Lost headers with nav buttons - help!!!
 

Howdy everyone.

Okay, right up front - I'm new to this!!!

I recently took over a forum and in the processing of upgrading, I've managed to kill some of the headers and links that were on the page - and learn a lesson of "revert" is not a good option at times!

I'm learning....

Anyhow, if you'll take a look at this snapshot, you can see that it contains a top line that has "home" "blogs", "classifieds", etc.. The search window is present, there are some nav lines below the main header.

If you want to see the damage I've done, clicking here will take you to my forum and you'll be able to see that I wiped it clean. Drats!

When I reverted, I managed to remove a few of the needed headers and now I need some help redesigning and posting them.

Can someone direct me to a post that shows how to go about defining and posting these sorts of links and such? I've searched, but I'm not really sure what I'm searching for. (still learning - can't state this enough).

If I can get the basics figured out, then I should be able to go about getting the stuff I killed redone. I'm determined, but it's hard to figure out where to start when you don't quite know where to start. :confused:

I have a back up of my site on my server, but when I search in it, for a file I believe is called vbulletin-style.xml, I can't find it. I was hoping that if I could find this back up file that I could drop it into my present running files. Would that work? Am I on the right track or am I on a wild goose chase with this thinking?

Thanks in advance for any guidance that can be shared.

Re-import that style xml for that style in adminCP Style manager.

Here's my problem - after upgrading from 3.7.1 to 7.7, I get this box on my admin panel:

Out-of-Date Custom Templates Found!
There are currently 14 customized template(s) that need to be updated or reverted. Some sections of vBulletin may not function if you do not do this!

Click here to view these templates!

I went in and started reading and thought that I would have issues if I didn't upgrade or revert. Being that I'm an idiot and didn't understand, I hit revert. Now the three custom headers I removed are no longer around.

I messed around in the template areas and was able to compare the original and the custom and could see the differences between the two (was highlighted), but I don't understand the syntax of the templates yet.

I'm not sure I have the old xml file (can't find it in the backup copy of my site). Reverting it killed the custom one I had (written by previous forum owner who knew what he was doing.)

I need some schooling on how to go about making a custom header so I can insert it back in.

Does this make sense? Lke I said, newbie here, so don't beat on me too hard if I'm not making sense. ;)

Re-import that style xml for that style in adminCP Style manager.

Find the XML file wherever you found the style - whether it's here, or on the developer's site.

My issue - I don't know where to find the customized xml file.

I also don't know what the name of the three headers (styles? - files?) that I reverted are.

As stated earlier, I am not the one that did the site, nor developed it. I've just taken it over recently, although I've been a long time administrator. I never did any forum development.

re-import - not sure I follow this (yet). I find the two styles active on my site under style manager; the one I killed is "Lustrous Fluid" and it's the one I need to get up and running again.

But what to re-import I'm not sure I understand.

I appreciate the help thus far, btw.

I would Re-import that style xml for that style in adminCP Style manager.

I don't understand - where am I importing it from? What particular thing am I importing?

Sorry to be so dense.

The style you're having trouble with, the custom one. Find the style XML either in your personal files or from the place online where you downloaded the style. Upload this XML using Style Manager and choose the option: Lustrous Fluid where you see:

Merge Into Style (Selecting a style here will cause the imported style to be merged into an existing style, overwriting any conflicting entries.)

This will repair all templates in that style.

From there you can start worrying about customizations, and compatibility with your new vB version.

Alternatively, you can upload that XML and choose the "create new style" option, name it "Lustrous Archive" then use the templates to repair your style using copy/paste of primarily the navbar template and the headinclude template.

The second option also gives you the archive of the style for future use in such situations.

It is important to get that style XML because with custom styles there is no telling how the developer coded it, without it.

As a third alternative, you can copy/paste the templates from the default style into your Lustrous one, primarily the navbar and headinclude templates.

EDIT: After looking at your page source code, I was able to use google to find your style here:

Lustrous vBulletin Skin Updated 3.8.1 - ForumThemes.com

Okay, thanks.

One quick thing that I believe you're missing is that I've taken over this board and have no idea where to find the original code that the previous owner did. I never d/l'd the style. Think of it more like someone handing me a file cabinet and saying "have fun".

I need to go ahead and upgrade to 3.8.7 first, then I'll go in and start trying to fix what I broke.

I really appreciate the help and I promise, once I get the gist of what I'm doing, I won't be such a question asker.

There's nothing wrong with asking questions, that's the very reason this board exists.

The link I gave you is where the style is located.

Much appreciated. The link you gave me went to a place that's currently going through a server move - can't get on it for the moment. I'll try later.

Okay, I tried this - but I'm not sure where to name the style.

My path in the Admin CP
Styles & Templates
Download / Upload Styles

Where am I renaming the file I'm trying to upload?

I tried the import from my server - file is ./install/vbulletin-style.xml

In the third box, there's a box that says Title for Uploaded Style
(Leave blank to use the style title specified in the style file) Is this where I want to call it Lustrous Archive?

I did this, but don't see any new styles available. Just still seeing the Lustrous Fluid and Fusion 64 options.

Did you merge? Or create new style?
That's going to be the vBulletin DEFAULT style.. Look in your server files and find the XML for the lustrous style and try to import that. Create a new style with it called "Lustorus Archive."

Create new style

That's going to be the vBulletin DEFAULT style.. Look in your server files and find the XML for the lustrous style and try to import that. Create a new style with it called "Lustorus Archive."

If you want, I can probably go in and fix this if I have admin credentials. You may PM me those if you wish.

AH!!! I get it now. I just keep uploading the wrong file. I need to search out the Lustrous style. Gotcha. (I like it when the light bulb goes from a flicker to a glow!)

Okay, let me see what I can find. I'll go do that and see if I'm successful at all.

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been searching my server's files. I can't find anything that has lustrous in it - found XML files, but not the one I'm looking for...

Do you have any ideas where I'd find it in the file structure on my server?
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I'm about done for the evening, though. I'll probably pick up here tomorrow. I'll go check that link you gave me and hope they have the server change done.

Thanks for the help.

Keep creating new styles with all of them one at a time until you hit the jackpot.

Download them one at a time to your computer from the server then import from there, each time. Keep naming them "Lustrous1, 2, etc. You can always delete them if they're not the one you're looking for.

BTW I am not sure the style xmls (other than the default) are stored in the server, the db, or even at all. They might only execute, writing into templates and creating the style, and never get stored.

This is why it is important you keep all your files stored on your computer - and whoever it is you inherited or bought this site from, he/she owes you these files.

Are there any other places to find the skins/themes? This link has been saying that the site's down for server changes for the past couple of days.

I've googled vBulletin Lustrous themes and came up with squat.

Well, I've been able to go into my styles and modify them: Made one called Lustrous Archive and then started hacking on it - moved stuff around, copied the footer up into the header, but I sure can't find anything that has the nav buttons I had (and removed). I've even tried cutting/pasting the code from the Fusion template in just to see what that does.

I've checked the templates, looked at the history - old, new, etc. - of the styles, but it doesn't look like what I need is present anywhere else. I was hoping to get lucky and find those three templates I killed and then copy them back in. Nope. Not working.

So, who here on this board would like to lend a hand and get hired to fix my broken stuff?
From what I'm learning (yes! I am learning!), it doesn't look like it's going to be that hard, I just don't understand the coding enough to accomplish what I need.

Thanks in advance to anyone that's willing to step up and correct my damage.

A thought occurs: Try the Wayback Machine at archive dot org, see if they have any of your pages indexed before the mistakes. Page source code on them will exist, along with images and their filenames too, if so.

AWESOME!!!! I never, in my wildest dreams, thought there was something like that.

Now that I have the code, I have to figure out what parts I need, but at least I have it!

THANK YOU!!!!

--------------- Added [DATE]1389311546[/DATE] at [TIME]1389311546[/TIME] ---------------

Okay, I have no clue how to implement the coding back into the templates.

Anyone have a helping hand they'd like to lend?

Glad to hear.

You might want to start a thread on this in the paid services forum.