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Storage Location

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Where does ENERCALC Store Files?

 

In the programming world there is a standard notation for file locations that, when used in program code, allows Windows to return the location depending on the currently logged in user.  This is a more uniform method of file storage than prior methods, which typically involved storing files in a "Data" subdirectory of the actual program directory.

 

The common Windows notation for file locations starts with "CSIDL" (constant special item ID list).

 

When your ENERCALC software is installed our installation program asks Windows for the drive and directory locations corresponding to:

 

         CSIDL_COMMON_DOCUMENTS and CSIDL_PERSONAL.

 

We store two types of ENERCALC non-program files: Non-changing database files and changing user-created files.

 

Non-changing files are the database files....steel sections, wood sections, seismic response, etc. are stored in CSIDL_COMMON_DOCUMENTS.

 

Changing files (i.e. ENERCALC Project Files) are stored in CSIDL_PERSONAL.

 

 

 

What are the typical locations for the various versions of Windows?

 

In all cases <username> is your personal folder under My Documents.

 

CSIDL_COMMON_Documents

 

 Windows 10

C:\Users\Public\Documents\ENERCALC Common Data Files\

 

 

CSIDL_PERSONAL

 

 Windows 10

C:\Users\<username>\Documents\ENERCALC Data Files\

 

 

 

 

How does the software know where to look for these files?

 

When ENERCALC SEL is launched it looks in the Windows Registry for the current user and extracts the ENERCALC file locations established by that particular user on the Settings > General Settings & File Locations screen.
 

All of these values are stored in the Windows Registry for the current user.  This allows different users of a computer to have their project data files and user-created databases accessible in their own folders.