD. It is visible on the iPad app. But as you can see it is not in the MQ folder (or not visible in the MQ folder). I have no idea where it is stored.
I hope this clears up my stream of thought response above.
Thanks for any help
Gareth
Your problem is feeling like a hardware failure to me. But it’s an odd one and I don’t know enough about the Core architecture to be sure.
The first thing I would try to check is whether the MQ files are still on the HDD. I don’t think you can rely on using your MBP over the network, because it doesn’t see the HDD directly, but rather via the intermediary of the Core OS.
If you can get a USB caddy and put the internal HDD in that, then you could connect it directly to your MBP and see what is going on. I was wondering whether the indexing on the HDD was broken by a disc crash of some sort. In that scenario the crash didn’t affect the downloads index but just the MQ index. The Core reindexng the music after the factory reset would not be able to read the contents of the MQ folder, which would be why all the folder contents disappeared.
Also in that scenario the Core would maybe think the MQ folder was full and so not properly save a ripped CD.
So that leads to another line of thinking. Firstly copy your downloads folder off into a backup of some sort and then replace the Core’s internal HDD with another one. Set it as the Music Store in the Core’s setup and now you can copy the download contents back to it if you want to. Then I would take a CD you know has good metadata and rip that. Does it appear in the Naim app with correct metadata now?
If so then perhaps your old HDD is confirmed as faulty and you may be faced with finding a way to get all your MQ files back. Maybe you already have a backup? If not, you could try a HDD utility programme and see whether it can recover the files on the HDD you now have in the caddy connected to your MBP.
Incidentally, backing up 2 TB of files from a Core into a USB-connected drive would take a long time. I would say 30-40 hours. I have half a TB on my Core and a full backup took me about nine hours last time I did it. If your Core is saying 900% of files backed up, than could mean that the backup routine is finding the files even if the Core upnp doesn’t recognise them as being there for streaming. So you could try another backup of the Core’s current hard disc and just be patient and let it finish. Then see what you have on the backup disc.
If the Core’s current HDD in a caddy shows everything is as it should be, then I would suspect a Core hardware failure, but personally I would reach out to Naim Support. It would be possible for them to remote into your Mac and do things to your Core to understand what is going on or to correct a strange mis-setting. Obviously the time difference is a bit of an issue, but could be solved I suppose.
Anyway that’s where I got to. Good luck and I will be interested to know how you get on.
David,
Thanks for the ideas. It looks like a good logical plan (which makes me feel less panicky about all the data). I have already placed a ticket with Naim support (but possibly not with all the details as I did this before I knew the extend of my problems … and I guess once the UK is back in the working week I can start a proper dialogue with them).
It is going to take a while to work through as I don’t have a USB caddy or spare internal HDD. Good news is that while I’m a wet/lab scientist, the organisation I work for has the dry/theoretical kind and one of them is bound to have a spare USB caddy I could borrow (or I just order one online). Then I’ll start working through your suggestions in order.
I’ll keep you update (just for your interest … and, fingers crossed, the satisfaction that you are right (as I would prefer that to the idea that the problem is with the Core itself)).
Annoyingly, I can’t start anything today as it is a national holiday (Queen’s Birthday; as an ex-pat Brit, I was surprised this was a holiday as we don’t have back in the UK!).
The icon is a bad sign … the icon was good (looked like the MacBook above it on the list) until the problems started. Now it looks like a sheet/document. So yes, the icon is suspicious, but the name isn’t an issue as it has had the same name for 3 years and behaved impeccably.
Cheers
Gareth
Yup, tried all the normal things on the Mac … but as the problem is also on the Naim app (on both a phone and iPad, the only music on display is the Downloads folder), I’m pretty sure that David is correct in thinking something is wrong with either the HDD of the Core or the Core. Hopefully, I’ll be able to follow his ideas and look at the HDD at some point this week (depending on what hardware I can scrounge from work).
David,
I just did what you suggested. Plugged a USB stick in the front. Defined it as a music store. Ripped a CD I know has good data. It works. Ripped and stored in the MQ folder that I can view on the Mac. This is a promising development (fingers crossed not speaking too soon and all those clichés).
I’m guessing this suggests there is an issue with the internal hard drive? So my best bet is still to get a caddy so that I can try and salvage as much data from the hard drive (and combine this with an old backup (naughtily the last backpack would probably have been 4 or 5 months ago and for someone with my music habit/addiction that is far too long ago!). Then get a new hard drive and try and rebuild things?
Hi Gareth - when in NZ are you? I’m based in Wellington, and have a USB caddy that will do the job. I’ve got a Core myself, but haven’t seen the behaviour that you’re experiencing myself. That said, I do use a NAS for storing my music instead of the local drive in the Core.
I’ve had some experience with rebuilding my UnitiServe database, and the process is similar for the Core, so I’m happy to give you some suggestions if that would be helpful.
That sounds promising. It’s hard to imagine a Core (as distinct from hard disc) fault that affects the MQ folder and not the downloads folder.
Anyway good luck and hopefully the more local help being offered by @JonoB will help with time zones!
Rebuilding on a new HD is easy enough. You can restore from your last backup (it’s a Core menu option) and of course you can copy in the downloads folder which is accessible. With the rescued rips from the MQ folder, if you do manage to rescue them, you will probably need to add those into the downloads folder because changing anything in the MQ folder without using the Naim app is highly dangerous and would put you at risk of breaking the Core’s music indexing.
Incidentally restoring from a backup is also slow. It’s the same bit of firmware as does backups, so depending how out of date your backup is, the restoration may still take more than 24 hours.
Jono,
Cheers for the offer but I’m up in Palmy so I’ll try and borrow something local. But I might take you up on the offer of advice depending on how things go.
Thanks again Gareth
