Like a Phoenix

[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.