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mergeSMF.php - Script to merge two SMF forums

Started by bfeist, November 02, 2013, 03:39:27 PM

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ExSpirit

I found the problem - step 7 contained wrong link (?step=9 instead of ?step=8). Fixed and it worked great now. :)

bfeist

Quote from: ExSpirit on June 17, 2014, 04:51:43 PM
I found the problem - step 7 contained wrong link (?step=9 instead of ?step=8). Fixed and it worked great now. :)

Oops. Thanks for the catch. Just updated the original post to 2.0.2 to address that issue.

Greygal

I used this script to merge two SMF 2.09 forums this past weekend, and wanted to say it worked beautifully, with just a few small hiccups that I thought I'd share in case someone else wants to use it.

Well, to be specific, I converted 14 phpBB boards to SMF 2.09 then merged all 14 of those forums into the one forum.  The entire project took only six hours, thanks to this script.

Before you run this script:

1. You MUST backup or make a copy of your smaller database/forum (the one you are merging FROM).  This script will rename all your duplicate member names in that smaller database BEFORE it imports them to the larger database.  If for some reason you need to continue to use the smaller database/forum or revert to it, there's no real way to revert it without a gazillion manual database edits changing all those member's names from todelete_name back to name.... 

2. You MUST make a backup copy of your smaller forum's settings.php file.  The script overwrites this file with the larger database's connection information and some other stuff, it's basically useless to continue running the smaller forum if you wanted to.  Make a backup copy of this file before you use this script!

3. Check the number of columns on the smf_members table on both forums before you run the merge script.  If the number of fields in the member's table (and field names) don't match, it won't actually import the members into the larger forum from the smaller forum, even though it looks like it did successfully import them all from the script's messages and HAS successfully imported all the messages and posts.  For example, if your larger forum has some mods that have added additional custom fields that your smaller forum does not have in its members table, you will need to manually add those fields to the relevant table so that both member's tables have the same number of fields (and name them the same).  Note the script does not give you any kind of warning that the fields don't exist and the import failed on the members table.

4. If the member groups on the smaller forum do not already exist on the larger forum, it's a very, very good idea to create those same membergroups on the larger forum before you import from the smaller one.  If you don't, the imported members likely will be assigned an undesirable membergroup...   :o

I also used the Admin Toolbox script linked elsewhere in this thread to merge my duplicate members. A few quick notes about it:

1. When using the Admin Toolbox to manually merge duplicate members, be aware that sometimes the avatar for that particular member account just disappears into the ether somewhere... about half of the todelete_name duplicate forum members lost their avatar and had to reset it. 

2. If you get an error message saying that something doesn't exist or can't be found or something like that (sorry can't remember the exact error message) when merging two members, go to your admin =>maintenance => forum maintenance menu => routine and run the "clear file cache" option, then reattempt to merge .  For some reason the Admin Toolbox mod doesn't seem to clear its own buffer/cache/whatever nicely all the time, and will occasionally act like some field or another that does exist, doesn't.

Sorry to necro this thread, but hopefully the above will help someone else with using this script.  It's a wonderful script that saved me countless hours and greatly simplified this messy project, and for that you have my eternal thanks!

I really appreciate all the work put into this script!  Thank you again!

GG

bfeist

Thanks for your kind words and the great details you've provided into the issues you encountered.

Geor'G

Thanks for a good script.

p.s. Not work with child board

Impsat-1

Mmm... I tried a 11 times, but don´t work... in localhost or server online... maybe the autor or any member developer can Updated??....... ;)

Please??... this is a realy dream for my... Please, Update the script... ;)

Thanks... and Regards
Waiting to the last version...

Have a Great Time 8).-
Vive Cáda Momento De Tu Vida Como Si Fueras a Irte Mañana, Más Planificala Cómo Si Jamás Fueras a Irte ;).-

margarett

You need to be more specific about the issues you encountered. Several other persons used this before you, there are no database changes in 2.0 since RC versions so it is supposed to still work...
Se forem conduzir, não bebam. Se forem beber... CHAMEM-ME!!!! :D

QuoteOver 90% of all computer problems can be traced back to the interface between the keyboard and the chair

khigh

Any time I search merging I wind up here, but if I'm understanding it correctly, I don't think it will work.

I took over the active userbase of a dying, abandoned PHPbb forum. It's been going about 4 years and is pretty large. I tried everything I could to get the data but crapped out and started from scratch. The old one was kind of a hot mess of categories and topics anyway about half of which didn't make any sense.

So now we have shiny, new "Community 2.0" with a completely different structure and all kinds of features and everyone loves it. After different theories on how to archive the PHPBB forum, I found I've actually had some success with the crawler converter. So now what I'd like to do is convert the new phpbb one to SMF and merge them, but due to the horrible structure that doesn't have anything to do with the new one, I just want to stick the whole thing under an "archived" category of the new board, and even start moving board contents en masse to their respective "new" locations.

BUT - the "crappy" forum is the larger one. Has the need to merge into the larger one been overcome?

Can I "pad" the smaller one with thousands of posts perhaps in a hidden area?

Any other thoughts on getting the big one to be just a stepchild of the small one?

Thanks for looking.

rumblecloud

Hi all,
First thanks for all the hard work on this topic -- bfeist ! ;D

And second, where does this stand today?

I am a newb when it comes to scripting, but I am looking to merge two forums and well, here I am.
I followed this post/link by bfeist from a similar topic:

"Hi all,
I've posted a tool that will merge two SMF forums here. Have a look.
http://www.simplemachines.org/community/index.php?topic=513684.msg3630822"


And ended up here, but for the life of me I cannot find the link that takes me to the aforementioned tool.

I get that I am not that smart and I apologize for that if I am asking a dumb question. Can anyone provide an update?
Thankyou again in advance.

R

Illori

it is an attachment to the first post in this topic.

rumblecloud

GAAAGAGAEREGEARGEADRGADFgadfaarrrrgghghhghgh!

I told you I was stupid.

I'm looking all over for a link. Never thought of looking for an "attachment."  :-[

Thanks

r

DragonLady

Hello, all.

I came across this topic while looking for some guidance about merging two separate SMF boards with an overlapping membership.  Sadly, I can't get the script attached to the OP to run.

Is there an updated version available somewhere? Both of my boards are using 2.0.15, with the latest patch installed.


Thank-you, in advance. :)

Deaks

~~~~
Former SMF Project Manager
Former SMF Customizer

"For as lang as hunner o us is in life, in nae wey
will we thole the Soothron tae owergang us. In truth it isna for glory, or wealth, or
honours that we fecht, but for freedom alane, that nae honest cheil gies up but wi life
itsel."

Shambles


DragonLady

I'm not getting any errors; it's just remaining a blank page.

PHP version is 7.0.30


Shambles

Quote from: DragonLady on July 29, 2018, 03:04:12 PM
I'm not getting any errors;

Not even in your PHP error log file? I find that disturbing...

Kindred

If your server is setup correctly, a blank white page will generate errors in your server side errorlog.

I suspect that the merge script does not support php7
Слaва
Украинi

Please do not PM, IM or Email me with support questions.  You will get better and faster responses in the support boards.  Thank you.

"Loki is not evil, although he is certainly not a force for good. Loki is... complicated."

DragonLady

As I need to merge these two live boards, I've turned off most of the logging and caching to make fewer tables to merge....

But there's nothing on the forum error log, and I don't have access to the server logs.


Kindred

It would not generate errors in the forum Errorlog.    Why do you not have access to the server?  How do you load files, then? Look for a file named error.log or errorlog. Or soething similar.

If you don't have a server side error log, then you need to reconfigure your server to make one.   But as I said, this script probably does not support php7....  and probably doesn't support mysqli either
Слaва
Украинi

Please do not PM, IM or Email me with support questions.  You will get better and faster responses in the support boards.  Thank you.

"Loki is not evil, although he is certainly not a force for good. Loki is... complicated."

DragonLady

QuoteIf you don't have a server side error log, then you need to reconfigure your server to make one

I'm on shared hosting, and my hosts have started charging extra for a lot of the stuff that's traditionally been included.  As I intend to change hosting when this account runs out, I really don't want to have to pay for more features if I can help it.

When I try to run this script, all I get is a blank page.

I just figured there might be an updated version somewhere.


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