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macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
Hey guys I was going through some folders in my Library and I noticed my Receipts folder was almost empty and only had 5 python packages, a BSD package, and a db folder that is empty. Plus the Install History. Not too long ago I changed my Account name on accident(the one under /Users) and lost all my data so I had to rename it to get all my files back. When I try to open Microsoft Office applications it said I didn't have the Licenses. So, I was forced to reinstall. Anyway, because of this I was curious if my Receipts folder was supposed to have a lot more application things in it. Also if you have any idea why my Microsoft Office licenses were gone after I fixed the problem please let me know.
 

derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
Try repairing permissions. Sounds like /Library might be messed up. Office licenses are not stored in /Receipts or they weren't last time I had to nuke an install that way.
 

macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
Try repairing permissions. Sounds like /Library might be messed up. Office licenses are not stored in /Receipts or they weren't last time I had to nuke an install that way.

I've repaired Permissions tons of times! So your saying my Library messed up!!
 

derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
I've repaired Permissions tons of times! So your saying my Library messed up!!

"might be". Permissions repair should sort it out. You could also just re-install the OS. Takes like less than 30 min. It will fix /System and /Library folders. It will not fix ~/Library folders.
 

macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
"might be". Permissions repair should sort it out. You could also just re-install the OS. Takes like less than 30 min. It will fix /System and /Library folders. It will not fix ~/Library folders.

But if I reinstall OS X won't that delete all my files? I don't have any back ups.
 

derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
But if I reinstall OS X won't that delete all my files? I don't have any back ups.

No, your files will be intact unless you go through an erase and install.
And you should have backups. Don't do anything until you do. I am probably not the only person to have said this to you;)
 

calderone

Cancelled
Aug 28, 2009
3,743
352
It isn't permissions, i wish people would stop recommending that all the time. Apple has shifted receipts around quite a big in the last few releases.

They should be in /var/db/receipts if I remember correctly.
 

derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
It isn't permissions, i wish people would stop recommending that all the time. Apple has shifted receipts around quite a big in the last few releases.

They should be in /var/db/receipts if I remember correctly.

Repairing permissions repairs permissions on the System and root folders. If you can't save something to a root folder be it an installer, receipt or .plist change etc. repairing them "could" sort it out. Yes it does not help most things BUT it helps these things. I don't blindly send out repair permissions requests dude. I am pro.
 

calderone

Cancelled
Aug 28, 2009
3,743
352
Repairing permissions repairs permissions on the System and root folders. If you can't save something to a root folder be it an installer, receipt or .plist change etc. repairing them "could" sort it out. Yes it does not help most things BUT it helps these things. I don't blindly send out repair permissions requests dude. I am pro.

Haha. This was definitely a blind cast, there is little to no chance this is permissions. Read the OP again.

And really? Jump to a reinstall with no reasoning? Pro my arse.
 
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macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
Haha. This was definitely a blind cast, there is little to no chance this is permissions. Read the OP again.

And really? Jump to a reinstall with no reasoning? Pro my arse.
Yeah I had another guy tell me to reinstall without really knowing why on the IRC chat. I figured out that on Mountain Lion everything is stored in the history.plist file in the Receipt folder. I just happen to have some Python packages that aren't.

----------

What I do want to know is why when I changed my Account name and then recovered files I wasn't able to access Microsoft Office because of missing License files.
 

Weaselboy

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 23, 2005
34,071
15,493
California
What I do want to know is why when I changed my Account name and then recovered files I wasn't able to access Microsoft Office because of missing License files.

It sounds like when you were recovering some files you copied over the plist files MS stores the registration info in. Just reenter the serial numbers and you should be good to go.
 

macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
It sounds like when you were recovering some files you copied over the plist files MS stores the registration info in. Just reenter the serial numbers and you should be good to go.

Yeah I did. So then what other files could this have effected? Is there a location to where these files were changed so I can know if anything else was effected?
 

Weaselboy

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 23, 2005
34,071
15,493
California
Yeah I did. So then what other files could this have effected? Is there a location to where these files were changed so I can know if anything else was effected?

This shows where all the various MS files are kept. It looks like the license plist is at /Library/Preferences

If everything else is running fine, you are probably okay. Most Mac apps are not to picky about these registration issues like MS is.
 

macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
This shows where all the various MS files are kept. It looks like the license plist is at /Library/Preferences

If everything else is running fine, you are probably okay. Most Mac apps are not to picky about these registration issues like MS is.

I hope your right!
 

derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
This shows where all the various MS files are kept. It looks like the license plist is at /Library/Preferences

I rest my case kids. diskutil resets access on this. If you delete them or they are not written properly you will have to keep entering your serial each time. Crayola simple. So re-enter the serial. If the license file does not show up check permissions on the folder as an Account name change can alter more than you think.
 
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derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
Yeah I had another guy tell me to reinstall without really knowing why on the IRC chat. I figured out that on Mountain Lion everything is stored in the history.plist file in the Receipt folder. I just happen to have some Python packages that aren't.


...
 
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macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
? All I want to know is if I do a reinstall of Mountain Lion will I have an option to keep all my files when I reinstall instead of erasing everything and doing a clean reinstall.
 

Weaselboy

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 23, 2005
34,071
15,493
California
? All I want to know is if I do a reinstall of Mountain Lion will I have an option to keep all my files when I reinstall instead of erasing everything and doing a clean reinstall.

Yes. It is not so much an option you have to check as it is the default behavior. If you just DL Mountain Lion and click install it will not delete any user applications or data.

To do the clean install you would have to get to beginning install screen then go into the Utilities menu and manually select Disk Utility and intentionally erase the drive. You would have to go out of your way to do this... it won't happen by just an accidental checkbox or something.
 

derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
Haha. This was definitely a blind cast, there is little to no chance this is permissions. Read the OP again.

And really? Jump to a reinstall with no reasoning? Pro my arse.

And your suggestion...troll!
They are trying to get the license file to write to /Library/Preferences after altering account in an unknown way. So permissions could come into play, no? It has in the past when migrating accounts and changing UID info in improper ways. User now has no access to write to some dir's in / it appears. The OP does not know about a lot of OS X basics so I am not going to tell them to 'find /Library -type d -exec chmod 755 {} \;'.
Or 'find /Library -type d -print0 | xargs -0 chmod 755'. Or take a bunch of screen shots or mess with symbolic links. Re-install much easier to reset permissions and root/ User interaction.
If you have stellar idea on how to fix that is more simple than re-install I am all ears.
 
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derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
? All I want to know is if I do a reinstall of Mountain Lion will I have an option to keep all my files when I reinstall instead of erasing everything and doing a clean reinstall.

As Weasleboy said just run the installer and all your user files should be left alone and intact. It takes very little time. You should backup the "install Mac OS X" file prior to running it as it will delete itself after you run it. If you need it ever again copy the file back to your Mac app location or wherever and run it without needing to download again. You could also make bootable installers and the like from it.
 

calderone

Cancelled
Aug 28, 2009
3,743
352
And your suggestion...troll!
They are trying to get the license file to write to /Library/Preferences after altering account in an unknown way. So permissions could come into play, no? It has in the past when migrating accounts and changing UID info in improper ways. User now has no access to write to some dir's in / it appears. The OP does not know about a lot of OS X basics so I am not going to tell them to 'find /Library -type d -exec chmod 755 {} \;'.
Or 'find /Library -type d -print0 | xargs -0 chmod 755'. Or take a bunch of screen shots or mess with symbolic links. Re-install much easier to reset permissions and root/ User interaction.
If you have stellar idea on how to fix that is more simple than re-install I am all ears.

I am genuinely curious, from where did you extract that this was the problem?

As far as I can tell the OP has no problem as it stands right now. The OP reinstalled Office and presumably it is now working.

In other words, there is NOTHING to fix.
 

derbothaus

macrumors 601
Jul 17, 2010
4,093
30
I am genuinely curious, from where did you extract that this was the problem?

As far as I can tell the OP has no problem as it stands right now. The OP reinstalled Office and presumably it is now working.

In other words, there is NOTHING to fix.

Uh. I thought he said he did and it did not fix it. "I did it but..."
But on closer inspection caffeine has failed me today:eek:
There appears to be NOTHING to fix. And I was so over the top excited.
So sorry. Have pity on my sad soul.
 

calderone

Cancelled
Aug 28, 2009
3,743
352
Uh. I thought he said he did and it did not fix it. "I did it but..."
But on closer inspection caffeine has failed me today:eek:
There appears to be NOTHING to fix. And I was so over the top excited.
So sorry. Have pity on my sad soul.

It is all good. After all, you are pro. :rolleyes:
 

macuser1232

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2012
668
4
Yes, I fixed the problem by inserting the Microsoft Office CD back into my computer and reinstalling it. Also what I am going to do is purchase an external hard drive and backup all my User files including a download of OS X Mountain Lion in my downloads folder. Then reinstall the OS.
 
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