# vBulletin 4 Installation / Upgrade

## vBulletin 4 zip file contents

do_not_upload/ folder (This folder contains administration files. Only use these when you're told to upload it by a support staff, or if you know what you're doing)
`- file: tools.php (a script to help you fix (login) problems and rebuild caches for usergroups, bitfields, etc.)
`- file: searchshell.php (a php shell script to rebuild search index from console)
`- file: vb_backup.sh (a bash shell script to backup the database, especially handy for nightly backups)

license_agreement.html file (All customers must agree to this license agreement prior to downloading and using the vBulletin software, read it)
vb4_readme.html (HTML version of this installation, upgrade, information file)
vb4_readme.txt (TEXT version of this installation, upgrade, information file)

upload/ folder (This folder contains all the files from the vBulletin forum software that you need to upload when installing or upgrading)
`- All the files inside this folder are required to run vBulletin, see the below installation and/or upgrade instructions on which files to modify and/or to delete after an installation or upgrade.

## Installing a new vBulletin 4 Community

First, unzip the vBulletin zip file you downloaded from the members' area to your hard disk and then open the 'upload/includes/' folder. In this you will find config.php.new. You should rename this to config.php and then open it in a text editor.

The config.php file is commented throughout, so you should be able to work out what values to enter for the variables yourself.
The values for the config.php file are described in detail here.

When you have finished, save the file and then upload the entire contents of the 'upload/' folder to your web server.

When this is done, point your browser at http://www.example.com/forums/install/install.php (where www.example.com/forums/ is the URL of your vBulletin)

The install will ask for your Customer Number to login.

Once you are logged in you can proceed to follow the instructions on the screen. When ready click the Next Step buttons until the script asks to fill in some addresses and names for your board.

After you have done this, the installer will ask you for some details to set you up as the administrator of the new vBulletin. A few more clicks and the script will be finished.

Before proceeding to the Admin Control Panel, you must delete the 'install/install.php' file from your webserver. You may then enter the control panel and start working on your new vBulletin!

The entire installation process should take no more than five minutes.

For a complete description of how to install vBulletin 4, see the installation section of the vBulletin Manual.

## Upgrades

Before starting any upgrade to a new version of vBulletin the first step that should be done is to take a backup.

You can find more information about backing up here: Database Backup

After backing up it may be a good idea to also disable your plugins, especially between major versions of vBulletin. You can do this a few ways:

- Disable from the config.php file: define("DISABLE_HOOKS", 1);
- Disable from the AdminCP: AdminCP > Settings > Options > Plugin/Hook System >
- Disable one by one via the Product Manager

## Upgrading from vBulletin 4.0.x

Close your board via the Admin Control Panel.

Upload all files from the 'upload/' folder in the zip, with the exception of 'install/install.php'. Then open the 'upload/includes/' folder. In this you will find config.php.new. You should rename this to config.php and then open it in a text editor.

Open your browser and point the URL to http://www.example.com/forum/install/upgrade.php (where www.example.com/forums/ is the URL of your vBulletin). You should now be automatically forwarded to the appropriate upgrade script and step.

If any errors occur, copy the error and please contact support. DO NOT continue with the upgrade. Doing so may cause irreversible damage to the database.

Follow the instructions on the screen. Make sure you click next step or proceed until you are redirected to your Admin Control Panel. Here, you can reopen your board.

## Upgrading from vBulletin 3.8.x

Close your board via the Admin Control Panel.

Upload all files from the 'upload/' folder in the zip, with the exception of 'install/install.php'. Then open the 'upload/includes/' folder.

Open your browser and point the URL to http://www.example.com/forum/install/upgrade.php (where www.example.com/forums/ is the URL of your vBulletin). You should now be automatically forwarded to the appropriate upgrade script and step.

If any errors occur, copy the error and please contact support. DO NOT continue with the upgrade. Doing so may cause irreversible damage to the database.

Follow the instructions on the screen. Make sure you click next step or proceed until you are redirected to your Admin Control Panel. Here, you can reopen your board.

For a complete description of how to upgrade from a previous version of vBulletin to the latest version, see the upgrade section of the vBulletin Manual.

## Upgrading from older versions of vBulletin

Before upgrading to vBulletin 4.0, you will need to download the files to upgrade to vBulletin 3.8.x. Once your community is running on vBulletin 3.8.x, then you can upload the vBulletin 4.0 files and perform the upgrade to this version. If you need assistance with this, contact vBulletin Support.

Note: vBulletin 4.0 uses a new Template and Stylevar engine. This means your previous styles are not compatible with vBulletin 4.0. When you upgrade, they will be disabled and a new style will be created and set as the default style.

Note: There are several upgrade scripts that need to be run. You do not need to determine which you need to run; they will be determined automatically. Simply click "next step" or "proceed" until you are redirected to your admin control panel.

When the scripts are complete, it will tell you to delete some files, and then redirect you to the Admin Control Panel. You should log in to this and proceed to the Maintenance section of the control panel, where you should run the Update Counters tools. The Rebuild Search Index and Rebuild Statistics will take a quite a long time to run on larger boards.

## Appendix: More information

Here are some important links with more information:

- The vBulletin Online Manual (http://www.vBulletin.com/docs/htm l/) - With installation and upgrade instructions, indepth feature and options information and more technical documents.
- The vBulletin Members Area (http://members.vBulletin.com/) - Download area for vBulletin, private customer support tickets area, etc.
- The vBulletin Support Forums (http://www.vBulletin.com/forum/) - Free priority support forums, latest announcements with indepth release details, etc.

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