How do I do a clean install but keep current database?

📦 Install & Upgrade Help
1

My current installation of Suite is mostly broken but I believe that the database is OK. (See my post at https://suitecrm.com/suitecrm/forum/installation-upgrade-help/18114-do-not-update-to-7-10-1)

What is the procedure to install Suite but use the current database?

We are very technical here but don’t know the internals of Suite. We can edit code or config files, as well as manage the database with phpMyAdmin.

Perhaps someone will give us a short, step by step, list of things we need to do.

I searched here in the forum but have not found anything.

If we can’t do this new install and keep the data, we will leave the platform after using it for the past four years. We have a ‘backup’ with the espocrm.com system but we’d like to stay with Suite if possible.

Thanks.

2

You can do a full dump of the database from phpMyAdmin or from mysql command-line, then install a clean SuiteCRM of the same version, and then import the database.

Do not attempt this while crossing to a different SuiteCRM version, it really has to be the same version.

3

In theory I should be able to create a brand new MySQL database, Download Suite to a new directory. Do the install. And then change this part of the config.php to the values in the old config.php:

array (
‘db_host_name’ => ‘localhost’,
‘db_host_instance’ => ‘SQLEXPRESS’,
‘db_user_name’ => ‘xxxx’,
‘db_password’ => ‘aaaaa’,
‘db_name’ => ‘yyyy’,
‘db_type’ => ‘mysql’,
‘db_port’ => ‘’,
‘db_manager’ => ‘MysqliManager’,

Then I can delete the database I created for the install.

Does this sound right?

Do even have to do the install? Can I just bring in the old config.php file? Or does the installer populate that file with some other stuff?

Somewhere there must be someone who has done a clean install using a current database?

Thanks.

4

I never tried that method, I have tried the other one. It’s pretty easy, MySQL makes it really simple to Export/Import.

The installer does do quite a few things to the system, so I think bypassing the install operation is not an option.

But if you want to try your method, it might work, good luck! and tell me how it went. :slight_smile:

5

I did the above (including the install) and things are working again in the clean install.

What is interesting is the on the previous install in a Detail View of a Lead or Account there was an Edit button at the top. In the new install it is located as part of a dropdown called Actions.

At least I’m up and running again.

What a mess.

6

That might just be the effect of an option: Admin / System settngs / Show actions in menus

Anyway, I’m really glad you got things working again!

7

You are right. I unchecked the box and the buttons are back on top.

Thanks.

The left hand “Recently Viewed” sidebar is still screwed up… showing “Base Impl…”.

[editorial]

Given the lack of QC in recent updates our company (which I run) is going to use our http://espocrm.com database as our production system and Suite as the backup, switching roles here. Yes, it is double the data entry but we only make a few entries a day (we are a web design and graphics company) and so it is not a big deal time-wise. We only keep basic info… name, address, and a ‘progress log’ in the description area.

Sugar/Suite has served us well for the past ten years (about five years each) but I think the complexity of the old legacy Sugar codebase is making additions to the Suite system difficult to code and thus, unstable. (I’ve been a programmer for 30 years and I know what I’m talking about here after looking at the codebase of Sugar/Suite.) Maybe SA can find the resources to re-write the system. I have no complaints. We don’t pay for Suite so we have no demands. We’d like it to work better and have made some changes ourselves. I think a lot of this is our own fault in that we keep current with the system when we probably should stay with a previous and stable version. Maybe Suite should structure the product into three tiers like Debian does… bleeding edge, testing, and stable. The issue is that the recent previous versions were not much more stable than the newest one is.

It is hard to maintain an old codebase. We know. We are going EOL on the http://jaya123.com JAYA123 system we’ve had out there for 14 years. It is 200,000 lines of old PHP code. It is time for us to re-write it from start to finish! Maybe it is the same for SA and Suite?

[/editorial]