"The board is currently being upgraded...."

[Dodgeboard]

"The board is currently being upgraded. Check back later."

I know this message comes up normally when you are performing an an upgrade. But today, it just came up out of the blue. The last upgrade I performed was 1.0.4 over a week ago. Nothing has been done to it. How could this have occurred and how do I open the board back up?

EDIT: tried logging into the admincp and it wanted me to finalize the upgrade to 1.0.2. That's weird. Reuploading 1.0.4 files...

 

[Onimua]

Mystery solved:

From HostGator:

This still does not explain why the "new" server had "old" files. I upgraded to 1.0.4 on the 16th. My suspicion; They have been getting the "new" server ready for over two weeks and just now put it online, last night, by simply changing the DNS record to the new server's IP. This is nothing short of laziness. If you cannot get a "fresh" copy of the files on the new server when it is put online, then something is severely wrong. A two week old backup is meaningless.

It also reveals another troubling issue. When a customer is communicating with a host about a problem, they should be able to look at their logs to see what has changed. Instead, I was told (four times) in my communications with HG support, "Nothing has changed".

For years, Hostgator has been an excellent host. But, I am starting to wonder if they have gotten too big.

So you have to jump through a couple of hoops in order to receive notifications that may affect your hosting account/site? Thats... odd.

NO. That's the thing. The sql database was fresh. The files though, were over two weeks old. I can only assume a very lazy migration.

If you didn't lose any posts, that good, though if the files themselves are two weeks old, the first thing that comes to mind that might be affected are attachments/avatars I think.

 

[Dodgeboard]

So you have to jump through a couple of hoops in order to receive notifications that may affect your hosting account/site? Thats... odd.

I looked into "these couple of hoops".

Apparantly, I would have to subscribe to a forum on HG forums that sends out notifications of scheduled maintenance for all their servers. There are currently 16,458 notification posts in there. I would then have to read each post notification to see if my server is listed in the post.



I even looked through the notifications today, after the fact. My server was not listed ANYWHERE as one that would be upgraded. So this would have done no good at all.

Do you see Gator55 listed? Here are the ones from the past few days:



I even delved into the myriad of posts to find if Gator55 was listed anywhere deep inside them. Their whole "we suggest you subscribe to...blah blah blah...to limit your confusion" line is simply a way to put the blame on the customer.

 

[Digital Doctor]

Can someone change the Thread Prefix to [Solved] ?

 

[Paul B]

Can someone change the Thread Prefix to [Solved] ?

No.

We don't update the titles of support threads.

 

[steven s]

It's always a good idea to connect via the domain name, that way you can be sure you're on the correct server.

Mike just confirmed that's how he did it, which is why he didn't have the same problem.

Curious.
Now that it's been solved I'd like to know why it would be better to connect via the domain name over an ip address?
Isn't it possible that there could be a propagation delay resolving to the new ip address if using a domain name?
Seems to me it is a toss up which method to use.

 

[Dodgeboard]

Hostgator says to use either. But as Brogan points out, if your host secretly changes your IP on you but leaves the old one accessible with a mirror copy of your site, you could conceivably connect to an offline server. Sounds crazy...but it could happen. LOL.

 

[Panupat]

Does the change of IP affect the DNS of your domain? Or shouldn't it matter?

 

[Dodgeboard]

Does the change of IP affect the DNS of your domain? Or shouldn't it matter?

Well, they (HG) would have to change the DNS record to reflect the IP change. That is why cpanel connected me to the new server, and ftp via the domain name connected Mike to the new server, but direct access via the IP address connected me to the old (previous, original, offline) server.

 

[Floris]

NO. That's the thing. The sql database was fresh. The files though, were over two weeks old. I can only assume a very lazy migration.

To point to MySQL, do you use LOCALHOST, or do you use mysql.hostgator.com .. ?

In case of the latter, it could explain it.

Time to give hostgator the finger and tell them that you aren't paying to hear lies, but to get service.

 

[lazer]

Jeez....what a mess. It would take me about 30 seconds to decide to move hosting company if they shafted me like that.
Not acceptable, regardless of their "explanation".

To use your terminology - "Get outta Dodge, pardner"

 

[Dodgeboard]

Another update from HG...

This was sent to me today after I nailed them on what occurred and wrote a very lengthy post (review) about it on the Hostgator forums. Now they are apologizing and offering 4 months free service ($15/mo) in exchange for me agreeing to remove the post. Don't get me wrong, this is what I wanted...a full apology, full ownership, and explanation of what occurred. But should I agree to the post removal? Do prospective customers deserve to see both sides? I am on the fence on what to do.

Good Afternoon,

I've spent a portion of time reviewing server logs this morning on the old server. First and foremost today I'd like to apologize for the entire situation you were presented with. I'd like to first offer clarification regarding the migrations, then discuss how I'd like to resolve this. We're currently in the process of finishing these mass migrations. The primary goal of this all is to benefit the customers with newer server hardware. The fact of the matter is though that we've had to migrate 10's of thousands of users in this process. It's gone incredibly smoothly for the most part however with that many accounts being moved, there are occasionally problems that surface, though rare. It appears this particular migration was a result of poor timing on our part in regards to when you had upgraded the forum on the 16th. I have no issues at all taking responsibilities for these troubles, as the administrators should have immediately ! caught what you were describing and attempted to assist you with syncing the newer files.

It's extremely unfortunate that the administrators you spoke to in the ticket did not put two and two together when addressing this. They absolutely should have been aware of the migration. That's actually been handled already at this time. I am also taking extra steps to ensure the entire company is up to date regarding the possibility of these migrations. This will ensure while we finish the migrations that these problems don't occur any longer when they do come up in tickets. I'll also be addressing the issue regarding proper notification of these migrations, we're very sorry that did not occur properly as it should have.

Regarding what specifically did take place during the migration, it appears your reasoning on the xenforo.com forums was correct. It appears as though the files were synced to the new machine just prior to you upgrading the forum. That happened on the 16th very early in the day, then on the 25th when the migration was completed, a sync of all the databases was run. Given the version hadn't changed, everything would have gone smoothly with your newest content being present once the switch was made. That obviously did not occur though due to the timing of the initial move. This is very unfortunate to see happen, but I did want to be up front about it.

Moving forward beyond this I'm definitely here if there's anything at all you need assistance with. I'm more then happy to work personally with you should need further assitance in the future. We'd also like to offer you the compensation you requested on the forum as well as an additional month beyond that to make up for the headaches I'm sure this has caused you. If it would be acceptable with you, we'd really appreciate it if you'd allow us to remove the forum post. It does certainly affect us negatively, though I do understand the reason it was posted. Once again though, I'm extremely sorry any of this is necessary. My hopes are though through honesty and taking ownership for our mistakes that you'll give us another shot and we can regain your trust. If there is anything at all beyond this I can assist you with, feel free to let me know.

Best Regards,
JM (full name omitted by dodgeboard)

I would have felt a lot better if this "compensation for my frustration" did not include gag-order strings.

 

[Onimua]

That's up to you obviously, but to try and compensate you and tell you not to leave a bad mark isn't fair to you or them. If they care that much, they would strive harder to not let it happen again, review their procedures, make adjustments, make sure all staff are aware of what server admins are doing and to expect possible tickets/issues regarding those servers that are being worked on. Admit fault, apologize, work hard to prevent it again. And I'm not even touching the discussion of notifying the customers properly about server upgrades/changes.

How many times has this happened before now and they just simply hid it by bribing their customers with perks to stay with them and not say anything bad to others regarding their service? If I were in your shoes I'd start looking elsewhere to host my site.

 

[steven s]

I wouldn't remove the post but I would back up EVERYTHING just in case a mysterious problem happens.

 

[Dodgeboard]

My reply to HG:

Joshua,

I appreciate your honesty, your apology and your forthcoming explanation of what occurred, in spite of the fact that I had already figured it out on my own. I do take comfort in knowing that this has given your organization the opportunity to improve on the processes that not only led up to this issue but that will help support personnel efficiently identify the cause, after the fact. You have acknowledged the gap between what happened and support personnel identifying the issue through log files or some other process. I think if you are able to truly close that gap, it will help HostGator serve their customers better and go a long way to alleviate the frustration a customer might experience in the future when something like this crops up again.

With all that being said, I wish your compensation offer had come without strings. I'm uneasy about agreeing to sweeping this under the table in exchange for 4 months free service. While I realize you could simply erase it and hide it without my consent, that would be something that you would have to live with. While I can accept your apology on behalf of HostGator, and I can say that we are well on our way to mending our business relationship, I cannot agree to hiding/erasing the post in exchange for free service. I do not think this would be fair to HG, myself or your customers. I am sure if you search your heart, you would come to the same conclusion. I would feel like I took a bribe. As you admit, everything that I wrote in that review was factual. It happened pretty much as I posted. In retrospect, I wish I had been less emotional, more professional. But all in all, it was factual.

So, in closing. Thanks for your sincere apology and explanation. I do whole-heartedly accept it. But if your offer of 4 months free service is truly for my frustration, as you say, then it should not be contingent on hiding the factual post chronicling my experience. Don't you agree? For that reason, I cannot, in good conscience, accept it. I do however plan on sticking with Hostgator. You have, all in all, been a good host.

I would certainly be willing to write a follow up to the post and say that you have taken care of my complaint to my satisfaction. And that will not be contingent on anything you do. As a matter of fact, I will do that right now. Furthermore, you have done very well in diffusing my anger over this, through your well written response. In light of this, I will refrain from posting about this on the WHT forums, as I previously said I had planned to do. I can’t very well do that now that you have been so forthcoming.

The only thing that made this response less than 100% perfect was the request for me to allow the HG post to be removed in exchange for free service.

Thanks again Josh for your honest reply and for taking the time to thoroughly investigate what happened. I truly appreciate it

Plus, I updated the post here.

Case Closed. Backups done, though I do not foresee any problems.

 

[Paul B]

Their final explanation is pretty much as some of us had surmised had happened; a server migration using an old backup.

Just goes to show, you should never blindly accept an explanation from your host, especially when all the evidence indicates the opposite of what they're telling you.

 

[Divvens]

I can't believe they actually offered you free service in return of you giving them permission to remove the review...that is just not acceptable seeing that HG is actually a big company. I wonder how many reviews they must have 'removed' offering free service to their customers

Hmm, but at least your problem is sorted out ^^

 

[steven s]

Case Closed. Backups done, though I do not foresee any problems.

Are you on a shared host? If so, what about the others?

 

[Floris]

Good luck with the next Host.

Vote with your wallet.