Possible to Upgrade Database Only?

I have 2 different carts I am using

1 is a live site with 1.3.7 and the other is a test site using latest 1.3.9

The test site is where I am making all my changes with add-ons, customizations etc...

I plan on moving this all to the Live site when I am done.

On the test site I am using a test database and not the live one.

I would like to change my configures on the test site to use the database of the live site but cannot do that because of the live site using an old database version 1.3.7

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So my question is this:

Can I just upgrade the database on the live site without new pages being added/updated without any adverse effects?

Any thoughts on this?

You're sort of doing things backwards. What you should have done was:

1. Upload the latest version of Zen Cart to the test site.
2. Create a new blank database for the test site.
3. Import your old database into it.
4. Reconfigure the two configure.php files for the test site address, database, MySQL User Name and Password.
5. Go to the test site address plus /zc_install and then select the "Upgrade Database Only"option.
6. You'd then have a test site using the latest Zen Cart with your database upgraded to the latest level. You could then test this all out, add your add-ons and test those before putting it all live.

However, as your live site has probably had new customers, new products added, and orders since you started this work, you will have to bite the bullet and upgrade the live database.

But you should only do this when you are certain that the test site is all working.

Then you put the live site "Down For Maintenance" while you copy all the test site folders and files to the live site (except for the two configure.php files), upload the zc_install folder for the test site version of Zen Cart to the live site, and run it selecting the "Upgrade Database Only" option.

Vger

I know I am doing this backwards but I am doing that for a couple different reasons.

The test site is using the latest 1.3.9 version as I stated above.

I just need to know if I can upgrade the database without upgrading the zen cart on a site is all? Another words with the files from ZC 1.3.7 work with Database Version ZC 1.3.9

I may just have to create another test site to see if it is possible until I can finish with all the modifications.

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The test site is using the latest 1.3.9 version as I stated above.

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Yes, and that's why I said you should import the old database into the new version and upgrade it there to 1.3.9+ - and then add your add-ons all over again, making sure they are the latest versions which are 1.3.9+ compatible. No point in reinstalling add-ons if they are not 1.3.9+ compatible.

It's still not too late. Take a backup of the live database. Access the test site database using phpMyAdmin, and "drop" all the tables. Import the old database and run the new version zc_install on the test site selecting the "Upgrade Database Only" option (the two configure.php files have to be writeable during this procedure). Any changes you made to the test site database for any add-ons you have set up on the test site will have to be redone.

No, you cannot just upgrade the database on the live site without updating the file set.

Vger

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Originally Posted by Vger

No, you cannot just upgrade the database on the live site without updating the file set.

Vger

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Ok thats what I needed to know.

Thank you.

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Originally Posted by Vger

No, you cannot just upgrade the database on the live site without updating the file set.

Vger

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And that's just nuts--especially for the minor point upgrades. Essentially, you're having people rebuild their entire sites even for minor upgrades like (in my case currently) 1.5.4 to 1.5.5a. A 1.5.4 database works with a storefront and admin on 1.5.5 so why should I have to completely rebuild the site with all the risk and disruption that could cause?

More than once I've gotten half-way through the zc_install process only to find that I've not been offered the "upgrade" option. (Yes, I've done this on test instances to test out the concept before going live.)

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Originally Posted by acmaurer

And that's just nuts--especially for the minor point upgrades. Essentially, you're having people rebuild their entire sites even for minor upgrades like (in my case currently) 1.5.4 to 1.5.5a.

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While going from v154 to v155 is listed as a "minor point update", the changes are actually VERY significant: big core code changes to improve security, provide significant enhancements to empower mobile/responsive templates, big database changes which require matching PHP code changes (so if you didn't apply them you'd get lots of errors), and more. Some could argue with some degree of accuracy that it shouldn't have been a "minor point upgrade" ... and they'd be right in several points. But it wasn't called "1.5.4b". it was called "1.5.5", which denotes that there ARE some changes that are MORE than just a couple database SQL statements to run.

You don't "have to rebuild" your site. But you DO need to carefully inspect all the changes and apply them against all your own files (customized or not).


The Zen Cart development team are working hard on a number of (very big) architectural code changes which, while they will be big when making the first jump, will make future upgrades VERY MINOR, almost trivial, because core code files won't need touching for most customizations (unless you choose to, in which case you're creating your own challenges not driven by the architecture). The jump to v160 will include some of this "pain", but will make the future much easier to manage.
In the meantime, because of the older architecture which Zen Cart inherited when it forked from osC, the 1.5.x upgrades are less pleasant than we would like. We're working on fixing that.
Until then, I recommend: http://www.zen-cart.com/entry.php?3-...d-of-upgrading