vBulletin 5 Connect - Readme and Installation Guide
Table of Contents
What's new in vBulletin 5 Connect
vBulletin 5 has been designed to bring you modern community building and ease of use.
Site Builder - One of the best new features of vBulletin 5 Connect is Site Builder. Site Builder is a new way to build and manage your sites. It features drag and drop technology to enable you to build custom pages that fit your needs quickly and easily. Site Builder also includes a Style Generator so you can quickly and easily create a new styles with custom color combinations.
Everything is Content - In vBulletin 5, we've developed an idea that everything is content. This is built around a new content model involving channels, nodes and the actual content. In this model everything works the same, everything is searchable and everything provides a modern input system. Adding new content should be more intuitive for your users.
New Search - The Search Engine architecture has also been reconfigured so that all content is easily searched. Rewritten from the ground up, the new search engine should provide more relevant details and accurate results.
MVC Architecture - vBulletin 5 Connect introduces a new MVC Architecture designed to separate the business logic from the presentation logic more than ever before. This will allow vBulletin 5 to be quickly and easily extended as we bring new features to the software.
Responsive Design - People are using devices of many different sizes these days. These include phones, tablets and ultra-high density monitors. We've included a responsive design in vBulletin 5 that scales to the device being used. No more worrying about mobile styles and trying to configure things for multiple devices. vBulletin adjusts to the screen-size of the user's device automatically.
Expanded API - The API of vBulletin has been expanded. Not only can mobile apps take advantage of the API, the web interface of vBulletin uses it for its own purposes as well. This provides a more structured design and the ability to code everything once regardless of how it is accessed.
Minimum and Recommended System Requirements
vBulletin 5 Requires URL Rewriting. This will be mod_rewrite or its equivalent under Apache and URL Rewrite under IIS. There is an .htaccess (Apache) file and web.config (IIS) included in the upload folder for this purpose. The software will not work without URL Rewriting.
Minimum System Requirements
These are the Minimum System Requirements. vBulletin 5 Connect will not run or install if these conditions are not met.
- A supported webserver. Currently these include Apache and IIS
- PHP 5.3.0
- MySQL 5.1.5
- mod_rewrite, URL Rewrite or equivalent.
- cURL or OpenSSL Support
- JSON Support
- XML Support
Recommended System Requirements
These are the Recommended System Requirements.
- PHP 5.4+
- MySQL 5.5+
Additional information on these requirements can be found in the online documentation.
Installing vBulletin 5 Connect
vBulletin 5 has two config.php files. It is very important that both are edited and the values of any overlapping variables like cookie prefix are identical in both files.
For more indepth installation instructions please see the Installing vBulletin chapter in the online documentation.
After downloading vBulletin 5 Connect from the your Member's Area.
- Unzip the package
- Create a new directory to hold vBulletin 5. It should not contain any vBulletin 3 or 4 files.
- Copy the /upload/ your new html folder. For simplicity's sake, I'm going to assumed it's been renamed and refer to it as /vb5/.
- Rename /vb5/core/includes/config.php.new to config.php and edit it like you would for vB4. (Change the database credentials & database name.). This is similar to how you installed/upgraded vBulletin 3 and 4.
vBulletin 5 Connect specific steps
- Rename /vb5/config.php.bkp to config.php.
- You can ignore all other values for a basic setup.
Running the Install Wizard
- Go to the install directory of core in your browser to install vB5. This is just like installing vB4. Ex: http://www.example.com/vb5/core/install/install.php
- When finished you can view the site through the baseurl (http://www.example.com/vb5).
- You should be able to access your AdminCP via the baseurl + /admincp (http://www.example.com/vb5/admincp).
- After you are finished with the installation, you need to delete the /core/install/ folder via FTP for security.
Upgrading to vBulletin 5 Connect
Please note that vBulletin 5 has two config.php files. It is very important that both are edited and the values of any overlapping variables like cookie prefix are identical in both files.
For more indepth installation instructions please see the Upgrading vBulletin chapter in the online documentation.
Before You Upgrade
Upgrading any major software platform should be carefully thought through beforehand; for many of you, vBulletin is the heart of your site. Here are some things to consider when upgrading:
- Do you rely heavily on the Calendar feature? If so, these will not be included in vBulletin 5 at initial launch but are planned to be added soon after. If you rely on these areas of functionality then don't upgrade at this time - unless you're happy that these will not be available to you and your users in the short term.
- UPGRADES FROM vB4 ONLY The vBulletin CMS will not feature in vBulletin 5 until a future vBulletin 5 Connect version is released. If you rely on the CMS on your site then you should hold off until 5.1 is released and upgrade at that time.
- Have you installed any plugins or products? If so, the first thing you'll need to decide is - "Is this critical to my site?" If the answer is yes, you will first need to check that a vB5 compatible version of the modification is available, either at www.vbulletin.org or via the author's own site. If the answer is no, then you need take no action as vBulletin 5's new API system means that any existing plugins and products won't work - however after you upgrade, it would be good practice to make sure you remove any files required by these.
- vBulletin 5's template code has been rewritten from scratch so existing themes/styles from vB4 will not work with it. As with plugins and products, if you're looking to retain a similar look and feel to your site or simply don't wish to use the default style after upgrading, you will need to do one of three things:
- Contact the style designer to see if they've already created a vB5 compatible version of the style
- Download and install a new vB5 compatible style from www.vbulletin.org or another supplier or
- Create a test installation of vB5 and create your own unique style from scratch
- Are you running a big board? We know that upgrading a big board can be complicated and has its own set of issues. Please refer to our installation best practice guides in the vBulletin Blogs which will be updated with the latest information to help you upgrade your site smoothly.
- Do you use a custom .htaccess file on your site? As vBulletin 5 comes with URL Rewrites as standard, it includes an .htaccess by default. Uploading the files for the upgrade will see your custom .htaccess file overwritten losing any custom code that you had within the file (URL Rewrites, specific filetype caching). Make sure you have a backup of your .htaccess file before proceeding with the upgrade then you can look to merge the contents of your custom file and the vBulletin 5 default file after upgrading.
It is recommended that you make a complete backup of your database before upgrading. If you need help with this, please contact your hosting provider to see what tools they may have provided for this purpose.
After downloading vBulletin 5 Connect from the your Member's Area.
- Unzip the package
- Upload the contents of the /upload/ directory to your server. Overwrite your existing vBulletin 5 Connect files when doing this.
When upgrading from vBulletin 3 or vBulletin 4
- It is best to upload the files into a new directory.
- Copy the /upload/ your new html folder. For simplicity's sake, I'm going to assumed it's been renamed and refer to it as /vb5/.
- Rename /vb5/config.php.bkp to config.php.
- You can ignore all other values for a basic setup.
- Rename /vb5/core/includes/config.php.new to config.php and edit it like you would for vB4. (Change the database credentials & database name.). This is similar to how you installed/upgraded vBulletin 3 and 4.
Running the Upgrade Wizard
- Go to the install directory of core in your browser to install vB5. This is just like installing vB4. Ex: http://www.example.com/vb5/core/install/upgrade.php
- After you are finished with the upgrade, you need to delete the /core/install/ folder via FTP for security.
- When finished you can view the site through the baseurl (http://www.example.com/vb5).
- You should be able to access your AdminCP via the baseurl + /admincp (http://www.example.com/vb5/admincp).
Command Line Upgrades.
If you have a larger forum, you should upgrade via the command line. This is a faster and more efficient way to upgrade. In order to do this, follow these steps:
- Edit your config.php files as stated above.
- Connect to your server via SSH.
- Switch to your forum's core install directory. example: cd %install location%/core/install
- Type this command: php upgrade.php
- After you are finished with the installation, you need to delete the /core/install/ folder via FTP for security.
You can use this command "nohup php upgrade.php &" if you feel that your SSH connection will fail in the middle of the upgrade. This will allow the upgrade to continue in the background without a connection.
Importing into vBulletin 5 Connect
ImpEx does not support vBulletin 5 at this time.
MakeConfig.php
If you cannot figure out the values for your config.php files, MakeConfig.php can help with this for you. MakeConfig.php is a tool created by the vBulletin Support Team that can help you create your config.php files. This file will automatically create the files for you and pre-fill most of the required values. It can be downloaded from the community forums if needed. You will find it here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some of the frequently asked questions about this version of vBulletin.
- Why are there two config.php files?
- vBulletin 5 has two layers of functionality. These are the Presentation and the Core Layers. The Presentation layer does not have permission to use code in the Core layer directly and accesses it via the API. This allows more data security and in the future can include the functionality where the Core layer is located on a completely different server for more security.
- None of my vBulletin 3 or 4 Addons work.
- These are not supported in vBulletin 5.
- None of my vBulletin 3 or 4 Styles work.
- These are not supported in vBulletin 5.
- There is no place for my users to purchase Paid Subscriptions
- Paid Subscirptions are not supported in vBulletin 5. They will return in a future version.
- What happened to the CMS and all my articles?
- The CMS/Article System is not support in vBulletin 5.0. It will return in a future version. Your articles are being kept safe in a hidden channel and will return when the CMS is released.
- Where is the infraction system?
- The infraction system is not supported in vBulletin 5.0. It will return in a future version.
- Where is the FAQ system?
- The FAQ System is not supported in vBulletin 5.0. It will return in a future version.
- Where is the Member's List?
- There is no member's list in vBulletin 5.
- I was in the AdminCp and received an error message.
- A number of features in the Admin CP no longer work. These can return error message. Open a Support Topic for further assistance.
- How do I turn off Blogs, Social Groups, Albums?
- The short answer is that you cannot do this. However you can set permissions so that end users cannot see these features. Please open a forum thread for assistance in doing this.
- How do I remove the Activity Stream?
- You can't however you can disable the specific tab, rearrange the tabs and change the default tab. Please see the support forums for assistance.
Download Package Contents
Presentation Layer
These folders and files are contained in the upload folder of your package.
- admincp - Stub to the actual admincp. Contains img and js folder for things needed here. The vBulletin 5 Router will redirect you to where you need to be.
- core - Contains the primary logic layer of vBulletin 5. This includes the API and all code that has not been rewritten. On a normal basis, you don't need to browse this folder and users will be excluded from here. Listed in more detail below
- forumrunner - Code for the Forum Runner App and its custom API.
- images - Presentation layer images.
- includes - Primary PHP code for the presentation layer. This builds the pages and formats data and information received from the API.
- js - javascript needed for the presentation layer.
- .htaccess - mod_rewrite for Apache
- config.php - Presentation config.php file. Tells the system how to connect with the API
- index.php - Main router entry point for all pages and usage of the presentation layer.
- License - vBulletin License Agreement
- web.config - URL Rewrite commands for IIS. Similar to mod_rewrite.
Core Layer
These folders and files are contained in the upload/core folder of your package.
- admincp - Contains the legacy code to the Admin Control Panel.
- clientscript - Contains any legacy Javascript necessary and extra CSS needed for the vBulletin engine.
- customavatars - Ships empty but provides a location for the storage of custom avatars. Use depends on your settings in the software.
- customgroupicons - Ships empty but provides a location for the storage of custom social group icons. Use depends on your settings in the software.
- customprofilepics - Ships empty but provides a location for the storage of custom profile images. Use depends on your settings in the software.
- images - contains all the images that the default vBulletin style needs to work properly.
- includes - Contains legacy PHP and XML files required for the vBulletin engine to work properly. Also contains the majority of the vBulletin API.
- install - Contains the installation and upgrade wizards as well as the default style, language and settings for the software.
- modcp - The moderation control panel. A light version of the Admin CP that gives moderators access to basic functions they need. Most functions are also duplicated via inline moderation tools in the software.
- packages - Many different base classes that the vBulletin engine uses to know how to interact with different content types and functionality.
- signaturepics - Ships empty but provides a location for the storage of custom signature images. Use depends on your settings in the software.
- vb - The vBulletin Engine. Contains the classes and software necessary for the engine to work. The files here work in conjunction with the includes and packages directory to do the bulk of the processing in vBulletin.
- vb5 - Routing for vBulletin 5.
- Various Legacy PHP Code files.
do_not_upload
The files located in this directory are used for advanced installation instructions and support functions. Only use these files if directed to do so by a support technician, or if you know what you're doing.
- tools.php - A script to help you fix (login) problems and rebuild caches for usergroups, bitfields, etc. Do not upload this to the server unless you need to use it.
- searchshell.php - a php shell script to rebuild the search index from the console. This is quicker than the web mode in the Admin CP and useful for large forum upgrades.
- validatenodes.php - Script to validate the node structure of your vBulletin 5 Connect Site
- vb_backup.sh - a bash shell script to backup the database, especially handy for nightly backups when set up as a crontab or scheduled task.
Language Support
We will be offering full support in Arabic, French, German and Spanish in the near Future.
vBulletin includes a Language Manager in the admin control panel. This allows you to translate the vBulletin interface into your own language or several languages, as well as being able to import language packs created others. Your users can then select the language they prefer to view the board in. We do have a Languages & Phrases forum where you can find packs donated by our customers and also receive help for creating your own: http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=87*
Also, here's the forum containing downloads of the current Language Packs made available by our customers: http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=96*
Please note, the Language Management System only covers the board text and not individual posts. The posts themselves will be displayed in the original language they were written in.
Appendix: Links to More Information
Here are some important links with more information:
- The vBulletin Online Manual - With installation and upgrade instructions, indepth feature and options information and more technical documents.
- The vBulletin Members Area^ - Download area for vBulletin, private customer support tickets area, etc.
- The vBulletin Support Forums* - Free priority support forums, latest announcements with indepth release details, etc.
- vBulletin Release Changelog^ - The changelog links to the release announcement for every version of vBulletin. Release announcements contain specific information about that release including updated files, updated templates, links to bug fix lists and more.
- vBulletin JIRA Changelog* - Similar to the above but a concise list of bugs, enhancements and other issues applied to vBulletin 4 by version.