Club Arnage

Hi,

The Club Arnage forum is to be switched to the new sever Monday 5^th May
Between 11:00 and 13:00 UK time. 

When the switch is made we have a few tests to run  to ensure we have moved over everything and configured everything correctly.



t.

Specifically, I intend to:

1.) move the new server physically (has to go into another cabinet)
2.) run my rsync script on new server.  (which still is on backup-IP)

Approx 11:00 CEST (10am UK time) :

3.) On OLD server: stop Apache, mysql, and sendmail
4.) run my rsync script on new server again (should take approx 5 minutes)
5.) on new server: do the few changes that have been undone by the database sync
6.) disconnect old server from network
7.) change IP settings on new server, and reboot (not needed, but I'd like to)
8.) new server up with everything running.

run tests, and if happy with 8.) reconf old server to use backup IP.

If happy with everything, go buy cakes and enjoy life. :)

PS: The first few days, the Club-Arnage logo will also say "New Server" so you know.

/Lennart

If things go as planned, its much less than an hour.  (fingers crossed, moving the chicken-bones closer to the screen ...)

I have run my rsync script several times, and if it has just been run before, it consistantly goes through the entire syncronization process of all data and databases in about 5 minutes, even with the old server having so little resources to spare. (the database dump/restore alone takes 2 minutes)

Being an old fart with fading memory :-)   I have even made the rsync script remind me of the few things I then need to do manually to configure the new forum - so this should only take a few minutes.
Then some testing, and we should be online.

I might put the forum into maintenance mode to begin with.

/Lennart

FS. 

As you say it's a bit of a string question.   If all goes without a hitch then it will only be a few minutes and you might not even notice.   8)

But as you well know you can find new problems that didn't show up in the testing.
Depending how we think we are doing in resolving the problems.  We may go past the  11:00 UK Time planned outage.  If you get no response from the server  after 09:00 UK time then the chances are we are past step 3) and it should not be long before the new server comes on-line.

I'll update this thread with progress.  So you have some idea what is happening and when it's safe to post again.   

t.

Will do Peter though it would have to be pretty bad for us not to be able to display the "forum is been updated" page when you try to view the forum.

t.

The ancient forum theme "Converted from YaBBSE" is now obsolete - the new version of the forum software doesn't really like it, so I have removed it. (from the new server)

The *very* few members still using it will be bounced to the default theme.

Special needs for themes can be addresses later. For now I will focus on the server switch itself.

/Lennart

Tom, Lennart,

Fingers crossed and the best of luck!

MG Mark

...I hope luck doesn't come into it, but I agree with the sentiment... ;)

Well as far as me and IT goes, it's all luck....... ::)

MG Mark

Nothing magic or lucky about it.  :)
At the moment it's just manual labour.  Lennart is moving the system into it home for the next N years.
So it looks like we are on schedule for the 10:00 UK time switch over.

T.

Is it done???  ;D

no - we have a slight delay, as the Dell rack mount kit didn't fit their cabinets, so they are now rebuilding a cabinet to our needs :)

New server is now in, awaiting UPS power and net connection.

I'll post as soon as I have an estimate time.

/Lennart

And that's now :)

I'll quiesce the forum now, and get on with it.

/Lennart

Dear friends

We are now running on the new server. !

Once the new cabinet had been modified to our needs, the switch itself only took 5 minutes.

I have done everything I could to make the switch transparent to you, but if you
find things not working as expected please let me know.

/Djet

Well done to all concerned, that was fairly painless, everything is now a lot quicker, I see FS has disapeared just as you came on line, I will go to DFH and drag him back.

Many thanks to Lennart and Tom (and Lennarts colleagues at Uni-C) - it certainly was quite painless.

Early days yet, but the system is running like greased lightning.

I notice we've also gained a spell-checker!!

Del

I think you'll find the spell checker doesn't work.    Well need to turn that off.  Sorry.   

t.

You're right - it doesn't work   :'(

Del

I dint never want no spill chokker any roads  :-\

wow this is quick thanks to all involved (privy to the dark arts of compooting!)

 A lot of boxes in here though with pretty little red crosses in 'em, should there be something I'm missing?

It looks a bit different but still feels like home

You didn't have as much to drink last night Peter   ::)

Del

That's most likely because you're still using the old "converted/classic" theme is you switch to the boaerd default with CAmod  It will all be fixed.

t.

Jeez, this site loads faster than I can click the mouse. How does that work?  ???

Excellent work chaps, makes it all look a top site - which of course it is.

Only 5 and a bit weeks to go to the big weekend of the year  ;D  ;D  ;D

Super quick for me out here in the sticks! ;D

5 weeks today and I should be on HA.

Not bad, not at all bad... :laugh:

Well done team!!

Also to everyone who helped fund or organise it, in whatever capacity  :D

Excellent work and a great result!  Well done - painless (at least to the users) - particualrly to Tom and Lennart for casting the necessary spells and rune dice   ;D ;D ;D

MG Mark

Mostly Lennart on the magic spell side of things.   Most of the time I was breaking things.   Not on purpose you understand.  :angel:

I'm monitoring hte load on the server from time to time and I've not seen it more than 4-5% busy. 
It has over 150 web server procsesses running the old server had to be limited to 5. 

So it's no wonder it quick.

t.

/Lennart dusts off his magic hat :)


it really went quite painless.

The spell checker feature was something I turned on while upgrading to the new SMF 1.1.5 version which was just out as I started building the new server. I didn't notice it wasn't working - but it certainly seems a bit dead :)

My Firefox has a builtin spell checker which is probably a better option. Not sure if IE users have the same option, but it would be a reasonable guess.

/Lennart

Great result guys. I've been away for a few days so i missed all the action with the change over but i certainly makes a great difference while im trying to catch up with everything.

Mike

Great stuff guys.  I just did a test run with the search facility and wow, it was quick.  Vast improvement and well worth the effort. :)

No Internet Exploder doesn't have that feature.  Not sure about IE 7 though.

t.