WE'RE BACK

**Goodspeed** · 09-03-2012, 10:49 AM

Oh sweet Jesus we're back. THANK YOU to Jake, Adam, and everyone else who ended this nightmare :lol:

So, now that we're up and running (albeit in April - Great Scott!), can we get the full deets on what all actually happened? I have an idea but would be interested to know the gritty details, and how you guys fixed it. Should make for some good reading...

RawrImAMonster · 09-03-2012, 11:04 AM

Nice to have the site back up. I noticed my project thread disappeared in the process. Should I remake that or are more backups going to be restored at some point?

***Jake*** · 09-03-2012, 11:11 AM

I'll post The Whole Story tonight...

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***ViPER1313*** · 09-03-2012, 11:14 AM

I would go ahead a re-create it. Everything since April 23rd is gone (user registrations and permissions, posts, etc.) - sorry. I still cannot access the old database server - Nexpoint is still BSing around, and even if it comes back online there is no way to restore that backup without wiping out everything that happened after this backup was restored.

JPolen01 · 09-03-2012, 11:14 AM

RawrImAMonster Wrote:Nice to have the site back up. I noticed my project thread disappeared in the process. Should I remake that or are more backups going to be restored at some point?

If it was within the last few months, it is most likely gone. I think you have brought back everything they could.

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CaptainHenreh · 09-03-2012, 01:44 PM

On habit, I clicked this morning.

Then I was like "Aw shit, of course the site is still do....WAITAMINUTE...IS BACK!"

[Image: tumblr_m7rytwTpOf1r94e9jo3_250.gif]

[Image: tumblr_m7rytwTpOf1r94e9jo3_250.gif]

RawrImAMonster · 09-03-2012, 01:57 PM

ViPER1313 Wrote:I would go ahead a re-create it. Everything since April 23rd is gone (user registrations and permissions, posts, etc.) - sorry. I still cannot access the old database server - Nexpoint is still BSing around, and even if it comes back online there is no way to restore that backup without wiping out everything that happened after this backup was restored.

Depending on how soon you get the old version back, it might be worth it to overwrite the new stuff. Just depends which time frame has a bigger chunk of content. If you want, I can take a look at the database when you can access the old one. I'm a programmer so I may be able to work some magic on it.

**G.Irish** · 09-03-2012, 03:04 PM

RawrImAMonster Wrote:
ViPER1313 Wrote:I would go ahead a re-create it. Everything since April 23rd is gone (user registrations and permissions, posts, etc.) - sorry. I still cannot access the old database server - Nexpoint is still BSing around, and even if it comes back online there is no way to restore that backup without wiping out everything that happened after this backup was restored.

Depending on how soon you get the old version back, it might be worth it to overwrite the new stuff. Just depends which time frame has a bigger chunk of content. If you want, I can take a look at the database when you can access the old one. I'm a programmer so I may be able to work some magic on it.

This. Last I looked at phpBB's database structure, it's not too complex. We could just select all of the posts that have been made since the restore and insert them into the old database if we ever get that back.

***ViPER1313*** · 09-03-2012, 03:11 PM

The problem is not the structure, it is the unique keys / sequences for the posts. Every post we create here is one additional conflict that needs to be resolved. That and I have almost 0 hope of the old database ever being brought back online.

Trust me - restoring this DB as is was a large PITA as it was.

**G.Irish** · 09-03-2012, 03:23 PM

ViPER1313 Wrote:The problem is not the structure, it is the unique keys / sequences for the posts. Every post we create here is one additional conflict that needs to be resolved. That and I have almost 0 hope of the old database ever being brought back online.

Trust me - restoring this DB as is was a large PITA as it was.

Well if restoring the old databse is not possible it's a moot point. But unique keys is usually not too much of an issue, the idea being that you'd just treat the posts from today forward as new posts and insert them with new unique ID's.

***ViPER1313*** · 09-03-2012, 03:30 PM

The banter about the Nexpoint issues is here:

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?t=1142206&page=12">http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthrea ... 06&page=12</a>

BLINGMW · 09-03-2012, 07:24 PM

Thanks guys :thumbup:
I'm happy we got the domain back too

**G.Irish** · 09-04-2012, 09:01 AM

Now that MM's Lost Summer has come to an end, we should probably look into a backup and recovery plan so we don't lose a ton of posts next time. Perhaps we can set up a cloud-based backup system where data is automatically backed up to a cloud service. Having someone like Adam with a local backup as well would be a good way to hedge our bets.

Also, what web hosting service did we go with?

**xvxax** · 09-04-2012, 09:09 AM

Thanks to everyone who helped get the site back online.

**Mike** · 09-04-2012, 09:49 AM

Nice work to all involved and THANK YOU!

***Jake*** · 09-04-2012, 10:37 AM

G.Irish Wrote:Now that MM's Lost Summer has come to an end, we should probably look into a backup and recovery plan so we don't lose a ton of posts next time. Perhaps we can set up a cloud-based backup system where data is automatically backed up to a cloud service. Having someone like Adam with a local backup as well would be a good way to hedge our bets.

Also, what web hosting service did we go with?

OK kids, gather 'round for story time.

Nexpoint, based in Harrisonburg, was our web host. We dealt with the prior blackouts (which usually lasted about a day or so) because it cost us $0 per millennium to host the site. I do not know who originally set up the hosting, if someone was paying for it, et cetera.

For those who are less web-savvy, you've got two things that make up a website: the hosting, and the domain name. Hosting is what stores the files and database, domain name is what allows you to type some pretty words instead of a bunch of numbers, and see the site.

Well, when someone buys a domain name, the registrar is supposed to register the domain name to the human being who paid for it. If Goodspeed buys a domain name, he owns it. Problem is, Nexpoint did some shady shit back in the day, and registered a TON of domain names with this domain name company... who is primarily Russian-based, has an office in New Jersey, and is virtually un-reachable. THIS creates a problem, because to transfer the domain name to my ownership, I need an authorization/unlock code from said Russian-motherland-company.

My friend Cory (who works at a hosting company) helped me find contact info for the domain company. I left five voicemails and sent three emails, asking very firmly for the unlock code. I managed to get an email back with the code (literally just the code, no words or anything else in the email) and began the transfer process.

The cheapest way to get hosting set up was to add the domain to my own server, which I had already set up. So, our hosting and domain name are all in my name, through IX Web Hosting. I've used IX for years and never had any downtime, and their support is fantastic if you need it.

Since we now have to pay for this wonderful site, I discussed with the officers, and we decided that raising alumni dues by $5/year would be plenty to cover it. I will be looking into payment options with IX, to see if we can "pre-pay" for years to come, so that we don't have to worry about it for a while.

Ask away with any questions and I'm happy to try and answer.

Adam was a HUGE help in getting this all back up. I'd like to re-design the homepage to add some functionality, but that'll come this winter when I have more free time.

Regarding backup plans, I'm also going to see if IX has some sort of automated backup process that we can implement. A weekly or twice-monthly backup of the site/database would be very good to have.

**Mike** · 09-04-2012, 11:45 AM

Could pretty easily setup a scheduled backup script from a Mac on nix machine. Haven't googled, but I'm sure all the answer are out there. DB might be a little tricky, but there's scriptable stuff there too.

Steve85 · 09-04-2012, 11:49 AM

Huge thanks to all the people who got the site back up and running, special thanks to Jake and Adam who seemed to do the heavy lifting!

WRXtranceformed · 09-04-2012, 11:51 AM

I'm happy to donate to keep the site healthy and up for years to come as I'm sure many other alumni are. Just let us know exactly what it's going to look like etc.

***ViPER1313*** · 09-04-2012, 02:08 PM

The backup of the DB is the only real consideration. The phpbb files only need to be backed up when the site design is alerted or the forum install is patched. How much bandwidth full db backups take is another consideration - phpbb db is 300 mb, wordpress is another 200. Monthly backups are probably sufficient imo.

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