914world is showing its age Options

[KELTY360]

Sorry to report that I'm computer illiterate.
But you guys have saved me Thousands of dollars in advice and support. The least I can do is pitch in a few hundred.

Please keep it an all-in-one site.
I also like the Garage, where all different types of topics are discussed without sub-categories. It provides exposure to issues that you won't have if there were separate groups.

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[Superhawk996]

I want to second something that was said above, this site is great BECAUSE of Andy, thank you!

Also, I agree with those who are not a fan of social media options.

I would be in for $100 to start and would be happy to subscribe. I don't go many places every day, but this is one.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

There is something very special about this site. There are a lot of details here that make the site what it is. Those range from how the site is laid out, to the lack of broken links, and the way the threads flow and scroll over time, as well as the ability to easily interact with other like minded members.

It’s sort of like what makes a 914 so special. It has all the same basic parts as all other cars. But the way they were designed and how it is put together as a package is what makes it unique.

I don’t have a handle on all the moving pieces that make this site great.

However, I trust SirAndy has a better handle on it than most and he has my full confidence to preserve what makes this site so special.

[Justinp71]

This site has been the ultimate 914 resource, as time goes on it will be a vital resource to 914 owners everywhere! I'm down to pitch in as well, sounds like we need a go fund me page?

[brant]

I'm definitely in for money.
this won't be a cheap process.. but worth paying for
what ever the final decision...I'll help however I can
do not have the tech skills to help with labor.. would if I did

brant

[chmillman]

Maybe we need a Go Fund Me page…

[930cabman]

Maybe we need a Go Fund Me page…

GFM takes 10% or so.

there might be a better way for us to manage this

[technicalninja]

Just use the normal PayPal addy that is already up.

A "Go Fund Me" is only applicable for the general public and I'd expect NO ONE who is not already a member to donate.

The general public does not care about a niche German sportscar site!



Gentlemen, you should also go "Friends and Family" on any donations if possible.

Sir Andy IS "Friends and Family" in my book!

[jc73-914]

sounds like a good idea, personally I'd be more than happy to contribute. thanks Andy for creating the forum and for those who contributed so many awesome ideas and shared knowledge.... priceless ...

[North Coast Jim]

914world is showing its age (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

The recent outage was not due to some cyber attack or malicious plotting from the darkest depths of the interwebs.

It was simply due to the forum software being overwhelmed by the amount of data stored here combined with the amount of traffic we're receiving.

Fact is, the software we're running on is more than 20 years old, written at a time when the internet was a much different place.
It was never meant to run for this long or handle the amount of data we have accumulated.


So what are our options?

- Keep going until everything crashes and burns into a pile.

- Start over fresh with a new server with new forum software. We'd be losing everything we have.

- Try to fix some of the issues by re-writing parts of the software, reworking the database and changing the way uploaded images are stored. Maybe even update the server itself while we're in there.


While the last choice seems the obvious one, the problem is that i do have a day-job that needs my attention and my time is limited.
It would also mean i'd probably have to shut down the site for a longer period of time, maybe a week or two, and maybe more than once.
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914 World is a valuable resource. My restoration would not be where it is without it.

I'm in for a donation when the time comes.

[930cabman]

I want to second something that was said above, this site is great BECAUSE of Andy, thank you!

Also, I agree with those who are not a fan of social media options.

I would be in for $100 to start and would be happy to subscribe. I don't go many places every day, but this is one.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

There is something very special about this site. There are a lot of details here that make the site what it is. Those range from how the site is laid out, to the lack of broken links, and the way the threads flow and scroll over time, as well as the ability to easily interact with other like minded members.

It’s sort of like what makes a 914 so special. It has all the same basic parts as all other cars. But the way they were designed and how it is put together as a package is what makes it unique.

I don’t have a handle on all the moving pieces that make this site great.

However, I trust SirAndy has a better handle on it than most and he has my full confidence to preserve what makes this site so special.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

Birds of a feather (crazy one at that) flock, well you know

as said before this forum has the best group of guys/gals around and always willing to assist

a big shout out to Andy (IMG:style_emoticons/default/piratenanner.gif)

[brant]

GFM is a 3rd party
Will definitely take a cut
And I personally feel no trust concerns with giving the money directly to Andy

In a different situation I could see needing a 3rd party

But not this one
Andy isn’t stealing any money
Andy has been paying the bills here for 20 years
I trust him

Let’s see what the path forward is
Really his decision
And once we know the path
Let’s fiund it so he doesn’t spend more of his own money

[technicalninja]

When this kicks off the "Car of the Month" should turn into the "Help Andy Update Page" with direct link to the PayPal account.


It should be the first thing anyone sees!!!!!!

Might be nice for members to post their reasons for donating as well.

I will.

I don't NEED this site to complete work. I have enough experience to "go it alone".

Having said that, this site is the most important TOOL in my "box" for repairing 914s.

I AM willing to pay for my tools...

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/ninja.gif)

[Chris914n6]

It's not the storage space (hard-drive space is cheap these days) or the size of the images but rather the actual number of images and how they are stored that is causing issues.

As for quoting images in a post, that does not create a duplicate image for us, the quote simply contains a link to the image in the original post.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/bye1.gif)

So how hard is it to upload all new pics to a new folder and keep links to the old folder?
I would think you could get links to search the new folder first then the old until success.
Or something like, if date before 1-22-25 use /images else use /images2

Just brainstorming something simple...

Yes, that's basically the solution.
Have a folder for each year and month so the number of images per folder remains manageable.

/uploads/2024/10/
/uploads/2024/11/
/uploads/2024/12/
/uploads/2025/01/


Not too hard to do actually, but only an option if we have full control of the forum software.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

Just to clarify, I'm talking about modding the current software. I'd just sort it into years, much easier date code to work with.

[jd74914]

It's not the storage space (hard-drive space is cheap these days) or the size of the images but rather the actual number of images and how they are stored that is causing issues.

As for quoting images in a post, that does not create a duplicate image for us, the quote simply contains a link to the image in the original post.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/bye1.gif)

So how hard is it to upload all new pics to a new folder and keep links to the old folder?
I would think you could get links to search the new folder first then the old until success.
Or something like, if date before 1-22-25 use /images else use /images2

Just brainstorming something simple...

Yes, that's basically the solution.
Have a folder for each year and month so the number of images per folder remains manageable.

/uploads/2024/10/
/uploads/2024/11/
/uploads/2024/12/
/uploads/2025/01/


Not too hard to do actually, but only an option if we have full control of the forum software.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

Just to clarify, I'm talking about modding the current software. I'd just sort it into years, much easier date code to work with.

Any options to migrate the storage into an S3 bucket (locally hosted of course)? We've done this with good success for a huge number of files (I believe we're working about 50M currently). Doesn't seem like a huge step given everything currently is in a functional block storage format.

[SirAndy]

Just to clarify, I'm talking about modding the current software. I'd just sort it into years, much easier date code to work with.

The work needed is about the same for either this software or any new software.
Yearly buckets would still result in 50k+ images per folder, which is better, but still not good.

I think chopping it up by month would be the better solution and much more scalable if we ever grow in active members going forward.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

PS: We have been pretty steady now for many years at around 1000 unique registered members checking in per day.

[SirAndy]

Any options to migrate the storage into an S3 bucket (locally hosted of course)? We've done this with good success for a huge number of files (I believe we're working about 50M currently). Doesn't seem like a huge step given everything currently is in a functional block storage format.

Cloud services like s3 charge per file access.

A single DDoS attack (we had several in the past) could easily spike the monthly cost to well over $10k.
I've heard stories of people going from $100 a month to $100k a month because of attacks.
That is not a risk i'm prepared to take.

Our current contract gives us *unlimited* bandwidth for a flat monthly fee.

It's the only way to go without me going bankrupt.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/shades.gif)

[Peeterabytes]

I work in computers and cyber security for my day job and have for the last 30 years. I am willing to help in any way I can as this forum has been instrumental for me in getting my old 914 back on the road. Thank you to all the current and past members.

Someone in the thread above suggested moving to a newer platform like Discourse which I agree with. I was surprised to find out that Discourse has import scripts available from their Gthub that can import from Invision Power Board.

It would require some additional server resources but here's a high level overview of the process:
1. Set up new Discourse instance (either cloud, hosted, or SaaS)
2. Backup old IPB data
3. Use the Discourse IPB import script
4. Passwords won't be migrated but emails could be sent to all migrated accounts
5. Validate the import succeeded.
6. Notify users

This is a very simplified overview but in general could be the way to a modern platform.

There are also Discourse migration services available for doing this to host on their platform with a monthly plan.

I also vote for setting this forum to read-only once migration is completed as a future reference but also thinking of how we could use the data for a custom AI using something like Ollama. That way we can ask the GPT queries and get responses based on the old forum's knowledge base.

We can use free services from Zoom and Slack to coordinate.

Again willing to offer my time, experience, and money to help.

Cheers!

[bigkensteele]

I am an IT professional with over 30 years of experience.

My recommendation is that we deploy younger and faster (perhaps bred in my home state of Kentucky) hamsters to run the wheels that power the site. Most breeds of hamster are software agnostic, so compatibility should not be a problem.

Given my extensive expertise in the profession, I would be more than happy to help train the next generation.

Or I could just throw a couple hundred bucks at the problem.

[ClayPerrine]

I am an IT professional with over 30 years of experience.

My recommendation is that we deploy younger and faster (perhaps bred in my home state of Kentucky) hamsters to run the wheels that power the site. Most breeds of hamster are software agnostic, so compatibility should not be a problem.

Given my extensive expertise in the profession, I would be more than happy to help train the next generation.

Or I could just throw a couple hundred bucks at the problem.

That would mean sacrificing hamsters needed to to keep our 914s running. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[jd74914]

Any options to migrate the storage into an S3 bucket (locally hosted of course)? We've done this with good success for a huge number of files (I believe we're working about 50M currently). Doesn't seem like a huge step given everything currently is in a functional block storage format.

Cloud services like s3 charge per file access.

A single DDoS attack (we had several in the past) could easily spike the monthly cost to well over $10k.
I've heard stories of people going from $100 a month to $100k a month because of attacks.
That is not a risk i'm prepared to take.

Our current contract gives us *unlimited* bandwidth for a flat monthly fee.

It's the only way to go without me going bankrupt.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/shades.gif)

Oh yeah, totally agree on using cloud hosted storage. I'm saying run a local cloud. We run a small Kubernetes stack with on-prem S3 storage.

*Side story-literally took a year to sell my Sr. management on building a local cluster vs. using AWS/Azure/etc. Our whole argument was cost based and it only because clear the cost exposure risk when one of our performance engineers ran this crazy query [by accident] that calc'd to a $50k bill. After that the whole local cloud was an easy sell. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)