Upgrading from v1.39h to v1.57c, no Upgrade button

**Upgrading from v1.39h to v1.57c on server with PHP 5.6. **
When I do so, I do not get the database “Upgrade” button.
Steps:

• In my cPanel, I create a new empty database (DB), assign a user with all privileges.
• Using PHPmyAdmin, I import the old v1.39h DB into the empty new DB
• In a test directory, I put all the fresh v1.57c files and I run the zc_install.
• First, the “System Setup” screen, all is set correctly, I click “Continue”
• Next, I reach the “Database screen” shown below. Note the “zen_” prefix is set to match the old v1.39h DB.
  If I click “continue” it displays an action/completion bar showing it is creating the database. At no time does it offer to upgrade. When complete, the large imported DB is wiped out and a small v1.57c DB is all that remains.

Why don’t I ever see the “Upgrade” Button?

The upgrade button is on a prior screen: the very first screen you see when you go to YOURSITE.com/zc_install.

swguy:

The upgrade button is on a prior screen: the very first screen you see when you go to YOURSITE.com/zc_install.

The screen capture below is the 1st screen I see. It does not know about a database yet. There are no config files yet.
The next screen if I press continue, is the "System Setup", where it displays the Licenses, Admin Settings, and Catalog Settings, which are all filled in correctly and are just paths. Then as shown in my original post, is the Database Setup screen.

This is the 2nd screen I see. I should have just posted all 3 to start with.

Hoping its something simple.

I found the steps below to upgrade.
The difference I see is #3. "Create a new directory and copy your site into it "
Copy your site into it??? I'm doing a database only upgrade and going with fresh v1.57c files.
Is this my issue?

1. Back up your site from the server as well as the copy on your computer.
2. Backup your database
3. Create a new directory and copy your site into it
4. Then create a new database and load your old database in it
5. Next, change the two configure.php files to utilize the new directory and database
6. Make sure all appears to be working on your temp site.
7. Now load the “new” version files to your new temp directory from latest downloaded ZIP
8. Run the http://www.YOURSITE.com/zc_install
9. Choose the Upgrade Database option

The problem was that even if you are doing a database only upgrade, you must use the old config files
Copy the old config files into the includes directories of the new v1.5x files. Modify them as necessary for any path changes.

Only then does the zc_intall recognize you are upgrading.

My upgrade seems to have succeeded. Lots of work to do

I found the steps below to upgrade.
The difference I see is #3. "Create a new directory and copy your site into it "
*Copy your site into it??? *I'm doing a database only upgrade and going with fresh v1.57c files.
*Is this my issue?

*With cpanel, the fastest way to this is...

1. Create an empty database
2. get the 1.5.7c files to your intended directory. i.e. newstore
3. run zc_install on the newstore directory to create the config files and populate the new database
4. delete all in the new database and replace with the old database
5. run zc_install again on the newstore installation.
   The upgrade button should show up at that point.

That doesn't mean it won't have some glitches in the upgrade. It's a big jump from 1.3.9. You may have to do some tweaking after the database upgrade. collation and timestamps come to mind.

The problem was that even if you are doing a database only upgrade, you must use the old config files

Not so much "the old config files" but "config files with the database information." You can use the latest version in dist-configure.php.

The steps I provided do not need any configure files as the installer creates them for you. Might want to look again at step three.

AFTER all that, you replace the new database with the tables and data in the old database and run zc_install for the database upgrade.