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  • The forums are up again! Migration to new forum platform

What Happened

Today, June 11th, the forums went down for a long period of time. This happened because I went to update Vanilla, the forum software we were previously using, to a new version. The version of Vanilla we were using was 2-3+ years old, and so I wanted to update to get the latest fixes and features. I made a backup prior to updating and confirmed the backup was correct.

However, upon updating, the Vanilla software crashed and was having issues with the latest version. Apparently the latest release is known to be buggy and the release discussion has several forum owners who also have had issues updating. However, I was not too worried since I had a backup, but unfortunately, the backup failed to correct and revert back. I am not sure why it failed, as I was using the server provider backup that backs up the entire site, but alas, it was down and recovering with the backup didn't work no matter what I tried.

After several attempts of trying to get the backup to work and the newest version of Vanilla to work, I decided that perhaps this is the time to move forward rather than backwards. Vanilla has been a constant pain point, both for us as forum staff and for users due to the dated usability, and so I decided to look into a more modern, fast, and supported forum software.

New Forum Software

That led us to this! We are now Flarum. Flarum is a newer, lightweight, and flexible forum software. It uses markdown to render posts, so all our existing posts should look the same (or similar at least), and I was able to convert the overwhelming majority of the Vanilla database to Flarum.

There is a couple things that were lost in data, but not in functionality. The first is private messages. Old private messages, but it is still possible to discuss privately. Now if you click a user, you can see a "private messages" tab and then you can press "discuss privately" to start a new private discussion. Then you can discuss privately like before. Please remember that private discussions are subject to forum rules. Now users can also flag replies in private messages, which will allow us in forum staff to see them and act accordingly.

The other thing was reaction history. We have reactions on the new forums, but old reactions were lost. However, that just means we can all react to the posts again 🙂

(Side note: Vanilla really doesn't want you to convert it's data - was kinda tricky to even get the users and discussions transferred)

What does this mean for you?

Ultimately, the overwhelming majority of the forums works exactly as before. You can post, react, and discuss with others. The move means we now have a faster, more modern, mobile friendly, and better supported forum software backend. This should not only make the forums load faster, but it should improve the experience overall.

Everyone will need to set their passwords again. You can do this by following these steps:

  • Click the log-in button in the top right of the website (might be hard to see in dark theme - am looking to fix this)
  • Select "forgot your password" and put in your email address.
  • Wait for a verification email with a link. Check your spam folder as well! Once you get the email, input your new password.
  • Log in using your email and password.

Note: Some users, which I have listed below, have slightly different usernames now. This is due to the constraints of Flarum and there was apparently some duplicates. I have listed below what the username was and what it is now.

You will also need to re-upload your profile picture. To do so, just go to your account, then settings, and finally select the circle/profile image on the left. This should allow you to upload a new profile picture.

If you have any issues logging in, please reach out to me (@TwistedTwigleg) or (twistedtwigleg@randommomentania) and I will do my absolute best to help. My goal is to get everyone able to use the forums again as smoothly as possible.

What this means moving forward

This means that we can move towards making the forums more modern, adding new features, and overall making it a better experience.

In the short term, this likely means things are going to be changing quite a bit as we add new features and style the forums. In the long term, I hope this means we'll be able to deliver a better forum experience for everyone.

Right now, I want to focus on working out any issues with the new forum software and working on the theming/styling of the forums. While we are using a pretty sleek theme, I want to make it more custom and Godot like, as well as address some few pain points (like certain elements of text being hard to read on dark mode).

Below are the usernames that were adjusted, in no particular order.

Note: For usernames that are composed purely of non-English characters, like "スパイク " for example, I had to set it to something like "Invalid Username". If you have any of these usernames, please comment here and/or reach out to my via email (listed in opening post) and we'll find a new username for you.

Likewise, if your username changed and you want to adjust it, please reach out to me in a comment here on this thread or via email (listed in opening post). Thank you!

Users with changed usernames:

  • Doc Angelo is now doc-angelo
  • Green Baron is now green-baron
  • Juan Rodriguez is now juan-rodriguez
  • Tutorial Doctor is now tutorial-doctor
  • BE-Never Games is now be-never-games
  • viktoria.s is now viktoria-s
  • Riley Attack is now riley-attack
  • Ray Koopa is now ray-koopa
  • Vigamez Boy is now vigamez-boy
  • Arc Futahito is now arc-futahito
  • Epsilon D is now epsilon-d
  • Paul P is now paul-p
  • Richard Kain is now richard-kain
  • Reza Pouya is now reza-pouya
  • Judge Fudge is now judge-fudge
  • Uomo mela is now uomo-mela
  • VIDA Villalvazo is now vida-villalvazo
  • Tiago Lima is now tiago-lima
  • The Environment Guy is now the-environment-guy
  • Hammer Bro. is now hammer-bro
  • Sir Robin is now sir-robin
  • Impractical Programmer is now impractical-programmer
  • Winter Tea is now winter-tea
  • Juan Linietsky is now juan-linietsky
  • a.hadi is now a-hadi
  • Dr D is now dr-d
  • Alter Arma is now alter-arma
  • goro.ddaimonx is now goro-ddaimonx
  • Spaghetti Developer is now spaghetti-developer
  • vlolun.flow is now vlolun-flow
  • スパイク is now invalid-username-1
  • Godot News is now godot-news
  • John Nitrous is now john-nitrous
  • Yücel is now yuecel
  • Condé is now conde
  • Stéphane is now stephane
  • Twisted Test User is now twisted-test-user
  • Goro Daimon 71113 is now goro-daimon-71113
  • juunishi master is now juunishi-master
  • Trevor Blythe is now trevor-blythe
  • Patrick de Arteaga is now patrick-de-arteaga
  • Christopher Bennett is now christopher-bennett
  • Pravin Kumar is now pravin-kumar
  • Kramchay Dig is now kramchay-dig
  • Stellar Ice is now stellar-ice
  • Stellar Mist is now stellar-mist
  • Nicolas Laurindo is now nicolas-laurindo
  • Amanda Dearheart is now amanda-dearheart
  • Sektor 13 is now sektor-13
  • Khan Shawnery is now khan-shawnery
  • Bard of the Evengard is now bard-of-the-evengard
  • Morice CorpSoft is now morice-corpsoft
  • Mark Almighty is now mark-almighty
  • Milan Davidovic is now milan-davidovic
  • Dave The Dev is now dave-the-dev
  • Peter Boughton is now peter-boughton
  • Oblivious Vagabond is now oblivious-vagabond
  • Village Talkies is now village-talkies
  • Jay Kyburz is now jay-kyburz
  • Moire Software is now moire-software
  • Ispheria is now ispheria
  • Syleantzack is now syleantzack
  • Dash DC is now dash-dc
  • ramses ndame is now ramses-ndame
  • Carl Marqs is now carl-marqs
  • Johnny Nonsense is now johnny-nonsense
  • blender ninja is now blender-ninja
  • Ace The Dolphin Guy is now ace-the-dolphin-guy
  • AndrOoO998 is now androoo998
  • map based tactics is now map-based-tactics
  • Samuel Newhouse is now samuel-newhouse
  • Mighty Mufflon Games is now mighty-mufflon-games
  • Marvin Kehl is now marvin-kehl
  • Clemens Tolboom is now clemens-tolboom
  • Anytime Vapors is now anytime-vapors
  • Wayfarlands Engine is now wayfarlands-engine
  • Wirtschaft Ist Tot is now wirtschaft-ist-tot
  • Mark Anthony is now mark-anthony
  • 2d Peasant is now 2d-peasant
  • PirateNinja Games is now pirateninja-games
  • Double Sept is now double-sept
  • Prakhar Srivastava is now prakhar-srivastava
  • Mihail Ilinov is now mihail-ilinov
  • Sub Surfer is now sub-surfer
  • Dragon Queen Games is now dragon-queen-games
  • Jøøls is now joeoels
  • fathi zack is now fathi-zack
  • Rashid chakupa is now rashid-chakupa
  • Sky Lion is now sky-lion
  • Thomas Kole is now thomas-kole
  • Misaka Mikoto is now misaka-mikoto
  • Leef 6010 is now leef-6010
  • Peter Parker is now peter-parker
  • morice cube is now morice-cube
  • Galileo Cap is now galileo-cap
  • Mikhail Starovich is now mikhail-starovich
  • maddy troupe is now maddy-troupe
  • M 28 is now m-28
  • Özgür is now oezguer
  • William Handley is now william-handley
  • Aimless Skipper is now aimless-skipper
  • Habibi Hüda is now habibi-hueda
  • Porky Pig is now porky-pig
  • Ryan Scott is now ryan-scott
  • das timbo is now das-timbo
  • Alack Sunrider is now alack-sunrider
  • R0ber7 is now r0ber7
  • Hats Optional is now hats-optional
  • Insect Army is now insect-army
  • Salman Asif S is now salman-asif-s
  • NumPadCamera is now numpadcamera
  • Samba Oleg is now samba-oleg
  • FigMon Designs is now figmon-designs
  • Ivailo Burov is now ivailo-burov
  • Karamasha is now karamasha
  • apps from ross is now apps-from-ross
  • kake khan is now kake-khan
  • Gonz4 L is now gonz4-l
  • Gutterfly Farm is now gutterfly-farm
  • Zed McJack is now zed-mcjack
  • Ancient Newbie is now ancient-newbie
  • K-Storm-Studio Ltd is now k-storm-studio-ltd
  • Proto Ford is now proto-ford
  • Digital Soundbytes is now digital-soundbytes
  • Leisure Moons is now leisure-moons
  • Dmytro Chebruchan is now dmytro-chebruchan
  • Muhammad Muzamil is now muhammad-muzamil
  • Snowy Fox is now snowy-fox
  • Adarsh Bharti is now adarsh-bharti
  • Leo San San is now leo-san-san
  • Taiyo Pixels is now taiyo-pixels
  • Arcane Energy is now arcane-energy
  • marvin guo is now marvin-guo
  • Ave Vipogad is now ave-vipogad
  • Érick santos is now erick-santos
  • Dev Soham is now dev-soham
  • The Dev Doctor is now the-dev-doctor
  • hasan zarif is now hasan-zarif
  • coding culture is now coding-culture
  • Movie Vertigo is now movie-vertigo
  • Garry phillips is now garry-phillips
  • Malkavian Mind is now malkavian-mind
  • Lewis glasgow is now lewis-glasgow
  • David berg is now david-berg
  • Burble Games is now burble-games
  • Scott Ulmer is now scott-ulmer
  • Daisy Games is now daisy-games
  • Mark Karnowski is now mark-karnowski
  • aashmit 15 is now aashmit-15
  • Ron Tang is now ron-tang
  • Romain Lesoin is now romain-lesoin
  • Rene Derks is now rene-derks
  • Will diamba is now will-diamba
  • Xero Wolf is now xero-wolf
  • Super Kevin is now super-kevin
  • Alden Is All In is now alden-is-all-in
  • mc ride is now mc-ride
  • Frosted Tea is now frosted-tea
  • Martim Navarro is now martim-navarro
  • Dúthomhas is now duthomhas
  • Lee Willis is now lee-willis
  • Carl Barnés is now carl-barnes
  • VekeBeef Gaming is now vekebeef-gaming
  • Huy Hoang is now huy-hoang
  • TTF DPC is now ttf-dpc
  • INdIE DeV is now indie-dev
  • Ink Runner is now ink-runner
  • Diabetes Games is now diabetes-games
  • Vix Mark is now vix-mark
  • All In One Cuber is now all-in-one-cuber
  • Emerald Eel is now emerald-eel
  • Lethal Raptor Games is now lethal-raptor-games
  • Jerry Ye is now jerry-ye
  • Ethan Vaughan is now ethan-vaughan
  • Original Alice is now original-alice
  • Blue Velvet Cake is now blue-velvet-cake
  • Aurore Mayhem is now aurore-mayhem
  • Douglas Webster is now douglas-webster
  • Kanazawa Ryo is now kanazawa-ryo
  • Slightly Seasoned is now slightly-seasoned
  • Alex Jay is now alex-jay
  • Frail Heart is now frail-heart
  • Julius Falck is now julius-falck
  • mohammad mir is now mohammad-mir
  • Karl Wortmann is now karl-wortmann
  • Papy Chacal is now papy-chacal
  • Yet To Be Known is now yet-to-be-known
  • Dove Leiger is now dove-leiger
  • Ambitious Software is now ambitious-software
  • Tanin Oahid is now tanin-oahid
  • Petty Glare is now petty-glare
  • Zach Browder is now zach-browder
  • Basaru X is now basaru-x
  • aitía is now aitia
  • Nishant Pownarkar is now nishant-pownarkar
  • playercommander is now playercommander
  • Dmitri Tokmashov is now dmitri-tokmashov
  • Gary Shaw is now gary-shaw
  • Ok Ok is now ok-ok
  • Javlin Studio is now javlin-studio
  • Kevin Alejandro is now kevin-alejandro
  • Legend Gaming Studio is now legend-gaming-studio
  • Adrian Monky is now adrian-monky
  • Rey Akuma is now rey-akuma
  • 贝优妮塔 is now invalid-username-2
  • Dùu is now duu
  • hippy dave is now hippy-dave
  • kenny pauls is now kenny-pauls
  • ElMrGanzo is now elmrganzo
  • Sofia_G is now sofia_g
  • Justin Todd is now justin-todd
  • Super Jelly Star is now super-jelly-star
  • Weird Egg Dev is now weird-egg-dev
  • Rogue EX is now rogue-ex
  • Onkel Elke is now onkel-elke
  • Ritvik is now ritvik
  • Casual Garage Coder is now casual-garage-coder
  • Dev park is now dev-park
  • Brigitte Godot is now brigitte-godot
  • Kareem Atef is now kareem-atef
  • Flame Cube is now flame-cube
  • Stuart Coyle is now stuart-coyle
  • The Noob is Here is now the-noob-is-here
  • Rikith Reddy is now rikith-reddy
  • Eat My Baked Potato is now eat-my-baked-potato
  • liamV777 is now liamv777
  • Zae Chao is now zae-chao
  • Evil Azrael is now evil-azrael
  • The Genius is now the-genius
  • atharva ghadigaonkar is now atharva-ghadigaonkar
  • Ben Chang is now ben-chang
  • Twilight Faze is now twilight-faze
  • Mecha Yoshi 2009 is now mecha-yoshi-2009
  • Artem Korotkov is now artem-korotkov
  • Joshua Lester is now joshua-lester
  • Hirzan Abqary is now hirzan-abqary
  • Bloody Spuddy Buddy is now bloody-spuddy-buddy
  • Virtual Escape Rooms is now virtual-escape-rooms
  • Pedro Lobo is now pedro-lobo
  • Parabol Ink is now parabol-ink
  • Bacchios Corax is now bacchios-corax
  • Luc van Remmerden is now luc-van-remmerden
  • JCnator U is now jcnator-u
  • Silly little Kee is now silly-little-kee
  • Tommy Brooksy is now tommy-brooksy
  • Steely Wing is now steely-wing
  • IpeX is now ipex
  • Ahmad Wehbe is now ahmad-wehbe
  • AC Kodigero is now ac-kodigero
  • Aramis Scabott is now aramis-scabott
  • Lupas Deva is now lupas-deva
  • Heff Money is now heff-money
  • The Oddler is now the-oddler
  • Douwe Ravers is now douwe-ravers
  • Sunset Moth is now sunset-moth
  • Fantasy Haven is now fantasy-haven
  • indiana grd is now indiana-grd
  • Carl Johnson is now carl-johnson
  • Jack Mcslay is now jack-mcslay
  • Solstice Projekt is now solstice-projekt
  • Grand Ed is now grand-ed
  • Ben Lega is now ben-lega
  • Kasper Hviid is now kasper-hviid
  • James Newnorth is now james-newnorth
  • Anthony Mark is now anthony-mark
  • Captain Novolin is now captain-novolin
  • Shax family is now shax-family
  • Inner Stillness is now inner-stillness
  • Vinod Kamte is now vinod-kamte
  • BPI Far North Coast is now bpi-far-north-coast
  • Moin Yesin is now moin-yesin
  • werner dupont is now werner-dupont
  • Horatio Wildebeest is now horatio-wildebeest
  • John Jennen is now john-jennen
  • gumbuk 9 is now gumbuk-9
  • Knight XAura is now knight-xaura
  • Team Nonay is now team-nonay
  • Lien Rag is now lien-rag
  • dax trajero is now dax-trajero
  • One Cat Studio is now one-cat-studio
  • Evitca Ariz is now evitca-ariz
  • EmpereurLeon is now empereurleon
  • kağan is now kagan
  • Lights And Living is now lights-and-living
  • Octo Patty is now octo-patty
  • A ga met hat do es is now a-ga-met-hat-do-es
  • A Nameless Ghoul is now a-nameless-ghoul
  • Marco Ortiz is now marco-ortiz
  • Jesus Rios is now jesus-rios
  • FUTURECAT 2000 is now futurecat-2000
  • Cram Rengaw is now cram-rengaw
  • Free Asbestos is now free-asbestos

    Reserved in case we need additional information near the top of the post.

    NOTE You may need to login with your username all in lowercase, even if your username is uppercase. I found on mobile I had to input my username as twistedtwigleg rather than TwistedTwigleg and then it worked. I will look into this soon (is late currently)

    Everything is looking good to me. I did like Vanilla, but I agree there were some pain points. No software is perfect, but this does seem like a solid upgrade. I guess you should note that users will need to reupload their avatar photo. Otherwise is seems like it's working.

      Since I use a dark theme, some of the words are hard to read since they're dark.

      You guys should change it to lighter colors.

        Good job getting an entire system rebuilt and loading the data in such a short time. I probably would have spent the first twenty-four hours cursing at the backup software. 🙂

          duane Thanks!

          There was some frustrated words said, but in the end I was just stubbornly trying to fix the mistake and get the forums up again 😅
          (Annoying the backup software didn’t work though! Now I know never to assume it will work and make manual backups)

            Yes, I've used Vanilla for a different forum I used to work on. It's definitely better than some open source options (like PHPBB, which is super dated) but I found that many small things have been broken for years, and they seemed to have to no desire to fix them. I mean, I still liked it overall (I'm willing to make compromises) but I think you made a good choice with the new software.

            OK, for whatever reason it wouldn't accept my password so I had to do a recovery(and the mail went into spam, of course). But I got it sorted at least.

            Yeah, flarum is what I've been eyeing myself too for a while now. Guess we'll have to redo the whole CSS work again at some point. Then again we never really did get around to truly completing it the last time around... 😊

            Right. Everyone's password was reset so that is normal. The CSS definitely needs work, but it's functional at least. Let me know if you need design help for the CSS, I used to work as a web developer.

            It appears that old forum links are not redirected to the new threads. This is not a high priority, but it's fixable. I had to do that once for a PHPBB forum, let me know if you need help with that as well.

              Any chance that unanswered category will be recovered? Can't find anything similar.

                pkowal1982 Any chance that unanswered category will be recovered?

                I always found that feature to be kind of clunky. Most things on the forum (or at least in the help section) are asking for help, thus almost everything is a question. I guess it was sort of nice that the answer jumped to the top, but I don't know if that is supported here.

                I returned the missing avatar and edited the posts to make the quotes look as they should be.

                In general the new design is a little nicer and in some ways even a little more convenient... maybe... But to my deepest regret a bug appeared which won't affect the majority of users — long forum threads are badly perceived by Google Translate

                  I guess it was sort of nice that the answer jumped to the top,

                  That was a terrible feature. It rearranged the order of the replies, making the thread confusing. It could have added a "here's the accepted answer" link without rearranging the replies.

                    Well that was what I was saying about it being wonky. It never really worked right.