Here it is, at long last, the guide for backing up, migrating or relocating your DJS database.

This is handy for everyone, especially those who...

- want the security of a backup because they don't want to risk losing everything in a drive failure
- are moving to a new computer
- just plain don't want to re-import all their MP3s should something happen
- don't like the drive-hog of the DJS database and want to move it to another drive

Please keep in mind that I'm not covering the upgrade process and you should always be using the latest version of the software.

If you are transferring to a new computer, you will need to re-register the software. It can be done easily (yourself) if you remember your username and password, which most of you don't. In that case, you can email me with your serial number and the activation code and I can do an offline registration for you. You then plug-in the registration ID number and away you go.

Before you do anything - UPDATE
Be sure you have the latest version. It's not the end of the world as we've found that it still works regardless, but best to match versions anyhow.

1) Get the DB - open a file browser and navigate your way to the following folder:

In XP - C:\Documents and Settings\yourusername\Application Data\Pioneer

In Vista - C:\Users\yourusername\Application Data\Roaming\Pioneer

Can't see the folder? You likely have your hidden folders still hidden from view.

To view them, in your file browser go to Tools > Folder Options > View tab > Under "Hidden Files and Folders" select "Show Hidden Files and Folders". (This method is for XP but Vista is very similar.)

Inside you'll see a folder "DJS10".

This folder contains 1 sub-folder and 4 files. The sub-folder (ironically named "sub") has hundreds, if not thousands, of files containing information for each track you have in your library.

2) Copy the "DJS10" folder to an external drive (hard drive or flash drive) - it may be rather large so be sure you have space for it. A sample database containing 244 songs was 157MB in size.

If you're not transferring the DB to another machine, at this point you're done (or you can burn the DB to a disc for offline storage). For those moving to another machine, carry on...

3) Rename your destination database - first, if you haven't run DJS before, open it, register and close it.

On the destination computer, go to the same location as above:
In XP - C:\Documents and Settings\yourusername\Application Data\Pioneer

In Vista - C:\Users\yourusername\Application Data\Roaming\Pioneer

Rename the "DJS10" folder to something like "DJS10-empty".

4) Copy your new database from the external storage into this folder so you'll now see 2 folders - your "DJS10-empty" and "DJS10".

The beauty of DJS is it doesn't refer to drives by their drive letter. An external drive on a laptop could be Drive E whereas when connected to a desktop it appears as Drive G. So long as your music source drive is connected to the machine, DJS will be able to load your music from the new database.

If your music was stored on the internal hard drive on your old computer, be sure to copy it over to the SAME location on your new computer. (If you need instructions on doing this, just ask.)

Provided you didn't do something horribly wrong, DJS should now be able to load up with your library intact.

If you want to relocate your database to another drive, follow the instructions below.

FAILURE TO FOLLOW THESE EXACT INSTRUCTIONS MAY RESULT IN A LOSS OF YOUR DJS DATABASE OR IRREVERSIBLE DAMAGE TO YOUR WINDOWS OPERATING SYSTEM OR OTHER PROGRAMS.

NEITHER MYSELF (DJ PULSE), PIONEER OR ANY OF ITS ASSOCIATES SHALL BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE OR LOSS RESULTING FROM MODIFYING YOUR SYSTEM AS PER THE INSTRUCTIONS BELOW.

FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Before you start, ensure DJS is NOT running and for safety, close all other programs... print this if you need to.

1) Open up a file explorer (go to My Computer).

2) Go to your C: drive and navigate to the following folder:

In XP - C:\Documents and Settings\yourusername\Application Data\Pioneer

In Vista - C:\Users\yourusername\Application Data\Roaming\Pioneer

If you can't see the Documents and Settings folder, it's hidden and you don't have that setting enabled. Go to Tools > Folder Options, click on the View tab and scroll to "Show hidden files and folders", click the radio button beside it and click OK.

3) Once in the Pioneer folder, you should see a folder labeled "DJS10". Highlight it and select Edit > Copy.

4) Go to the desired destination for your database and create a new folder for the database (eg. X:\PioneerDB).

5) Open that folder and go to Edit > Paste. Your database will copy from the old location to the new. The time to copy will depend on the number of tracks you have in your database.

6) When you are done, your database should now live here:

X:\PioneerDB\DJS10

7) Go to Start > Run and type regedit and click OK.

8) In the left window...
Click the + icon beside HKEY_CURRENT_USER
Click the + icon beside Software
Click the + icon beside Pioneer
Click the + icon beside DJS
Click the + icon beside 1.0

This step may be slightly different for Vista, I'm not 100% certain as I don't have Vista installed right now.

9) In the right window, double-click the DataFolder entry. Change the Value data entry to reflect your new database location:

X:\PioneerDB\DJS10

10) Close the Registry Editor.

11) Run DJS to see that it works properly. If not, you've screwed the pooch and didn't follow my instructions, in which case you can post or email for help, otherwise, continue...

12) Find your way back to this folder:

In XP - C:\Documents and Settings\yourusername\Application Data\Pioneer

In Vista - C:\Users\yourusername\Application Data\Roaming\Pioneer

You can select the Pioneer folder and delete it. If you hold down SHIFT while deleting (either with the delete key or using the right-click menu) it will delete it right away instead of moving the files to the recycling bin.

13) Done. You can now use DJS without having the database reside on your internal hard drive.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Pulse,