QUESTIONS THAT APPLY TO THIS TOPIC

• “Are there known compatibility issues between Gorilla and 64-bit versions of Microsoft Windows?”
  
• “Are there any workarounds for issues caused by 64-bit versions of Windows?”
  

ANSWER

There are only two known issues caused by trying to run Gorilla 4.0-4.3 in a 64 bit Microsoft Windows environment:

1. The backup utility no longer runs to backup the database. When you try to backup the database using the backup utility, you will get the following error: “Windows registry shows Gorilla database location of C:\Program Files\Bill Good Marketing\Gorilla Backup\GorillaBackup.zip.” This is because the backup utility is still looking at the 32 bit location for the Gorilla Backup files.
   
2. The database upgrade utility will not upgrade the database. When trying to upgrade from one version of Gorilla to another, the database upgrader will generate an error indicating the database cannot be opened or is an invalid database (though the database opens without a problem in the earlier version of Gorilla). 
   

Cause of these issues

The root cause of these issues lie in the way 64-bit versions of Windows store keys in the registry (a large database of system settings used by Windows and programs running on the Windows computer). In short, the location of the registration keys changed dramatically from the prior 32-bit versions of Windows and this causes the two issues described above. 

Solutions

1. Instead of using the backup utility, perform manual backups instead. To backup Gorilla, you need only make a copy of the database file and the Data folder. These can be compressed, copied and pasted onto your backup media or to another location. Follow the instructions in our article on How to Make a Manual Backup of Your Gorilla Data.
2. Call Software Support to get the updated backup utility. If you wish to still backup your data by using the backup utility, we do have some updated files that we can help you get in place to use instead of the files that came with the installation of Gorilla. Please give our Software Support team a call at 801-553-9888 to get these files.
   
3. Upgrade your database on a 32-bit system instead of the 64-bit system. Since the database upgrader will not work on a 64-bit system, it’s possible to run the database upgrader from another system in the office that is running a 32-bit version of Windows by upgrading Gorilla from the 32-bit computer first, then upgrading the Gorilla versions on the other systems in the office.
   
   However, it is important to note that you ONLY need to upgrade the database when upgrading your version of Gorilla. For example, if you are currently running Gorilla 4.0 and are planning to upgrade to Gorilla 4.3. The frequency of these upgrades should be very low and should not be of any concern.
4. Contact Software Support for the updated Database Upgrader utility. We do have an updated utility that will allow you to upgrade your database on a 64 bit machine. Please give our Software Support team a call at 801-553-9888 to get this file and for help in getting this in place.