[Forum] Server move question

[supra10]

Hello, I would like to move my forums (v.4) from a windows to a linux server. Is there anything that I should be particularly careful of? Any tips/advice/recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[Mark.B]

Hello, I would like to move my forums (v.4) from a windows to a linux server. Is there anything that I should be particularly careful of? Any tips/advice/recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

In theory this should be straightfroward.

The main thing you're going to need to watch is that a new server may have the latest version of php on it, and vBulletin 4 will only work with php 7.1 - no higher.

Beyond that you just need to ensure that all the relevant php libraries are installed.
vBulletin doesn't care whether the server is Windows or Linux.

If you are using the rewritable URLs hen you will need use the correct .htaccess rules from the download package and ensure mod_rewrite is available. Standard URLs don't use this so you won;t have to worry.

It's advisable to get a copy of the live site up and running on the server first before you point the domain at it, so you can test. You could alter the Windows Hosts file on the machine you are testing from to force it to look at the new server.

[Wayne Luke]

If you are storing your attachments, custom avatars, profile pictures, and signature pictures in the file system on Windows, you should move these to the database before your move. It will make your database larger but you won't miss files and won't have to work with Windows vs. Linux paths.

Attachment → Attachment Storage Type. It should say "Attachments are being served from the database.
Avatars → User Picture Storage Type.

Once you have moved your site, you can move them back into the file system.

[supra10]

Thank you for the tips!

On the new linux test server, before it goes live, should I do a clean installation of the forum software, or just move the folders/files/database from windows to linux?

If I am using 4.2.2 and want to upgrade to 4.2.5 as well, during this server move process, should I clean install 4.2.5 on the linux test server first or do 4.2.2 and then upgrade to 4.2.5.?

[Trevor Hannant]

You don't need to install anything before importing the database - just import the database to the new server, move your files over from one to the other then update the includes/config.php file if your database details have changed in any way.

[supra10]

I didn't realize it would be that simple. Thank you!