Database lock - "You already have this option opened"

Owned by Daniel Smith
Oct 05, 2018
2 min read

Problem

User is trying to open a client-specific form (i.e. progress note, update client data, etc.) and encounters an error stating they already have the option open for that client. This type of error can occur in various forms; an example of the message is below:

Solution

Firstly, please check to make certain the form is not already legitimately opened on the client – this can be checked by looking near the top of Avatar for open forms. If this isn't the case, read on.

When an option isn't already opened, this is likely caused by the user encountering an issue within the application that caused them to exit the form or application in a non-standard fashion (i.e. the app froze). If exiting the application isn't done properly via using the "Sign Out" option, Avatar may hang onto elements from the user's session past the point where the user is logged in – and if the user attempts to re-launch the same form, they will run into a message like this. 

Note that Avatar will not hang onto the session indefinitely, and signing out properly and waiting about 3-5 minutes is usually sufficient for Avatar to recognize the session has expired and release the lock on its own. 

However, Tier 1 support can use the "Release Database Record Lock" form to find any lingering locks and forcibly release them (note access to this form is for support only). Care must be taken to select the correct lock – if the user is actively within the application, they may have multiple locks so verifying the form for which the error is occurring is important. Once verified, they can select the lock – Avatar will want verification you've selected the correct one - and Submit to release.

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