Converting phpBB forum more than once?

[john-mws]

Hello, I decided to try out SMF after using phpBB for several years. The upgrades were getting more and more difficult when you have mods installed.

I installed SMF without a problem, and I was able to convert my board over. However, not knowing exactly what to do, I created a new database for SMF with the converted db from phpBB. Now I have the phpbb board running as before while I test SMF and set it up the way I wanted, before going "live" with it. Should I have run the conversion using the same database so that SMF would continue to update as the phpbb "live" board is doing, and would it have caused any problems having two boards sharing the same database?

Also, now that I do have the two databases, can I run the conversion again when I am ready to finally replace phpBB? Will it affect any of the mods I already added to SMF? Since I deleted the original conversion files, do I just upload them again to my site and run it as before, converting the "current" phpbb db? I'd want to transfer the last week's worth of posts to the "new" board.

Thanks for the help, and I apologize if these seem like stupid questions! 

[xenovanis]

Once converted, the smf database won't be updated everytime. But, you could convert it again once you're ready, since the phpBB tables aren't touched. Converting to the same smf-installation will however overwrite the current smf-tables.

[john-mws]

Thanks but will the conversion only affect the forum content and not the setup itself? I've been adding mods to the new forum, setting it up the way I want to get it ready. Then if I run the conversion again, will only the new members, messages, photos, pm's ect.....all be converted over again? I understand it would overright the current SMF database, but it would just be updated with all the more recent messages added, correct?  Would still be complete, as it appeared in phpBB at the time of conversion?

Thanks!

[xenovanis]

It will affect the forumdatabase, if you did install any mods which affect the database they won't work anymore. Also, any information you added, like new posts, members, moderators, groups, will be overwritten. The convertor is not adding information, it will empty the existing tables and add the phpBB information.