NNTP Gateway for Usenet ( Newsgroups ), Mailing Lists

The latest version: V2.3.2 (31 Oct 2004)

What is it?

This hack provides a gateway from vBulletin forums to the USENET. It allows forum members to read newsgroup messages as well as to send posts to the newsgroups. In a nutshell, it turns vBulletin forums into a basic function news reader.

For an added bonus, this package also supports mailing list archive and forum to mailing list gateway. The software retrieves messages from a pop3 account and import them into the forums threaded. It also allows a forums user to send messages to the mailing list by the forum posting interface.

Why?

The gateway will be appreciated by forum members who do not know how to set up a news reader, or people who do not have port 119 open in their network. A forum interface to read and post news are often considered to be better than a news reader.

The gateway adds more contents to your forums and allows the members to interact with wider audience. It is common to see new users signing up to use this feature.

History

This hack is basically a hacked vB2 NNTP gateway written by Gilby to work with vB3. The original hack can be found here:

https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...7&page=1&pp=15


Features

Some of the features and improvement include:

• Handles both newsgroup posts and mailing lists.
• Handles MIME encoded messages and attachment.
• Handles UUEncoded messages.
• Two Admin Control Panels for all settings.
• Automated installation.
• Correct thread implementation. All imported messages and posts sent to newsgroups will be threaded correctly according to References and Message-ID headers.
• Optional setting to thread by subject for mailing lists that strip references header.
• Supports TABLE_PREFIX.
• Imported messages will be searchable just like normal forum posts.
• Similar threads are built when the messages are imported if the system setting is on.
• Multiple attachments importing.
• Save attachment to database or file according to vB setting.
• Thumbnail created while importing image files.
• Multiple attachment post to newsgroup is also supported.
• Selectable X-No-Archive header honouring system.
• Light on system resources.
• Global Killfile to filter out unwanted messages. Killfiles can have OR and AND effectiveness.
• Strip footer by setting for incoming messages. Strips out repeated message footers.
• Built options to disable signatures and footers for out going messages.

Future development

• AdminCP interfaces. (completed)
• Installation/upgrade script. (completed, coded into AdminCP)
• Traditional "> " lead posting interface.

What do you need and do not need?

You do not need to edit vB php files if you use two bookmarks
You need to edit one vB php file to insert two lines of code if you want direct click links within AdminCP.
No need to run SQL.

Installation

Basically the AdminCP interfaces take care of installation as well as upgrade in the background. Back up your database first. The scripts can modify your database without alerting you!

Please follow the instructions in the readme.txt file for more details.

Support

Please post your support questions to this thread. Please check the FAQ in the third post within this thread first.

================== UPDATES ======================
Jul 31 2004 (release version 2.2.0)

• Provided option of not importing attachments
• Provided option of pause between messages
• Provided option of not sending messages to USENET
• Provided mechanism to skip importing a message if it was crashed on it
• Provided "Default Footer" option
• Provided strip_footer function for mailing lists
  (written originally by KevinM)
• Provided Killfile functions with Header/Body/AND/OR settings
• Provided ability to thread messages by subject for mailing lists
• Provided ability to use a single POP3 account for different mailing lists
  (use prefix)
• Merged KevinM's attachment routine, save thumbnail to hard drive
  as vB3.0.3
• Official support to have the script run by Scheduled Tasks
• Many bug fixes

Please note, when you manually run the script, you must turn on the debug mode. Otherwise nothing will be displayed on the screen.

To run as debug mode: http://forums.yourdomain.com/gateway.php?debug=1

25 Oct 2004

• Provided the option of sending posts using the real email address
• Provided the option of sending posts using a fixed email address for
  each group.
• Posts are now held back if they are in the moderating queue
• Scheduled task log is now working
• Provided the option of sending the debug messages to the vB3 cron log
• Bug fixes

31 Oct 2004

Fixed bugs running the gateway by the vB3 Scheduled Tasks

1 March 2004

Uploaded the new zip file. It contains one or two bug fixes.

[lierduh]

Originally Posted by theispreport

Any chance of adding this as a feature? Or if its not to much guide me to the section of code that would need changing..

I do not understand the need for such. Do you want a working email address to be used, yet you change the username each time someone posts? What would the usernet user say? Why would you want to fake the identity while having a working email address? The normal usenet users will see the same user posting under different nicks.

[theispreport]

Originally Posted by lierduh

I do not understand the need for such. Do you want a working email address to be used, yet you change the username each time someone posts? What would the usernet user say? Why would you want to fake the identity while having a working email address? The normal usenet users will see the same user posting under different nicks.

Actually I am using this to post back to a mailing list, offering this as a solution to visitors who dont want to get 200+ emails a day. The benefit of having the senders named changed and the email address stay the same is, only 1 email address has to be registered to the mailing list and people on the mailing list know the post is from more then one user.

I hope i explained this ok.

[esfron]

Run 2.3.1 + fresh install vb 3.0.3 (reloaded scripts and re-installed forum with an empty MySQL database every time) with two differents news servers (public and paid). Got always same problem: MySQL error + posts correctly imported and threaded but with wrong statistics, it doubles the amount of posts : Threads: 4, Posts: 12 (see screenshot). I have to update counters to correct problem at every cron job.

NNTP Gateway_settings: all default.
NNTP Gateway Newsgroup: see screenshot.

Config.php checked.

Any ideas ?

Gateway version 2.3.1  1 group(s) gatewayed.

Connecting to server, server says: 200 NNTP Service 6.0.3790.206 Version: 6.0.3790.206 Posting Allowed 

Info for microsoft.public.netiquette at msnews.microsoft.com: 211 7 5366 5429 microsoft.public.netiquette

Getting message number 5367: 
'Re: 8-30-04' from John Eddy [MSFT]. New thread.
Getting message number 5368: 
'Re: 8-30-04' from rosie. Thread found by References.
Getting message number 5369: 
'Re: 8-30-04' from John Eddy [MSFT]. Thread found by References.
Getting message number 5425: 
'Newsgroup postings' from Joan. New thread.
Getting message number 5426: 
'Re: Newsgroup postings' from John Eddy [MSFT]. Thread found by References.
Getting message number 5429: 
'Re: Newsgroup postings' from Joan. Thread found by References.
<html><head><title>Forums Database Error</title><style type="text/css"><!--.error { font: 11px tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; }--></style></head>
<body></table></td></tr></table></form>
<blockquote><p class="error">&nbsp;</p><p class="error"><b>There seems to have been a slight problem with the Forums database.</b><br />
Please try again by pressing the <a href="javascript:window.location=window.location;">refresh</a> button in your browser.</p><p class="error">An E-Mail has been dispatched to our <a href="mailto:cccxxxxxx">Technical Staff</a>, who you can also contact if the problem persists.</p><p class="error">We apologise for any inconvenience.</p></blockquote>

<!--
Database error in vBulletin 3.0.3:

Invalid SQL: UPDATE nntp_settings
		SET value = 
		WHERE varname = 'last_postid'
mysql error: You have an error in your SQL syntax.  Check the manual that corresponds to your MySQL server version for the right syntax to use near 'WHERE varname = 'last_postid'' at line 3

mysql error number: 1064

Date: Wednesday 27th of October 2004 03:45:27 AM
Script: http://www.xxxxxx.org/forum/gateway.php?debug=1
Referer: 
Username: Unregistered
IP Address: xxxxxxxxx
 -->

</body></html>

[lierduh]

Originally Posted by theispreport

Actually I am using this to post back to a mailing list, offering this as a solution to visitors who dont want to get 200+ emails a day. The benefit of having the senders named changed and the email address stay the same is, only 1 email address has to be registered to the mailing list and people on the mailing list know the post is from more then one user.

I hope i explained this ok.

Each post has the user name in the signature area any way. You can set the Common user as eg. "X Forum Gateway" and the footer will identify the real user.

[lierduh]

Originally Posted by esfron

Run 2.3.1 + fresh install vb 3.0.3 (reloaded scripts and re-installed forum with an empty MySQL database every time) with two differents news servers (public and paid). Got always same problem: MySQL error

In gateway.php, find: $good_to_set_postid = 1;

Before that, insert one line:
print_r($get_max_postid);

Post the result again.

[esfron]

@ lierduh

I am just running the script http://www.xxxxxx.org/forum/gateway.php?debug=1 (without re-install). I got:

Array ( [postid] => 6 ) Gateway version 2.3.1 1 group(s) gatewayed. Connecting to server, server says: 200 NNTP Service 6.0.3790.206 Version: 6.0.3790.206 Posting Allowed Info for microsoft.public.netiquette at msnews.microsoft.com: 211 7 5366 5429 microsoft.public.netiquette

[esfron]

reinstall:

Array ( [postid] => ) Gateway version 2.3.1 1 group(s) gatewayed. Connecting to server, server says: 200 NNTP Service 6.0.3790.206 Version: 6.0.3790.206 Posting Allowed Info for microsoft.public.netiquette at msnews.microsoft.com: 211 7 5366 5429 microsoft.public.netiquette Getting message number 5367: 'Re: 8-30-04' from John Eddy [MSFT]. New thread. Getting message number 5368: 'Re: 8-30-04' from rosie. Thread found by References. Getting message number 5369: 'Re: 8-30-04' from John Eddy [MSFT]. Thread found by References. Getting message number 5425: 'Newsgroup postings' from Joan. New thread. Getting message number 5426: 'Re: Newsgroup postings' from John Eddy [MSFT]. Thread found by References. Getting message number 5429: 'Re: Newsgroup postings' from Joan. Thread found by References.


There seems to have been a slight problem with the Forums database.
Please try again by pressing the refresh button in your browser.

An E-Mail has been dispatched to our Technical Staff, who you can also contact if the problem persists.

We apologise for any inconvenience.


Database error in vBulletin 3.0.3:

Invalid SQL: UPDATE nntp_settings
SET value =
WHERE varname = 'last_postid'
mysql error: You have an error in your SQL syntax. Check the manual that corresponds to your MySQL server version for the right syntax to use near 'WHERE varname = 'last_postid'' at line 3

mysql error number: 1064

Date: Wednesday 27th of October 2004 08:17:09 AM
Script: http://www.xxxxxxxxorg/forum/gateway.php?debug=1
Referer:
Username: Unregistered
IP Address: xxxxx

[lierduh]

Originally Posted by esfron

reinstall:

Array ( [postid] => ) Gateway version 2.3.1 1 group(s) gatewayed. IP Address: xxxxx

Here is your problem. Do you only have this problem when you do a refresh installation? You will get this problem if you do not even have one post in the post table.

Otherwise your problem might be related to the version of php and MySQL. Basically it returned nothing when the query tried to find the max(postid). It returned 6 in your last message, now it does not return anymore.

[esfron]

Originally Posted by lierduh

Here is your problem. Do you only have this problem when you do a refresh installation? You will get this problem if you do not even have one post in the post table.

.

Yes, I have this when I do a fresh installation without post in the post table.
Maybe it's the problem. I reinstalled it. Posted 2 messages. Now, I have somthing new. It tries to download instead of displaying the contents... I run it with mozilla. I got:

Gateway version 2.3.1 1 group(s) gatewayed.

Connecting to server, server says: 200 NNTP Service 6.0.3790.206 Version: 6.0.3790.206 Posting Allowed

Info for microsoft.public.netiquette at msnews.microsoft.com: 211 7 5366 5429 microsoft.public.netiquette


Without MySQL error but the stats are wrong again (double post).

[esfron]

I'll redo tonight.

Just one more question.

Can I run it only with mozilla or mozilla firefox ?
With IE, I have to fix the registry.

Thanks for your time.