Sun 27 Jan 08, 7:21 p.m.
Greetings!
Newbie here with pretty low skill set, so I hope you can tolerate some simple minded questions.
First of all, I have several boards remotely hosted at Free Power Boards, example, http://www.forums.thailand9000.com . I really like FPB for a number of reasons, but especially because they support my low skill set. However, the old version of their boards is a spam magnet. I think I have banned every e-mail domain, IP addy and user name in the universe, and I still get 20 porno spams every week. It's exhausting and depressing! It takes more than an hour to delete that stuff and thoroughly (?) ban the spammers & spambots. Apparently not thoroughly enough because the spam keeps coming!
Anyway, long story short, I think may be forced to host my own boards and am shopping around the right software support.
I have several questions, but two for now:
(1) Is it possible to migrate the data and structure of my FPB boards to SMF or something similar?
(2) Being an idiot, if the board crashes or gets a database error, I'm helpless. Is maintenance available?
Thanks for any feedback and suggestions.
Aloha,
Rex
1. Yes, it should be possible - they do give you free backups (which is actually unusual for a free forum host), and there is a converter for both phpBB2 and phpBB3.
2. Yes, if you have any problems, we will be glad to assist you here on the board. However, we do not host the boards ourselves, so we will not be able to maintain your forum. If you are interested in free SMF hosting, check out boardnation.com or smfforfree.com.
Mon 28 Jan 08, 7:40 a.m.
Hi Michael,
Tks. for such a quick and thoughtful reply. Sorry to be long-winded, but this damn thing is tricky!
I have no problem with FPB, I think they are terrific. All things being equal, I would have no desire to change anything. But I am in this catch 22.
(1) My phpBB2 boards are deluged with spam and I don't seem to be able to stop it. Although today, after an 90 minutes clean up yesterday, all seems quite on the Western Front : http://www.forums.thailand9000.com/portal.php (http://www.forums.thailand9000.com/portal.php). I hope posting that url is OK.
(2) I understand that phpBB3 is more secure and also makes it easier to deal with spam if you get it. Dilemma : FPB phpBB3 does not have a portal (which I need to display affiliate banners & stuff), and does not have the theme I have spent a long time integrating with my website to create a "brand recognition."
So, I guess my questions are:
(1) Is SMF better at preventing and/or dealing with SPAM.
(2) Apparently using "TinyPortal" will give me a portal.
(3) Yes, FPB gives free backups which is pretty cool.
(a) I assume it is a file that you can download, upload, FTP?
(b) How does that then (sorry) "get into" SMF?
(c) Does the backup preserve the data, structure & themes?
(4) This is subjective, I know. I don't have much time for a learning curve. What are the chances I can learn to deal with routine database errors and crashes without having a nervous breakdown?
I am grateful for you help here, Michael.
Thanks.
Aloha,
Rex
Lainaus käyttäjältä: rexall - tammikuu 27, 2008, 09:12:45 IP
(1) Is SMF better at preventing and/or dealing with SPAM.
In many people's experiences, yes. I've helped two forums that ran phpBB 2 migrate to SMF and the spam postings have stopped. Make sure to use the visual verification option on SMF for registration, and set it to "Medium" at least.
Lainaus käyttäjältä: rexall - tammikuu 27, 2008, 09:12:45 IP
(2) Apparently using "TinyPortal" will give me a portal.
Yes, it will. Depending on your needs, we also support bridges with other systems as well.
Lainaus käyttäjältä: rexall - tammikuu 27, 2008, 09:12:45 IP
(3) Yes, FPB gives free backups which is pretty cool.
(a) I assume it is a file that you can download, upload, FTP?
(b) How does that then (sorry) "get into" SMF?
(c) Does the backup preserve the data, structure & themes?
Most of these would probably be best answered by the current provider unless someone else has experience with them. Assuming the backup is the usual database stuff, I'll answer based on that.
a) It would be a file that you import into the new host. It stores the data from your forum (posts, members, etc).
b) You would use a converter to move that data to the format SMF uses.
c) It would only preserve the data and order of the forum. The theme is locked to the software itself and wouldn't port over easily.
Depending on what you are able to do, you might also be able to get uploads like avatars or attached files (if the current software supports those) migrated as well.
Lainaus käyttäjältä: rexall - tammikuu 27, 2008, 09:12:45 IP
(4) This is subjective, I know. I don't have much time for a learning curve. What are the chances I can learn to deal with routine database errors and crashes without having a nervous breakdown?
If the server is stable, you shouldn't have much in the way of problems. Crashes aren't a routine thing, unless you like tossing modifications on and off. The worst thing I've seen (note I usualy don't heavily modify my forums) is a table that needed a repair done in phpMyAdmin after two weekend power outages caused some problems on a server.