usernames, thread titles & contents meesed up

[K!nG]

Hey Everyone,

I upgraded my forum to latest version of vb4 about a month ago. Since then i am having this issue where some usernames are showing up as " ????????" Same thing is happening with thread titles and contents of the threads are also showing up as " ???????????????????????????" It's not with every user or thread, but this is the case with a lot of users n threads.

I am attaching 3 screenshots, which will show username as ????? , threads tiltle as ??????? and thread contents as ???????? also.

User name:
http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/6285/urg.png

Thread Title:
http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/4029/9e2i.png

Thread Contents:
http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/4254/spc4.png

If anyone can help me and tell me why this happened and how can i fix it ???


Thanks in advance.

[Lynne]

Did you move your database at the same time? It looks like you moved the database and didn't make sure the new mysql server had the same collation and charset as the old one.

[K!nG]

Hi Lynne,
i didn't move my database. However only thing i believe that was done was that they updated my php version. I am not even sure if that made any difference or what. What will be the solution to fix it

[Lynne]

That would make a big difference if they upgraded to PHP5.4 which will cause issues with vB4.x And, if they changed the server charset/collation, then that will cause issues also.

[K!nG]

Hi Lynne,

If you don't mind can you tell me what exactly i should ask them for ?? What will they have to do to get it fixed ? btw it wasn't 5.4, they moved me from 5.2 to 5.3. I just request them to move me back to 5.2 to see if that would help but even then i still have the same issue. :(

Thanks.

[Lynne]

Did you tell them what happened to your database after they changed the PHP version? They should know what they did.

[K!nG]

I asked them and they saying, they don't see any changes in database :S I am back to 5.2 and still have same issue. Am i suppose to do any thread rebuild or rerun something that might fix it ???

[K!nG]

Help will be appreciated here ???

[Lynne]

So, they upgraded your server to PHP5.4, you ended up with problems on your site, now they have downgraded back to PHP5.2 and you still have the same issues? Did they restore the original php.ini file from before they upgraded your PHP? Did they touch your MySQL at all? Something had to have happened on the server to make this suddenly happen.

[K!nG]

Hey Lynne,

Just spent 45 mins with my hosting doing a lot of search. So what we/they came up with is that all the usernames, thread titles & thread contents are stored in the database properly. They are still visible in the database and however they are not being pulled on the site properly.

So my hosting said something is wrong with the coding or the script of the vbulletin software. I am just not sure at this point what's causing all this, if everything is stored properly in the database.

Any suggestions ???

[Lynne]

If there were something wrong in the coding, then this would happen on everybodies site, don't you think?

Download a fresh set of files and upload all new default files.

Disable all plugins and then see if you still have the same issue.

Are you using the default English language? Upload tools.php to your /admincp and rebuild the Master Language.

Are you using vbseo? If so, disable it via it's control panel and remove the .htaccess.

[K!nG]

Hi Lynne,

I definitely understand that it's not coding or else this would be issue with everyone's site. I just mentioned what they said.

I will download a fresh copy and upload, should i run update script as well or just upload the files ?

Yes.. i am using default English.
I am not using vbseo Should i still remove .htaccess ???

Thanks for ur response.

[K!nG]

Hi Lynne,

I tried all of the above suggestions you have made, except last one removing .htaccess since i am not using vbseo. None of them helped. Still the same issue. I asked my host again and they said everything is saved properly in the database however it's not pulling it properly on the site.

This is becoming pain :(

Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks.

[Lynne]

If you aren't using vbseo, then you shouldn't even have an .htaccess file (unless using Mod Rewrite Friendly URLs),

[K!nG]

Lynne,

Yes not using vbseo, however i am using Mod Rewrite friendly url's.

Any other suggestions how to fix it ?? Should i create a ticket at vb.com at this point ?? or any other better ideas ???

Thanks

[Lynne]

What is in your .htaccess file right now?

[K!nG]

This is how my current .htaccess looks like.

# Use PHP5 Single php.ini as default
#AddHandler application/x-httpd-php5 .php


# Author: Final Kaoss (aka: Extreme-Gaming)
# Version 2.7
# Special Thanks Goes to W3Total Cache for much of the htaccess rules
RewriteEngine on

# This file is only needed if you have set the Forum Component URL in your admincp and you are
# using the mod_rewrite option for friendly urls. If this is the case, copy this file
# to your forum component stub directory.

# If you are having problems or are using VirtualDocumentRoot, uncomment this line and set it to your forum component directory.
# RewriteBase /vbtest/

# If you are having problems with the rewrite from content/ to content.php, uncomment this line to turn MultiViews off.
Options -MultiViews

RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -f [OR]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -l [OR]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -d

RewriteRule ^.*$ - [NC,L]

# Forum
RewriteRule ^threads/.* showthread.php [QSA]
RewriteRule ^forums/.* forumdisplay.php [QSA]
RewriteRule ^members/.* member.php [QSA]
RewriteRule ^blogs/.* blog.php [QSA]
RewriteRule ^entries/.* entry.php [QSA]


RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -f [OR]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -l [OR]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -d

RewriteRule ^.*$ - [NC,L]

# MVC
RewriteRule ^(?:(.*?)(?:/|$))(.*|$)$ $1.php?r=$2 [QSA]

# Check MVC result
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -f
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ - [NC,L]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ - [R=404,L]



#Deny attempts to view the Htaccess file.
<Files .htaccess>
Order allow,deny
Deny from all
</Files>
# BEGIN Browser Caching/Headers
<IfModule mod_mime.c>
AddType text/css .css
AddType text/richtext .rtf .rtx
AddType image/svg+xml .svg .svgz
AddType text/plain .txt
AddType text/xsd .xsd
AddType text/xsl .xsl
AddType video/asf .asf .asx .wax .wmv .wmx
AddType video/avi .avi
AddType image/bmp .bmp
AddType application/java .class
AddType video/divx .divx
AddType application/msword .doc .docx
AddType application/x-msdownload .exe
AddType image/gif .gif
AddType application/x-gzip .gz .gzip
AddType image/x-icon .ico
AddType image/jpeg .jpg .jpeg .jpe
AddType application/vnd.ms-access .mdb
AddType audio/midi .mid .midi
AddType video/quicktime .mov .qt
AddType audio/mpeg .mp3 .m4a
AddType video/mp4 .mp4 .m4v
AddType video/mpeg .mpeg .mpg .mpe
AddType application/vnd.ms-project .mpp
AddType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.database .odb
AddType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.chart .odc
AddType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.formula .odf
AddType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.graphics .odg
AddType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.presentation .odp
AddType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.spreadsheet .ods
AddType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.text .odt
AddType audio/ogg .ogg
AddType application/pdf .pdf
AddType image/png .png
AddType application/vnd.ms-powerpoint .pot .pps .ppt .pptx
AddType audio/x-realaudio .ra .ram
AddType application/x-shockwave-flash .swf
AddType application/x-tar .tar
AddType image/tiff .tif .tiff
AddType audio/wav .wav
AddType audio/wma .wma
AddType application/vnd.ms-write .wri
AddType application/vnd.ms-excel .xla .xls .xlsx .xlt .xlw
AddType application/zip .zip
</IfModule>
<IfModule mod_expires.c>
ExpiresActive On
ExpiresByType text/css A2628000
ExpiresByType text/richtext A3600
ExpiresByType image/svg+xml A3600
ExpiresByType text/plain A3600
ExpiresByType text/xsd A3600
ExpiresByType text/xsl A3600
ExpiresByType video/asf A2628000
ExpiresByType video/avi A2628000
ExpiresByType image/bmp A2628000
ExpiresByType application/java A2628000
ExpiresByType video/divx A2628000
ExpiresByType application/msword A2628000
ExpiresByType application/x-msdownload A2628000
ExpiresByType image/gif A2628000
ExpiresByType application/x-gzip A2628000
ExpiresByType image/x-icon A2628000
ExpiresByType image/jpeg A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.ms-access A2628000
ExpiresByType audio/midi A2628000
ExpiresByType video/quicktime A2628000
ExpiresByType audio/mpeg A2628000
ExpiresByType video/mp4 A2628000
ExpiresByType video/mpeg A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.ms-project A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.database A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.chart A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.formula A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.graphics A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.presentation A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.spreadsheet A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.text A2628000
ExpiresByType audio/ogg A2628000
ExpiresByType application/pdf A2628000
ExpiresByType image/png A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.ms-powerpoint A2628000
ExpiresByType audio/x-realaudio A2628000
ExpiresByType application/x-shockwave-flash A2628000
ExpiresByType application/x-tar A2628000
ExpiresByType image/tiff A2628000
ExpiresByType audio/wav A2628000
ExpiresByType audio/wma A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.ms-write A2628000
ExpiresByType application/vnd.ms-excel A2628000
ExpiresByType application/zip A2628000
</IfModule>
<IfModule mod_deflate.c>
<IfModule mod_setenvif.c>
BrowserMatch ^Mozilla/4 gzip-only-text/html
BrowserMatch ^Mozilla/4.0[678] no-gzip
BrowserMatch bMSIE !no-gzip !gzip-only-text/html
BrowserMatch bMSI[E] !no-gzip !gzip-only-text/html
</IfModule>
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header append Vary User-Agent env=!dont-vary
</IfModule>
<IfModule mod_filter.c>
AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE text/css application/x-javascript text/html text/richtext image/svg+xml text/plain text/xsd text/xsl text/xml image/x-icon
</IfModule>
</IfModule>
<FilesMatch "\.(css|CSS|)$">
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header set Pragma "public"
Header append Cache-Control "public, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate"
</IfModule>
FileETag MTime Size
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header set X-Powered-By "Step by Step guide to speed up your VB4 (forum only)"
</IfModule>
</FilesMatch>
<FilesMatch "\.(rtf|rtx|svg|svgz|txt|xsd|xsl|RTF|RTX|SVG|SVGZ|T XT|XSD|XSL|)$">
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header set Pragma "public"
Header append Cache-Control "public, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate"
</IfModule>
FileETag MTime Size
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header set X-Powered-By "Step by Step guide to speed up your VB4 (forum only)"
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</FilesMatch>
<FilesMatch "\.(asf|asx|wax|wmv|wmx|avi|bmp|class|divx|doc|docx |exe|gif|gz|gzip|ico|jpg|jpeg|jpe|mdb|mid|midi|mov |qt|mp3|m4a|mp4|m4v|mpeg|mpg|mpe|mpp|odb|odc|odf|o dg|odp|ods|odt|ogg|pdf|png|pot|pps|ppt|pptx|ra|ram |swf|tar|tif|tiff|wav|wma|wri|xla|xls|xlsx|xlt|xlw |zip|ASF|ASX|WAX|WMV|WMX|AVI|BMP|CLASS|DIVX|DOC|DO CX|EXE|GIF|GZ|GZIP|ICO|JPG|JPEG|JPE|MDB|MID|MIDI|M OV|QT|MP3|M4A|MP4|M4V|MPEG|MPG|MPE|MPP|ODB|ODC|ODF |ODG|ODP|ODS|ODT|OGG|PDF|PNG|POT|PPS|PPT|PPTX|RA|R AM|SWF|TAR|TIF|TIFF|WAV|WMA|WRI|XLA|XLS|XLSX|XLT|X LW|ZIP)$">
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header set Pragma "public"
Header append Cache-Control "public, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate"
</IfModule>
FileETag MTime Size
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header set X-Powered-By "Step by Step guide to speed up your VB4 (forum only)"
</IfModule>
</FilesMatch>
# End Browser Caching/Headers
<Files 403.shtml>
order allow,deny
allow from all
</Files>

deny from 69.171.
deny from 69.171.242.115/32
deny from 69.171.242.116/30
deny from 69.171.242.120/32
deny from 69.171.242.117
deny from 69.171.242.118
deny from 58.22.22.106
deny from 142.0.133.148
deny from 142.0.135.193
deny from 198.2.213.252
deny from 79.133.204.132
deny from 198.2.203.243
deny from 125.39.171.194
deny from 175.44.35.229
deny from 198.2.204.1
deny from 58.22.123.148
deny from 36.248.100.31
deny from 211.97.126.33
deny from 198.2.216.124
deny from 220.200.20.253
deny from 198.2.202.27
deny from 31.6.71.138
deny from 91.207.5.37
deny from 198.2.210.1
deny from 91.238.134.14

[Lynne]

Everything after this is not default:

# Check MVC result
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -f
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ - [NC,L]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ - [R=404,L]


I still have never heard of a database suddenly going wonky simply because of a change in PHP though. You may want to consider seeing if your database backup works OK.