Like a Phoenix

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

You are the problem! YOU ARE CREATING THE DISFLUX. Bad, DM, bad!

Actually, from what I can tell the server still isn't quite right. I can't get into the admin section nor can I upload via FTP. I think we are in a stop gap zone until the major problems you caused are fixed.

[Drunk Monk]

I think the problems started when you added that Harry Potter countdown thing to your sig.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

I'm hoping that when the clocks strike Zero we can stop talking about those freakin books. they are terrible and the movies aren't much better.

[Haggis Killer]

Hold on there, Junior. Say what you want about the movies, but the books ain't terrible! Tell me you haven't read the first six, hmmm? You're just mad because you don't know if Dumbledore is coming back or not. I mean, tell me you didn't get teary when he bit it. Come on. I'm waiting.



I can keep waiting.



Really, I can.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

tired poor ideas. Wouldn't it be nice if Harry was the hero of one these books as opposed to every one else doing all the thinking and then telling him what to do? I know I'd like it. I got stopped reading after five. Just couldn't push through anymore. I will give it credit for getting people excited about reading. But why read when you can go to the horrible movie adaptation?

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

The forum continues to fluctuate today. I'm blaming the server and hackers. In an effort to ameliorate the problem, I've upgraded the software (We are now running on 2.0.22. Don't fret. 3.0 is coming) and changed some of the passwords. What did this get me? Still couldn't connect to the server. I hate iPower. Although, I now have 3gigs to play around with.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

The forum continues to be erratic. If you do get the dreaded white screen and the PHP Error message, click away for a few seconds and then try an reconnect. I've found the error problem only occurs for a few seconds.

This is no long term solution, but I am still in touch with the Forum hosts to see about rectifying the problem

[Drunk Monk]

are we going to lose this forum too, greg? i so thought we were past that.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Or so say the nice folks over at our hosting company. They say they've found the error and it has been corrected. The jury will remain out on that situation. If the problems continue, you might find a link on this page to a different host.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

For two days back in November, i couldn't get onto the forum.

So, I waited, hoping it would spring back to life. Yeah, but no.

I did what I usually do when the board gets cranky. I erased the main files, keeping the image files since those are what change. And restarted the board. Only nothing happened. Grrrrr. I got that long line of page loading across the top of the screen and then it blanked as the server timed out.

This happened right before I went to Florida so I couldn't fix the problem immediately. But how hard could it be. In my little brain, I was starting to think I was pretty good at fixing the forum. Yeah, but no.

I got back and nothing would work. I kept getting the page loading line. I could see the database on the back end all nice and happy. Nothing on the front end.

My first thought was malware. I've been hacked. The lords of the dark net had descended upon me. I made another folder with all the same files to see if I could sneak away from the damage and start anew. Yeah, but no.

Now, I'm getting Server errors. I contact my ISP. They say it isn't their problem. I should contact the people that write the forum, phpBB. So, I contact them. Telling them I've been hacked. They look at the files and say I haven't. They say I should just contact regular support and get them to fix it.

On my own, I decided I will just load all the data into a new database and try and access that. Which would be perfect except that databases I am finding hate to be transferred into new databases. I find a whole plethora of new hoops to jump through. And jump I do. I'm supposed to be working on a documentary. Instead, I'm using a program called Bigdump to try and move the files. Naturally, It doesn't want to work either, despite it being the best program for this kind of task.

But my ISP provider is starting to help me. Over the weekend, I engaged with many of their support reps via email. Slowly things we're coming back. The error messages from Bigdump were shrinking.

Meanwhile, I go back to the beginning. I figure I will try and jump start my site again while the ISP people are working on the test site.

And that's when I noticed something. When I originally uploaded the update files into the forum's folder, I didn't put them in at the top level. I put them in a folder inside the top level. There was no way for the server to access them. While I thought I was fixing the problem, I was just revisiting the same problem over and over without doing anything to it. Did I mention I am dumb? I'll mention it again. I are dumb.

So, I erased that folder. Started over. Got the install to finally acknowledge me. I went to the front end hoping for the best and received the internal server error.

All this time, the ISP people are working, telling me it's going to work soon on the test site. The phpBB people are telling me the problem is in files I can't find.

I just got a message from the ISP people saying, that the test sites problem is that I'm missing a template.

?????

Sigh. I kept thinking all my styles were in folder called images, which is why you don't erase it when you put in the new files. Nope. It's in a file called styles which I deleted a long time ago. Now I just have to remember the name of the style. It takes me a bit but I finally upload it to the test site.

I get the same error message. I send a note off to the ISP people.

Just for giggles, I log into the original forum. Guess what is waiting for me? The forum! Turns out I didn't load the style into the test forum, I loaded it into the original forum. And it was the key that the original forum was waiting for.

I am dumb. And I move to fast. And I don't pay attention to what I'm doing. Now, I have to go tell my ISP people I'm dumb. And I have to erase all these new forum sites I have hiding in my main website.

Did I mention dumb.

Please, have a forum.

[Drunk Monk]

Man, when there's no forum, it's like losing a testicle.

Not that I would know anything about testicle loss. Just forum loss. KFM went down last week and I was forum free for a spell. Holy cats, that was rough.

Thanks Greg. We all really do appreciate your efforts here. You keep DOOM alive!

[cranefly]

Back like a Japanese bomber squadron.
Open the bomb-bay doors, Hal.
Hold on, Slim Pickens...

[thatguy]

Heh, he said "bigdump"...

Thanks for feeding the hamster (to the appropriate computer gods). I'll remember you on Sys Admin's day next year.

--tg

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

The forum is up for a second day!

I'm not skittish about the forum at all. No siree Bob.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Hey! We're back! Did I miss anything?