Sessions or cookies?

In order for paFileDB to keep track of who's logged into the admin center, it has to use either sessions or cookies to store data. Ever since paFileDB 2.0, sessions have been used, however they are not always supported on every server. Cookies are more widely supported on servers, however, some users with older browsers, or users behind a firewall might have problems using cookies. Some people just completely disable them.

In order to reduce compatibility problems, paFileDB 3.0 Final can use either sessions or cookies. Cookies are recommended and enabled by default, because there's less compatibility issues and unlike sessions, cookies don't require any data to be stored on the server.

If you're having problems with 3.0 final not logging you into the admin center or quickly logging you out, then cookies aren't working properly for you, and you will need to try sessions. Before you make the switch to sessions, make a directory called "sessions" in your paFileDB folder (same folder as pafiledb.php) and CHMOD the directory 777. If you are using a Windows server, you will not need to CHMOD the directory. If you've used paFileDB 2.x or a v3 beta before on this same server without problems, you shouldn't have a problem with sessions.

To switch between sessions and cookies, open up pafiledb.php and look for the text:

$authmethod = "cookies";

OR:

$authmethod = "sessions";
(That line of text will be different depending on what it's set to)

To set it to cookies, change the text in the quotes (" ") to "cookies" (without quotes)
To set it to sessions, change the text in the quotes (" ") to "sessions" (without quotes)

Save and re-upload the file to your server.

Notes:
--Cookies are enabled by default and are the recommended method. Only switch to sessions if you're having problems logging into the admin center. If you're not having problems, don't change anything
--If you're using cookies, you can delete the "sessions" directory and all the files in it. However, if you ever need to go back to sessions, you will need to recreate the directory and CHMOD it 777 (on *NIX servers)