Answers.Body: <p>'Failed to update contribution in database' tells us that your Contribution is never fully completed on the CiviCRM side of things - and hence it will not get to the part where CiviCRM sends out a receipt. </p>
  
  <p>In other words - the monies are processed on the PayPal side of things - but when CiviCRM hears about it - and is trying to record that the transaction was successful - it runs into a Failed to update. </p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2016-08-31T00:31:39.460Z
Answers.Text: Ok!  Why though is it not fully completing....
Answers.UserDisplayName: gsvadmin
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2016-08-31T03:38:27.407Z
Answers.Text: I'm not sure - but this is definitively why the receipt is not going out. Look in the ConfigAndLog for clues / backtrace of the "Failed to update contribution in database"
Answers.UserDisplayName: KarinG - Semper IT
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2016-08-30T14:50:46.677Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2016-08-30T14:50:46.677Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: KarinG - Semper IT
Body: <p>We have joomla 3.6.2, CiviCrm 4.7.10 and PayPal Express (PP)
  Donor receives an email from PP stating you sent a payment to ....
  Donor should also receive an emailed receipt from CiviCrm but does not
  Donor should also be returned from PP to an online receipt but is not, instead sees a red error page.</p>
  
  <p>Where do I start looking for the answer!??</p>
  
  <p>error message is
  CiviCRM-001 -   @import url(/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/css/civicrm.css); @import url(/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/bower_components/font-awesome/css/font-awesome.min.css);    Sorry but we are not able to provide this at the moment. Failed to update contribution in database <p><a href="http://gsv.org.au/" rel="nofollow" title="Main Menu">Return to home page.</a></p>    function toggle( element ) { var parent = element.parentNode; var className = parent.className; if ( className == 'crm-accordion-wrapper collapsed crm-fatal-error-details-block') { parent.className = 'crm-accordion-wrapper crm-fatal-error-details-block'; } else { parent.className = 'crm-accordion-wrapper collapsed crm-fatal-error-details-block'; } } </p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2016-08-30T02:12:56.843Z
Comments.Text: Are other email functions of your CiviCRM install working?  Can you successfully send a Mass email or an email to one individual?
Comments.UserDisplayName: Allen Hutchison
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2016-08-30T02:34:37.477Z
Comments.Text: We would be better able to help you if you updated your question to paste in the contents of the error page you mention.
Comments.UserDisplayName: Jon G - Megaphone Tech
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2016-08-30T04:24:44.240Z
Comments.Text: Mass mail is working and can send a test email from both joomla and civi,
Comments.UserDisplayName: gsvadmin
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2016-08-30T04:28:53.763Z
Comments.Text: error message is
Comments.UserDisplayName: gsvadmin
Tags: <civicontribute>
Title: Why does the donation process not produce a receipt either on screen or dispatched by email to donor?
ThreadText: # Why does the donation process not produce a receipt either on screen or dispatched by email to donor?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2016-08-30)
  
  We have joomla 3.6.2, CiviCrm 4.7.10 and PayPal Express (PP)
  Donor receives an email from PP stating you sent a payment to ....
  Donor should also receive an emailed receipt from CiviCrm but does not
  Donor should also be returned from PP to an online receipt but is not, instead sees a red error page.
  
  Where do I start looking for the answer!??
  
  error message is
  CiviCRM-001 - @import url(/components/com\_civicrm/civicrm/css/civicrm.css); @import url(/components/com\_civicrm/civicrm/bower\_components/font-awesome/css/font-awesome.min.css); Sorry but we are not able to provide this at the moment. Failed to update contribution in database
  
  [Return to home page.](http://gsv.org.au/ "Main Menu")
  
  function toggle( element ) { var parent = element.parentNode; var className = parent.className; if ( className == 'crm-accordion-wrapper collapsed crm-fatal-error-details-block') { parent.className = 'crm-accordion-wrapper crm-fatal-error-details-block'; } else { parent.className = 'crm-accordion-wrapper collapsed crm-fatal-error-details-block'; } }
  
  **Tags:** civicontribute
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: Are other email functions of your CiviCRM install working?  Can you successfully send a Mass email or an email to one individual?  
  > **username_2**: We would be better able to help you if you updated your question to paste in the contents of the error page you mention.  
  > **username_0**: Mass mail is working and can send a test email from both joomla and civi,  
  > **username_0**: error message is  
  
  ---
  
  ## 1 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2016-08-30. Score: 1
  
  'Failed to update contribution in database' tells us that your Contribution is never fully completed on the CiviCRM side of things - and hence it will not get to the part where CiviCRM sends out a receipt.
  
  In other words - the monies are processed on the PayPal side of things - but when CiviCRM hears about it - and is trying to record that the transaction was successful - it runs into a Failed to update.
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_0**: Ok!  Why though is it not fully completing....  
  > **username_3**: I'm not sure - but this is definitively why the receipt is not going out. Look in the ConfigAndLog for clues / backtrace of the "Failed to update contribution in database"  
  
  ---
  
  