Easier to just do a full reinstall?

[Ravenshade]

Hi,

I've been looking at the upgrade files and it's just mind bogglingly tedious. Considering I operate my site on a hosted server (someone else hosts it for me) uploading and downloading all of the data is a little...time wasting.

Instead of trawling through every piece of data... I'm trying to upgrade from 1.3.9g to 1.3.9h... THIS SHOULD BE EASIER

Why do I have to re-check every single file again? Why not just upload only the files that have been changed instead of a complete list, . That way I can simply check only the files that have been changed. (If I need to).

So...would it be faster to just completely re-install a new one using the old database or does zencart store information else where?

Thanks for you patience.

[Ravenshade]

[Can't find the edit button].

I would like to note that I've only just started using Zen and thankfully I hadn't uploaded much information, so a fresh install is easier for me than it would be to some others who have uploaded lots to their site

[edit]

Original post doesn't have the edit button? bug? much?.

[kobra]

Instead of trawling through every piece of data... I'm trying to upgrade from 1.3.9g to 1.3.9h... THIS SHOULD BE EASIER

As you can have one to many addon modules one must check that these do not have a new version of any file that they use...

The intention of the template override system is to minimize the number of files that must be checked against the changed files, first by name, and if there are any matches then by file content

[kobra]

I would like to note that I've only just started using Zen and thankfully I hadn't uploaded much information, so a fresh install is easier for me than it would be to some others who have uploaded lots to their site

No need, as the g to h upgrade is only a few files changes 20 or so and if you haven't altered any/many then it is just an over write of those

[Ravenshade]

Unfortunately Kobra I can't identify which files are different, at least not easily. Ubuntu has some software that examines differences in the directory unfortunately that very same software neglects to include a key to what each display means (meaning I can't distinguish a modified file from a file that's already there).

I don't have the luxury of spending hours trawling through the files looking for differences in the byte count and then opening the files to see what's really changed and whether I actually need to include it or not.

I guess what I'm really trying to say is that I'm far too used to software such as SMF, Joomla and Anodyne which basically does all this for me and I simply add the files straight in overwriting what was already there if needs be.

[DrByte]

I'm trying to upgrade from 1.3.9g to 1.3.9h... THIS SHOULD BE EASIER

I don't have the luxury of spending hours trawling through the files looking for differences in the byte count and then opening the files to see what's really changed and whether I actually need to include it or not.

According to the changelog, which lists the names of the changed files between versions (and is included in the /docs/ folder of your files), there are approximately 40 files that were changed, and a few added/deleted, between v1.3.9g and v1.3.9h.

It's very simple: if you've not customized any of those files since they were last uploaded to your server, then just replace those files with the newer versions of them.

What's so hard about that?

[Ravenshade]

Not a lot..but that: 3 step update page is very misleading in that case.

I'd like to recommend to whoever it is that puts the updates up, to just put the files that need to be updated...make it really easy for the users to just up and go.

[DrByte]

Maybe for one or two it might, but the majority of folks come along and grab the wrong file and then come along complaining that it doesn't work. Maybe you're a rare exceptionally brilliant exception.

The published upgrade steps are written the way they are for a reason.
So also are the instructions within each version's changelog and what's new documentation, which tell you how to do minor-step upgrades such as you're trying to do. We can't make people read the docs though. Just the exceptionally brilliant ones.

[kobra]

Not a lot..but that: 3 step update page is very misleading in that case.

If you read, the 3 steps are covering comparison which could be considered another step??

This is not really that hard unless you make it so

I'd like to recommend to whoever it is that puts the updates up, to just put the files that need to be updated...make it really easy for the users to just up and go.

Because one should be using the template override system there should be no customizations to core files....and those the you override should be only a handful at most(10-40) out of about 1.000

Out of those 10-40 customized files you will probably find only a few that have changed

Owing to all the above and the many 3rd party addons that one might eventually use a set as you describe only complicates what the dev's have to do when they can be doing better things

[Ravenshade]

Okay so we've established I'm stupid

...although I'm a little confused about the upgrade system... (I figure I just add the zc_install thing back if I want to upgrade...that's a little...uh...yeah).

Anyway. Thanks for the help and the tips, I will in future look at the Change logs and just upload.

If the addons no longer work, so be it, I'd sooner have a secure yet very basic site rather than an insecure site with nifty features that customers will hardly use.

Maybe the developers could think of a way to use a layer system so that the add-on's don't interfere with the core files (just a thought).