"Please make sure the IDS/tmp folder is writable" error

[bdimaggio]

Hey all --
Just spent some time tracking this problem down and thought it might be useful to let people know how to fix it.  So I installed CiviCRM successfully on Drupal 6.5, and went away for a little while.  I don't remember specifically going to the main CiviCRM screen (http://example.com/civicrm/dashboard), but I must have, because I managed to create a couple of CiviEvent events.

Subsequently went away for a couple of days, and came back to find a white screen of death when I tried to go to the main CiviCRM screen.  Looked in my PHP error log to find this:

PHP Fatal error: Uncaught exception 'Exception' with message 'Please make sure the IDS/tmp folder is writable' in [root of Drupal install]sites/default/modules/civicrm/packages/IDS/Monitor.php:187\nStack trace:\n#0 [root of Drupal install]sites/default/modules/civicrm/CRM/Core/IDS.php(112): IDS_Monitor->__construct(Array, Object(IDS_Init))\n#1 [root of Drupal install]sites/default/modules/civicrm/CRM/Core/Invoke.php(74): CRM_Core_IDS->check(Array)\n#2 [root of Drupal install]sites/default/modules/civicrm/drupal/civicrm.module(315): CRM_Core_Invoke::invoke(Array)\n#3 [internal function]: civicrm_invoke('dashboard')\n#4 [root of Drupal install]includes/menu.inc(348): call_user_func_array('civicrm_invoke', Array)\n#5 [root of Drupal install]index.php(18): menu_execute_active_handler()\n#6 {main}\n thrown in [root of Drupal install]sites/default/modules/civicrm/packages/IDS/Monitor.php on line 187, referer: http://[my server]/admin/settings/file-system

(fancy coloring commands on this editor!) Hunted through the code to discover that the directory in question was actually
[root of Drupal install]/sites/[my site's directory]/files/civicrm/upload/

Chmod'ing that directory to 777 fixed the problem.  That wasn't very obvious from the error message, so I thought I'd post it here...

Ben

[dbabbage]

Thank you! This wasn't obvious at all, but changing the permissions on the folder from 755 to 777 fixed the problem immediately. Much appreciated.

[joemaine]

Exceptional sleuthing - thanks very much for finding the problem.  Now...what caused it - is it related to CiviCRM 2.1.2?

[lnemeth]

I was pulling my hair out on this one.  Thank you! 

[linkx]

I have made sure that /files/civicrm/upload is writable.

I deleted Config.IDS.ini but it is not being re-created by civicrm.

Hmm maybe civicrm is trying to create Config.IDS.ini in the wrong location? How do I check on this?

Here is the full edited error:

Code: [Select]

Fatal error: Uncaught exception 'Exception' with message 'Please make sure the IDS/tmp folder is writable' in ../sites/all/modules/civicrm/packages/IDS/Monitor.php:187 Stack trace: #0 ../sites/all/modules/civicrm/CRM/Core/IDS.php(131): IDS_Monitor->__construct(Array, Object(IDS_Init)) #1 .../sites/all/modules/civicrm/CRM/Core/Invoke.php(74): CRM_Core_IDS->check(Array) #2 .../sites/all/modules/civicrm/drupal/civicrm.module(342): CRM_Core_Invoke::invoke(Array) #3 [internal function]: civicrm_invoke() #4 /includes/menu.inc(348): call_user_func_array('civicrm_invoke', Array) #5 /index.php(18): menu_execute_active_handler() #6 {main} thrown in /sites/all/modules/civicrm/packages/IDS/Monitor.php on line 187

[abel1234]

I was goin crazy after this one...thanks man

[linkx]

My blood boiled as I watched my site crumble into black-and-white php errors when I visited civicrm pages . . . every . . . time.

But then, after eight hours of head-scratching, I set my civicrm_domain config backend to "null" (again) using PHPMyAdmin . . . then visited /civicrm/admin/setting/updateConfigBackend?reset=1

And all is well again!

[choster]

I kept getting this error despite having all permissions set to 777 and all files owned by the web server's user. In my case, the problem was solved by truncating the civicrm_domain table in the database. This is actually offered as a solution to various other problems, though not this one in any document I've found. It is rather unintuitive that a file permissions error should relate to a database table, but there you go.

[djtrouten]

For any Joomla users who stumble across this thread searching for a solution to the same problem, the file to delete in Joomla is:

media/civicrm/upload/Config.IDS.ini.

Deleting this file solved my "IDS/tmp folder" problem.

[alextronic]

the problem was solved by truncating the civicrm_domain table in the database.

Yes, sir. Thank you very much.

[Donald Lobo]

truncating the civicrm_domain table is pretty much guaranteed to cause you more upgrade issues in the future since it stores version information which is lost

we've resolved some of these issues in 2.2.9 (coming next week) and in 3.0.beta*. setting config_backend to null should solve a lot of issues

lobo

[kanani]

I have made sure that /files/civicrm/upload is writable.

I deleted Config.IDS.ini but it is not being re-created by civicrm.

Hmm maybe civicrm is trying to create Config.IDS.ini in the wrong location? How do I check on this?

Here is the full edited error:

Code: [Select]

Fatal error: Uncaught exception 'Exception' with message 'Please make sure the IDS/tmp folder is writable' in ../sites/all/modules/civicrm/packages/IDS/Monitor.php:187 Stack trace: #0 ../sites/all/modules/civicrm/CRM/Core/IDS.php(131): IDS_Monitor->__construct(Array, Object(IDS_Init)) #1 .../sites/all/modules/civicrm/CRM/Core/Invoke.php(74): CRM_Core_IDS->check(Array) #2 .../sites/all/modules/civicrm/drupal/civicrm.module(342): CRM_Core_Invoke::invoke(Array) #3 [internal function]: civicrm_invoke() #4 /includes/menu.inc(348): call_user_func_array('civicrm_invoke', Array) #5 /index.php(18): menu_execute_active_handler() #6 {main} thrown in /sites/all/modules/civicrm/packages/IDS/Monitor.php on line 187

In my cased I'd moved a set from dev to production (same server) but the old dev folders still existed so didn't get the issue until I did some server cleanup(deleting the dev folders) a few months later. I edited the Config.IDS.ini file to point to the proper folders and all was well.

[xcf33]

My blood boiled as I watched my site crumble into black-and-white php errors when I visited civicrm pages . . . every . . . time.

But then, after eight hours of head-scratching, I set my civicrm_domain config backend to "null" (again) using PHPMyAdmin . . . then visited /civicrm/admin/setting/updateConfigBackend?reset=1

And all is well again!

Worked for me, thanks for saving me all the trouble,

BTW, my error happened when I had to move the drupal/civicrm installation to another domain

Drupal 6.15/CiviCRM 3.03