Nervous About Upgrading

[johns4y]

I have received notification from my ISP that the version of PHP I use will no longer be supported. I am currently still on ZenCart V1.5.4 and PHP V5.6.40
It looks like I have no choice now but to upgrade. The last time I did it was 2014 and I lost a months worth of data. To be honest I don't really know what I am doing and am nervous that I am going to royally screw things up. I have attempted to understand and follow the "How to guide to rebuild instead of upgrading" but it just makes my head spin.
Is there an Idiots Guide that even I can follow to help me get my site up to spec? All I have done to my site is change the look, added the PayPal plug-in and changed a few button gifs.
Any help would be greatly appreciated especially before the deadline date of 21st Oct.

[dbltoe]

When you are doing that big a jump, you will probably need to upgrade every mod as well. Some may have died along the way.

Keep your site up while you set up the new in a test folder.

https://www.zen-cart.com/entry.php?3...d-of-upgrading

[swguy]

Is there an Idiots Guide that even I can follow to help me get my site up to spec? All I have done to my site is change the look, added the PayPal plug-in and changed a few button gifs.

Since you're on 1.5.4, I am guessing your template doesn't support mobile? Your best route would be just to use the new responsive_classic, add your images and tweaks your language files as needed. As @dbltoe said, you can practice this on a test site to build your confidence.

[mc12345678]

Everyone learns and understands in different ways. Perhaps you could explain what about the described process identified in your original post and then in a way linked to by another offering assistance.

I know one way I look at it is this:
Install an unedited version of the software to a system that is identical to what you are going to end up using. Test it to see how it works and how it looks.
Then make a choice based on what your evaluation identifies. Whether to install other similar things as what is on your live site, add something not there yet but is desired for the new site, attempt to see how the site will work when just the data is carried over, or any other series of considerations. Whatever the choice made, know that as long as this is being done in an area that is *not* your actual live site, that you are free to make mistakes. Further, whatever route(s) you take there is something to be learned from it and understanding what can and is being "tested" can be helpful. (installing a plugin at this point: does it work as described using a default store in your environment, what actions are really necessary to perform the install, is there an upgrade path for that plugin compared to what may have been installed?)
Once all aspects of this "new" site have been tested as desired above, then the question is how it will operate when a *copy* of your live site's database is put to use... yes, there may be some initial "shock" when the database is brought in. E.g. If the specific template in the new store fileset isn't the same as the one on the live site or never has been initially setup, then the initial display of that template may appear as if the site is broken. This is because settings related to that specific template may not have been established and need to be adjusted. So, a *copy* of the live database is brought to the new site. The database gets updated. This is the first opportunity to learn what it is going to be like to update the live store. Make notes of anything that seemed unusual, any special actions needed to be taken to get the site to look and operate as desired, etc... the more detailed this is, the easier the real thing will be.
With the *copy* of the database updated, now is a time where any other incomplete actions from above can be done. One at a time. Do, test, record, and repeat.
A recommendation upon completion of that is to somewhat do it all again. At least to do the database upgrade again, see if you can successfully repeat all that is needed to get your new store to work as desired based on your live store data...
Then, once it seems like it will be a quick success and have gotten through any issues, you want to communicate with your customers to let them know when and how long the store might be affected to support an upgrade.
Do whatever you need to do to make the transition easy. Remember you could practice this as well in an alternate area. Now what is being done/tested is the transition from old files to new files... the store should be in maintenance mode at this point so in a way there's not really any expected issues with interfacing with the database.
Once the new files become the store's fileset and the store is pointing to the original/live database, the database is yet again updated while applying whatever lessons were learned from above. Test the site as a customer and admin much like has already been done above. When all seems good, all files are as desired to at least support sales, it's time to go live again.

This last action could be a matter of minutes if fully prepared but ideally less than an hour. Planning and preparation will take longer, but the goal is to minimize the impact to your customers which is your business...

As said, there are multiple ways to view the process, above is one perspective by one individual. While not included at each step, realize the power and importance of making frequent backups along the way. Also be sure to understand the restore process associated with those backups. Backing/restoring files can be a little different from backing up/restoring a database. Restoring files/filesets generally doesn't remove any specific file that has been added after the backup. Restoring a database will replace tables that existed, but may/may not remove tables that were added/modified after the backup was made. The importance in these will be better understood as you go through whatever process you use to get your site updated.

Hopefully that helps, again if not then help those here to help you by explaining your situation, understanding and confusion.

[torvista]

The fact that people keep asking, implies that current documentation is not meeting people's needs.
I am very clear how to upgrade, but when I have started to read the process my brain glazes over.

The same thing has been explained many times by many people, so there is no shortage of text to choose from...to put in the new documentation Storeowner section written for a non-developer.

Once something is in there we can all tweak it/argue about it. The lengthy answer above implies that some people (not me) have enough spare time and goodwill to start this off...

[dbltoe]

Once something is in there we can all tweak it/argue about it. The lengthy answer above implies that some people (not me) have enough spare time and goodwill to start this off...

Exactly why I sent the OP to DrByte's post. Closest I've found to perfect.

When jumping that many versions, it's just ridiculous to do other than a separate install to "tweak" while the business stays open.

[johns4y]

I first created my shop 12 years ago and back then things seemed to be much simpler. It would seem I have forgotten more than I have learnt.
I need things simplified to the nth degree, everything in a nutshell.
I have read the guide and I think I understand....
1) Upload new install to a temporary folder.
2) Use file compare software to identify those template and plug-in files that I have altered in my old copy and move the across to the new copy.
3) Check new copy to see if everything is operating correctly
4) If so rename current shop folder something else and change the name of the new shop folder to the exisiting shop folder
5) Check to see if everything is function correctly and if so delete the old shop folder. Perhaps delaying the deleting for a week to just to be sure.

Have I got any of that right? I did once Google for a company that could do this upgrading for me but they were asking silly money to do it.
Thanks for your guidance everyone, I look forward to the day when Zencart updates are just one click affairs.

[dbltoe]

I really would not do it that way based on your indications of expertise. I wouldn't do it that way and I've done many.

At https://www.zen-cart.com/entry.php?3...d-of-upgrading, read the third option. "How do I do an upgrade and still keep my live store running in the meantime?"

If you have cPanel, use these instructions to set up your test site: https://docs.zen-cart.com/user/first...t-using-cpanel

[DrByte]

Is there an Idiots Guide ... I can follow to help me get my site up to spec?

I need things simplified to the nth degree, everything in a nutshell.

Maybe it's just your choice of words, but I'm confused.

When someone asks me for an "Idiots Guide" they usually mean "every step clearly spelled out, in great detail so I can't miss a single step".

But then when they say "simplified to the nth degree, everything in a nutshell", it tells me they don't actually want the detail ... they just want "here's the big picture, I'll figure it out myself".

So ... to me it seems you're contradicting yourself.

I know upgrading can feel daunting, especially if one has struggled with it in the past.
It's hard to capture a technical process in steps that every human with every possible background and skill and familiarity level could grasp without feeling like the content is either too little or too much.

I read in your posts earlier that you said you read some of the suggested docs. Unfortunately your comments about them feel to me like they just seemed too much unlike the style you preferred and so you decided you didn't like them and just gave up on them. And then you decided to ask for something much more brief instead.

"in a nutshell" you said.

So, barebones, DIY, in-a-nutshell, ultrasimplified: make a backup, install a new site, rebuild it to look/work like you want, point the new site to the old database and upgrade it. Then cleanup after yourself.

That's as in-a-nutshell as it gets. But it's not an Idiots Guide. There are lotsa things people usually overlook if they don't dig into the docs.

That said, I've updated the Upgrade docs with more how-to detail on each step. Hopefully you'll at least use it as a guide/checklist instead of throwing it out the window.

[njcyx]

I just want to share my experience for server upgrade. I was in your same shoes. Early this month, we received a notice regarding PHP force upgrade. We have no choice but to upgrade my site. The oldest PHP that my ISP will support late this month is PHP 7.2. So my only choice is zen cart 157.

Since 157 is the latest. Some of the plugins we are using are not yet compatible. We gave up superorder plug-in (we used to use superorder to bulk print daily packingslip), and finally made legacy local sales tax plug-in work (we have different tax rate for different zipcode in my state).

For your upgrade, you can use your current database (please backup your database at first) and use the new installation files. You may need to clean your database by running the following code before the upgrade by installation file.

https://www.zen-cart.com/showthread....21#post1353021

For PHP 7.2, you will encounter some errors and warnings (like older USPS and FedEx plug-in versions). Just search the warning keyword in forum, and hopefully/most likely you will find the solution.

Please do some tests on your testing server. If it works, then upgrade your live server.