Topic: Please Assist - I think I Really Messed Up

[Gnomish Mustard]

Hi Everyone,

I had an upgrade error that asked me to roll back the installation of SMF.  It asked to back things up, so I copied the entire contents of the SMF directory to a backup folder and proceeded with the rollback.  The rollback messed up completely again, so I installed the latest version of SMF....

...then I see that there was an way to backup the database inside of the SMF forum.

Am I completely hosed and lost everything?  I have a copy of the entire forum, but I don't see a database anywhere.  Can anyone help me?

[mashby]

It's possible that your database is still there. While there is an option to back up the database within SMF, utilities like phpMyAdmin would have proven more reliable. In your control panel for your site (not SMF's admin area), do you see an option for phpMyAdmin or Backup Databases?

[Gnomish Mustard]

Yes!   Nice catch, I didn't understand the link to those.

So I guess the next question(s)

1) I have three listed, probably due to all the rollbacks and reinstalls.  It doesn't appear to have dates listed, just a string of numbers, any way to tell which one I should "restore."

2) If I figure out which one is the proper most recent database, how do I go about connecting the current 2.x SMF to this database, transfer my settings, etc?

[mashby]

1. Odd that you have 3 listed? The numbers might have something to do with a UNIX timestamp.
2. The question on my mind is what happened during your upgrade? What specific steps did you perform? I've not done too many, so I don't remember a rollback option.

[Gnomish Mustard]

1) I think the last one is the latest one from the fresh install of the new forum.  My guess is the first two have something to do with the initial install, and then the rolled back upgrade.

2) The roll back is actually from GoDaddy's built in upgrade.   It said the upgrade failed and recommended rolling it back. 

The database names are three letters, then a series of 13 numbers if that helps.

[mashby]

I am thinking that GoDaddy has an interesting upgrade process unbeknownst to SMF. Wondering if there's a "Help Me Jebus" button in GoDaddy's upgrade area?

[Gnomish Mustard]

I am thinking that GoDaddy has an interesting upgrade process unbeknownst to SMF. Wondering if there's a "Help Me Jebus" button in GoDaddy's upgrade area?

I agree, their upgrade process is less than solid at times.  This one has been a difficult one to digest.  I have seen the error for awhile, but did not want to do anything about it and jeopardize my forum.  Tonight I decided it was time to go ahead and move forward.  Whoops!   

Update - I located the DB now.  So the first DB is the original forum (at least I hope).  The second one is for Wordpress.  The third is for the new SMF fresh install I did.

I guess the question now is how to either point this new version to the previous database, or how to copy this database to the new forums DB?

[Bigguy]

That all depends on what the old database version is. If it is from the 1.1.x line of SMF and not the 2.0.x line then the database would have to be upgraded before it will connect to the new install of SMF. If you want to know the name of the database then look in your settings.php file. It will say in there what all your connection info is. If the current database is from the 2.0 line then all you have to do is upload repair_settings.php and run it. It should correct everything for you.

[Gnomish Mustard]

That all depends on what the old database version is. If it is from the 1.1.x line of SMF and not the 2.0.x line then the database would have to be upgraded before it will connect to the new install of SMF. If you want to know the name of the database then look in your settings.php file. It will say in there what all your connection info is. If the current database is from the 2.0 line then all you have to do is upload repair_settings.php and run it. It should correct everything for you.

I think it is the first one, almost positive.  I believe my installs got stuck before 2.0.x was released.

1) Do you have a link on where I can go to upgrade the database for 2.0?

2) After it is repaired, can you send me a link for the repair_settings.php and how to run it?

Sorry, I am really new to SMF.  It works so well I barely have to touch the back end of things. 

[Bigguy]

You will have to install the version of SMF that you were on and attach it to the database, then upgrade that. You can get your version of SMF from the downloads page here on the site and the repair_settings.php file is here:

http://download.simplemachines.org/?tools

[Gnomish Mustard]

You will have to install the version of SMF that you were on and attach it to the database, then upgrade that. You can get your version of SMF from the downloads page here on the site and the repair_settings.php file is here:
http://download.simplemachines.org/?tools

Thanks!

I spoke with Godaddy for a little while. Unfortunately they would not help me install SMF because it is not the latest and greatest version.  I don't really know how to install this manually.  Is there a link to some install instructions for Godaddy I could use?  Google revealed some from 2007, but that's pretty dated.

[Gnomish Mustard]

Update - I believe I know how to install the forum now.  Found a great set of various videos on Youtube.

One step I am concerned about though.  How do I point the forum to my previously created database without overwriting it?

[K@]

If I've understood what you want to do, you can open Settings.php and put the database name on this line:

$db_name = 'xxx';

where the "xxx" is.

(Keep a copy of the original file, as a backup, in case something gets screwed).

[Gnomish Mustard]

If I've understood what you want to do, you can open Settings.php and put the database name on this line:

$db_name = 'xxx';

where the "xxx" is.

(Keep a copy of the original file, as a backup, in case something gets screwed).

Yeah!  I think we are almost there.

I am getting this error now:

Unknown column 'add_deny' in 'field list'

[K@]

That seems to have cropped-up, here, a few times.

If you do a search, I'm sure you'll find some answers.

[Gnomish Mustard]

That seems to have cropped-up, here, a few times.

If you do a search, I'm sure you'll find some answers.

I did not find anything real specific on this, but my google-fu has been weak lately.

So far I have tired all kinds of things.  But at the end of the day nothing works. 

Go Daddy support confirmed what you said here, install the old version of the DB, which I tried, but it says I can't connect to my previous DB because SMF was already setup on it, and to try a new DB.   

When I try that it says access denied.   But even if I did get the old version with a new DB, how do you tell the old version to go back to old DB without it screwing up like it did for me already?  I tried the update.php and it failed.  I tried copying the files manually, and that failed.  Etc. etc.

[K@]

When I said "a few times", I may have been understating the case...