Switch to New Server Monday 5th May 11:00 to 13:00

[Lawnmower Man]

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.

[DJet]

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

[DJet]

any ideas how long the techie perambulations might take?

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

[Lawnmower Man]

Lennart, good news and a big well done to all concerned, here is the piece of string question; any ideas how long the techie perambulations might take?

I'm sure it is asking for the great server in the sky god to come down and f**k with us mortals.

Is it an hour type thing/halfaday etc.

Broken legs all round and look forward to the new faster CA.

FS

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.   

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.

[Lawnmower Man]

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.

[DJet]

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

[mgmark]

Tom, Lennart,

Fingers crossed and the best of luck!

MG Mark

[smokie]

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

[mgmark]

...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

[Lawnmower Man]

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.

[smokie]

Is it done??? 

[DJet]

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

[DJet]

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

And that's now

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

/Lennart

[DJet]

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

[Brian(Liverpool boys)]

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.