question about upgrading- logistics

OK, we are running a VERY successful forum based on 8.06 - I happen to think that 8.06 is a grand version even if our host is on the edge.....
There are just about 2 or 3 things I'd REALLY like to see changed, otherwise, it's very nicely done.
That being said, I also hear good things about the 9.xx series. It's my habit to NEVER EVER use version 1.0.0.0 of ANY software, even Windoze, although I'll beta and even alpha test, I won't use version 1. for production ever. Let the  kinks get worked out, wait for at least 2 service releases, then go.  That means that we won't be doing version 9.xx quite yet, but will wait just a bit longer. No offense.......

If I find that the bugs that may affect us have been resolved and we decide to move to 9.xx, I need to do so cleanly. We've made some minor modifications to the page layouts, colors, etc., nothing really major but they are a part of who we are and how we look. Our members really like the forums layout and the colors are acceptable, even though I need to change some link colors (please bear with me, there's a reason for this background talk!)
http://theamcforum.com/forum

Is it possible to keep the existing 8.06 going, leave it alone, keep it up for real use while at the same time, "testing" the 9.xx series against the same database, and run 9.xx so that the colors and look can be tweaked?
I can't just dump 9 out there as it would look totally different, not have our colors and some of our tweaks, so I need to get 9 up and running and get the colors correct, the page layouts changed, etc. (and I've added our states to the list of locations)
I see two problems with this -
number one - the default folder is /forum
Well, 8.06 exists there, so I can't put 9 in there and leave 8 intact while I tweak the look and feel of 9 and make our page setup changes
Number 2 - this baby is registered for the domain! We're not changing domains, however, I'd have to run in a temporary domain, something like http://test.theamcforum.com/forum to get it up and going, then change it back to our real registered forum. The license won't allow this, not even temporarily. Is there a way to be allowed to run in a different domain say for 60 days for testing and tweaking, then put it in our REAL domain? No one but me and the mods or testers would use it - it would not be public, however, as you can see, the strict licensing, while great to keep bad guys from abusing the software, also prevents me from doing testing in a different place, then moving it to the registered place when all done.
NO, I don't want to run it in two domains forever, just need to somehow allow having both up for a short time.

How can I setup 9, leave 8 in place,  make the tweaks and change colors, etc, then put it into the final location?  I don't want or wish to abuse the license and agree with the intent of the license, but my intent is not malicious, it's just - do I need a "waver" to test for a time? Or is there another way?

Does this make sense?
Since I can't place it in http://theamcforum.com/forum9 or such, as then it would break things, or would it??????????????????????????

borg I wish you much success in your business and with the forum software. Thank you for being an alternative to "the others" and if we suggest or ask for something, please take it as we only want to help make it better and higher quality -  better than the others.

Bill, admin,  theamcforum.com



Edited by billd3 - 08 August 2007 at 2:56pm

Nick, Bruce or anyone......
That does make sense. More question(s):
Can I do EVERYTHING I need to the version 9.xxx forum files, even unlocking or removing all ads, getting it setup 100% perfect exactly how I want it, then move the files to the /forum folder replacing the forum that's there?
In other words, I'd like to get it perfect, I mean exactly how we want it, down to look, feel, colors, tweaks and mods, including using the license to remove ads, etc. so that all I need to do is close things down say for an hour, move the 9 files into the forum folder from the forum9 folder then open it up again?
Does that make sense? I don't want to have to do anything at all once it's moved - once I make it live, it needs to be ready, done, finished.

The intent is not to violate any license agreement or not be nice to Bruce, but it's to make the change "seemless". We'll still be running just ONE forum or copy of the software when the move is made, in the same domain, etc.
(Gee, I wish these guys hosted us, it would be so much easier, but for now, we are where we are.....)

Can I apply the license and unlock and all while it's in the temporary folder, and have it all still apply when I move it to the final location?

Thank you - you are making me feel MUCH better about all of this!
I just wanted to be sure I could run v9.xx parallel, even if pointing to a different database. Only myself would have access, I'd not allow browsing nor post the path to the test area. I just want to be able to unlock it, remove ads and everything the license allows, get it just right, then make the move.
Yeah, I'd have to update the database - the live one, just before the file move as things would change, and it will take me days if not longer to get it all just right, but once done, I'd in the end be running a single forum, single domain, single location, 9.x instead of 8.06

If you can't create a new database (for whatever reasons), you could also try creating another set of tables. It's not as safe as using a different database, but it will work in a pinch.

1. Before uploading the new forum files, copy all your forum tables to new tables with a different prefix (e.g. temptbl instead of tbl).
   
   
2. Then go into into /includes/setup_options_inc.asp and change the prefix in line 62 to the new prefix.
   
   
3. Now upload the forum files to a parallel directory and run the database update.

You should see the new forum with your current data (up to the point you copied the original tables). When you're ready to go live,  change the table prefix back to your live version and run the database update again to update your live tables. Finally, delete your temporary tables.