Stripping down?

[oldfan]

Sorry if this is the wrong forum to ask this question...

Our forums/database is about 7 years old and I've lost track if what mods and modifications I've done over the years. Its a really bloody mess and I'd like to start of fresh and keep better tads on it this time.

I know you can transfer posts, threads and users, but will all the db tables/fields be reset to default? I don't want my users to have to re-register if they don't have to.

thanks

[Biker_GA]

As far as I know, there's no way to easily import the default tables/data into a new DB. You basically have to go through the DB and manually drop the tables that don't apply to your installation any longer. Something that's been on my "To Do" list for some time now.

[Cryo]

Do you want to completely get rid of all the tables and start with fresh ones? If you're upgrading from a previous version of vB it should just be a simple matter of upgrading and the installer will take care of the rest. If you want to start with completely fresh tables you should look at the vB importer. I'm pretty sure this will take source data from your existing tables and copy it correctly into the new installation / tables.

If you're just upgrading you can start fresh with a new style and system files and not worry about any past modifications. Granted, you may have some useless entries in your tables, but they won't be used so it should have virtually no effect on the speed of queries.

[oldfan]

Do you want to completely get rid of all the tables and start with fresh ones?

yes

Fresh everything along with software upgrade, I just want to transfer posts, threads and users, minus all the modications I've added over the years.

[Biker_GA]

I asked the same question (http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showthread.php?t=301098) not too long ago. ;)

[oldfan]

I asked the same question (http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showthread.php?t=301098) not too long ago. ;)

oh man :(

Database hacks. You need to use a program like phpmyadmin to browse your database and remove custom tables and fields.

How do I know which ones I can remove and not to remove ?

[Biker_GA]

Heh.. There's the rub. There are version numbers associated with the tables, so much of it is an easy no brainer (I have tables from version 2.0!). The easiest way, I guess would be to print out the table structure for a "virgin" install and compare it to the existing one.

[oldfan]

Another option is to import your database into a fresh installation of vBulletin. I recommend this only as a last resort if the database is unusable and you don't have a working backup. The import doesn't get everything and there are side effects. For example, the autoincrementids are not preserved so all previous internal links and bookmarks will be broken.

Whats the chances this would happen?

[Biker_GA]

100%. As Jake stated, it's a "last resort" item done in desperation. I'm not willing to break everything in old posts.

[Lynne]

How do I know which ones I can remove and not to remove ?
You may be interested in this modification - Table and Field Comparison Utility: Compare your database to out-of-the-box vBulletin (https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=209890)

Remember that you should do this first on a test site, not your live site.

[Biker_GA]

The compare works very well. Forgot about that. You still need to be careful of what you drop, though. One of these days, I'll crack open a bottle of liquid courage and dig into my DB. :D

[oldfan]

uguugh, I'll just I'll just upgrade.
Thanks for all your advice :D