Installing on 3.8.x and later switching to 4.x

[Gladius]

I'm likely going to install one or more of your mods on a big 3.8.5 board. I'm wondering how upgrading to 4.x afterwards affects the mods, i.e. how much of a pain it is, what exactly it involves, what are all the steps required prior to upgrading vB and afterwards, etc.

Basically, I'd like to know in advance if it's more trouble than it's worth and whether I should wait until I upgrade vB to 4.x instead of installing now.

Thanks for the info!

 

[Fillip H.]

I can't speak for other mods, but with DBTech mods all you need to do is import the vB4 version of the product - the files are identical
None of your data will be touched, as the vB4 XML only contains updated templates.

 

[Gladius]

Sounds good... do your mods need to be disabled prior to switching to 4.x or it doesn't matter?

 

[Alan_SP]

All mods (not just Dragonbyte's) needs to be disabled (or hooks at least). But better to disable every mod, as those for vB3 won't work, i.e. many of them won't, but some work fine, you just need to know which work, which don't. This is something you need to do when you upgrade. You better read some guides on upgrading.

 

[Gladius]

I haven't really looked into the details of the 3.8 - 4.x switch yet - got any good links on the subject?

 

[Ozzy47]

Before starting any upgrade to a new version of vBulletin the first step that
should be done is to take a backup.

You can find more information about backing up here: http://www.vbulletin.com/docs/html/manual_database_backup

After backing up it may be a good idea to also disable your plugins, especially
between major versions of vBulletin. You can do this a few ways:

- Disable from the config.php file: define("DISABLE_HOOKS", 1);
- Disable from the AdminCP: AdminCP > Settings > Options > Plugin/Hook System >
- Disable one by one via the Product Manager

Upgrading from vBulletin 3.8.x

Close your board via the Admin Control Panel.

Upload all files from the 'upload/' folder in the zip, with the exception of
'install/install.php'. Then open the 'upload/includes/' folder.

Open your browser and point the URL to
http://www.example.com/forum/install/upgrade.php (where
www.example.com/forums/ is the URL of your vBulletin). You should now be
automatically forwarded to the appropriate upgrade script and step.

If any errors occur, copy the error and please contact support. DO NOT
continue with the upgrade. Doing so may cause irreversible damage to
the database.

Follow the instructions on the screen. Make sure you click next step or
proceed until you are redirected to your Admin Control Panel. Here, you can
reopen your board.

For a complete description of how to upgrade from a previous version of
vBulletin 3 to the latest version, see the upgrade section
[http://www.vbulletin.com/docs/html/upgrade] of the vBulletin 3 Manual
[http://www.vbulletin.com/docs/html].

Please note that the format for config.php in vBulletin 3.5.x is different
from previous versions of vBulletin, and you will need to manually update
your config file to the new format. Instructions are here
[http://www.vbulletin.com/docs/html/editconfig].

 

[Gladius]

Thanks, that's helpful. I'm most interested in how to handle the mods during the major transition to 4.x though. I've got about a dozen mods installed, including album pictures on forum home, advanced forum stats, ibProArcade, the vB blog, etc.

If I disable the products and turn them back on after upgrading to 4.x, is there any risk of damage if the mods don't work properly on 4.x any more? Or is it just a "it'll either work on 4.x or it won't, in which case you'll need to uninstall it and/or get the latest version"?

 

[Ozzy47]

Pretty much hit or miss with other mods, best thing to do is look at the mod threads, and see what if any feedback their is.

 

[Alan_SP]

If I disable the products and turn them back on after upgrading to 4.x, is there any risk of damage if the mods don't work properly on 4.x any more? Or is it just a "it'll either work on 4.x or it won't, in which case you'll need to uninstall it and/or get the latest version"?

You couldn't damage anything. But you could make your forum look damaged. Which is different. So, if you see something strange (and probably you will), don't panic. That's way it's the best thing to disable all mods and after upgrade turn one by one on.

Also, when you upgrade mods, don't uninstall previous versions as you'd lose data from it (in some cases that isn't big problem). Just install new versions over them (enable overwrite).

And best thing to do is test upgrade. Make copy of your forum, files and database and test first on this copy. If everything goes fine, then it's time to do upgrade.