XF 2.1 vBulletin 3.8 (1.5M posts) to Xenforo 2.1 importing

Jon12345

Jon12345

Well-known member
My good old trusty vBulletin software that served me well is coming to end of life. So I am imminently contemplating the switch to Xenforo 2.1. I already have another forum using Xenforo, and I am a big fan.

I've read here that the import functionality built into Xenforo can import any sized board. But I also see there are custom scripts for big boards that you can buy, and also import services from the likes of MySiteGuy and Slavik.

Any recommendations on doing the import? Should I use the built in Xenforo functionality or get a big board script? Should I use either MySiteGuy or Slavik rather than do it myself?
 
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My personal workflow would be to leave your vBulletin files in place during the import, and create a temporary forums.xf (or similar) folder for the XenForo files, setting the XenForo board URL to mysite.com/forums.xf/, then run the import via the CLI, check that you're happy with the results and when you are, rename forums to forums.vb, rename forums.xf to forums, update the XF board URL via the control panel and away you go, remembering to set up the XF 301 redirect system so your old vBulletin links still work.
 
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I can backup my whole board and mysql using cpanel before my attempted migration. Supposedly, xenforo will have you create a new mysql db using cpanel, so at least my vbulletin mysql db remains intact, so I can revert if needed?

Also, if I just shift everything vbulletin to ForumOld, does that mean I can still view and log into that forum too, even after Xenforo is installed? I'm thinking this might be handy if I can, because then I can go back and forth between Xenforo and vBulletin to make sure I get nodes matched etc.
 
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If Retain content IDs is not selected, data will be imported with sequential IDs that do not match the source database. This is the default option, and in most cases is faster and more reliable.
Click to expand...

The manual says the default option is faster and more reliable. Does that mean faster for the import or just that the db will run faster if using the default?

But then in this thread there is this quote:

If you retain IDs then you should be able to get away with standard .htaccess rewrites.

Otherwise you will need the redirection script.
Click to expand...

So, what is the best choice?

Sorry about all the questions. I just don't want to cock it up!
 
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Jon12345 said:
Why do you need test runs? Don't you just do it the once?
Click to expand...

You'll want to make sure everything imported correctly, you may even want to take a couple days to go over it with a fine tooth comb.

You'll also want to go through each and every XF setting to make sure you don't lose data. Case in point: I wanted to keep my post edit data. After my import it was there. The next day it only had a few entries. There is a setting to remove it after 60 days and the cron ran. I had to reset and reimport. There are also other pruning settings like admin logs, etc. Just go through it and make sure you have it to your liking.
 
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Thanks for everybody's help. I managed to get the import done. It took a lot longer than anticipated and I hit a number of issues that needed resolving. But my forum members are over the moon with the new look, feel and functionality of Xenforo.
 
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Just a thought, I have my old forum still on the same site with a hidden url. I don't want Google to accidentally spider it and get duplicate content. What do I need to add to the robots.txt file and what directory is it supposed to be in?
 
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In the first instance, I will use robots.txt to disallow spiders, since that is a bit easier for me to understand than the htaccess method.

Currently, my robots.txt has this:

Code: 
User-agent: *
Allow: /

Disallow: /wp-admin
Disallow: /wp-includes
Disallow: /wp-content
Disallow: /search/*/feed
Disallow: /search/*/*

User-agent: Mediapartners-Google
Allow: /

User-agent: Adsbot-Google
Allow: /

User-agent: Googlebot-Image
Allow: /

User-agent: Googlebot-Mobile
Allow: /

Should i be changing it to:

Code: 
User-agent: *
Allow: /

Disallow: /wp-admin
Disallow: /wp-includes
Disallow: /wp-content
Disallow: /search/*/feed
Disallow: /search/*/*
Disallow: /forums.vb/

User-agent: Mediapartners-Google
Allow: /

User-agent: Adsbot-Google
Allow: /

User-agent: Googlebot-Image
Allow: /

User-agent: Googlebot-Mobile
Allow: /

My old forums had moved from the forums folder to forums.vb, while my new installation has been put in the forums folder. I just don't want to mess up the robots.txt file and end up excluding the bots from my live forum!

Also, do I need some kind of wildcard just in case a bot tried to go to some subdirectory in forums.vb?
 
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