Upgrading

[dmandem]

Hello,

I've been running a VB forum now for just under a year and things are going great, however, I'm still running 4.1.5. I've never upgraded before and now I'm at the point where I think I need to. I haven't ever upgraded my forum because in the back of my mind I think I'll lose everything I've done and have to start again.

I've just downloaded the latest VB from the members area (4.1.12) and the intructions say upload everything from the upload folder (apart from install.php) to my web server, overwriting everything. There's alot of files in the 4.1.12 .zip I just downloaded and it looks like it's going to replace every single file on my webserver/forum.

Am I not going to lose everything by overwriting all the files? I'm a bit worried

Please help!

[SEOvB]

Before you upgrade, contact your host and ask them to backup all of your forum data for you, including the database. Then, make a backup yourself and store it on your server. Then, download a backup. I've upgraded probably close to a hundred forums, and I've learned that you should always always back up your important data, and then make redundancy backups if you're nervous.

But to answer your question, no you won't lose anything by replacing those files. Those are the files that control how vBulletin work, but they have nothing to do with your stored data (posts, users, etc.). The only thing of consequence you might overwrite would be a custom favicon.

Still, if you're this nervous about it, why don't you hire professionals to do it for you?

-Nick, SEOvB Developer

[dmandem]

Hi Jarvis and thanks for the fast reply!

I've done a full backup and downloaded it, plus I have a full backup stored on my webserver.

The thing I was nervous about was losing everything I've done/setup. I know how to go through the process of upgrading but I was just really unsure whether or not overwriting all those files would bring my forums back to how I started (when I very first installed it) I have alot of mods and stuff on there.

Thanks again.

[SEOvB]

Backups are good! Now you don't have to worry .

BTW, it's quite possible that some of your mods might not be compatible with the latest version of vB, or that your style might not be compatible with the latest version of vB. In which case, you can just roll back to where you were before and do some research on how you're going to replace the mods or style before you attempt another upgrade.

[dmandem]

For example, I have the Show your Country Flag in the postbit mod installed on my forums. Will that stop working if I upgrade? I'm guessing it will.

[SEOvB]

Probably not... more simple mods are less prone to breaking. If you have any huge mods like vBadvanced or vBarcade, it becomes more likely.

-Nick, SEOvB Developer

[dmandem]

I have vbexperience but not vbadvanced, I also have arcade but I've had that disabled for some time now.

Will anything happen to experience if I upgrade form 4.1.5 to 4.1.12?

Also, do you (as a professional) think it's worth me upgrading? I could PM you a link to my forums if you'd like to take a quick look at it.

I purchased a template for my forum and after your post above, I'm guessing that will break but I'm sure the creators of the templates release updates as upgrades for vb come out.

[SEOvB]

vBexperience should be compatible with 4.1.12, as long as you update the mod to it's latest supported version.

If you're at all excited about the forumrunner integration for mobile users, then yes, I think it's worth the upgrade. If you already have tapatalk or some other mobile integration, then probably not.

Yep, you should contact the providers of your theme and ask them. Since it's a very recent release, they probably haven't released a vB 4.1.12 version, but their vb 4.1.11 version may work fine.

Feel free to PM .

-Nick, SEOvB Developer