Forestry Forum Down Time

[Jeff]

At some point, I will have to shut the forum down. I hope for only a few hours, but it may turn out to be a day or so.

As most of you know, this website is on its own server, that server is administated by me. A self taught wannabe. When I created this site on the server I knew nothing about it. I Just did it. Well, the way I did it included a major defect in my ability to add new things and manage the site.

My only remedy for curing this defect is to back everything up, (MAJOR UNDERTAKING) and delete this domain from the server, then recreate it without the defect. I do not want to do this. Anytime you do something like this you run the risk of losing data. If I don't do it, the forum can sit here and work the way it has worked. But any plans I have or ideas I get from you about expansion or new features are limited by this roadblock. Some of the simplest things become hurdles because of this.

I am still researching this to see what or if the alternatives might be, but as yet I dont see any other then do it, or dont do it. :-/

[Frank_Pender]

All good things come to those who wait.  I can wait. Please let us know, if you can, when you decide to shut down so as I can prepare for my withdrawl symptoms to kick in and try and  prep my pschye to handle the time warp of waiting. :'( :'( ;)

[Jeff]

I will, I will mass email all registered members shortly before I start, and Hopefully be able to mail them again when I am done. I don't know when it will be. I tend to be a closet procrastinator.  :D  

[psychotic1]

Do what you have to do Jeff.  I'm perfectly happy with the way the forum is, but there is always room for improvement.  I promise to dance around a cedar tree when you start and maybe the good juju will help out.
Bruce

[Gordon]

I'm the master procrastinator. But Jeff do what you gotta do. Heck I say shut her down and start from scratch. No guts no glory and all that.

Gordon

[Jeff]

Well, after a few fitfull hours of sleep mulling over what the server people told me I must do, I finally came to my own solution. It was the Server Network people that told me my only solution was to backup, delete, and start over. A humungus task when the forum has over 15,000 files to date that make it what it is.

I know people hate corporate "power sayings" but this time "thinking outside the box" paid off.

The problem in a nutshell was that a unix server has user groups assigned with permissions to do certain tasks. What I did not know in setting things up initially, is that with this operating system, the user must be named the root of the domain. If not, many of the system functions still default to that rootname, in our case "forestryforum". when I created the site on this server, I used the old user name from the old system to save myself some script editing time. "amazing"

The server people said that I must delete amazing then recreate the site using forestryforum.

My solution was so freaking obvious that the server people said, I wouldnt do that, you might have problems. I did it anyway.

What did I do? I found the config file that sets web permissions to amazing, and changed the file name to forestryforum. It worked! I Already have a handle on things I could not do before.

So I can truthfully say that now, the Forestry Forum is really amazing!

[Gordon]

Jeff I would have to say that you took the easy way out on that one. ;)

Lets see delete and reinstate 15,000 files or change the config.sys file. I wonder how many times other people who weren't smart enough to pick that up took the hard way out? Just because of bad advise from the service people.

Amazin what happens when you think outside the box. 8) 8) 8)

Well after figuring out that one I'd say you have to rehire yourself. ;D Awh heck give yourself a raise while your at it. 8) 8) 8)

Gordon

[Texas Ranger]

Gordon, he can go for broke, hire a new blonde secretary, get a new, bigger desk, and take that vacation he has always wanted.  When your an executive of this caliber, the skies the limit!

I am glad it is Jeff and not me, I have problems turning the computer on, much less do the whiz kid stuff he does.

[Jeff]

Here is a little programing I was able to accomplish already because of the fix. I will also update the other thread we have about it.

The Image Gallery. All the pictures that are in our messages are now available in a gallery. No thumb nails yet, but there are now at least file names, and the big bonus is, you can comment on the image!  If you uploaded an image, and come across it, please take a moment to describe what the picture is.

New Image Gallery