The One Ring Forums: Tolkien Topics: Main:
1-25-26 ANNOUNCEMENT - BOARDS MIGRATING TO NEW PLATFORM ---> 5-4-26 Update Below



Altaira
Superuser

Jan 26, 4:32am


Views: 2867
1-25-26 ANNOUNCEMENT - BOARDS MIGRATING TO NEW PLATFORM ---> 5-4-26 Update Below

Greetings!

Everyone here is aware how slow the boards have been. Thanks to all of you for persevering to get in! This is to let you know that help is on the way!

In the next 4-6 weeks these forums will be migrated to a new cloud software platform: Xenforo. Once migrated, through an agreement with TORn, Xenforo will take care of all data storage and software updates on the back end. I will still be the ‘Superuser’ and administer the forums on a day-to-day basis, along with the current forum admins.

Why is this necessary? The old Gossamer Forum software is no longer compatible with modern SSL server standards, so the current boards cannot run on TORn’s newer server. The old server is old and rickety and needs to be retired. In addition, the forum developers stopped supporting Gforum years ago, so it eventually became outdated, and unable to defend against modern, sophisticated internet bots that slowed the site down significantly.

The good news is that all of the threads, posts, private messages, and user information on these boards since their inception in 2007 will be migrated, so none of it will be lost! The only thing that will not migrate is passwords. So, you will eventually have to log in and create a new password once the migration is complete.

Unfortunately, the one thing we’re going to unavoidably lose is ‘threaded’ mode. Some of you will rejoice at this, while others will gnash your teeth. But the sad fact is that only a very few forum platforms offer it any more, and those that do take someone with developer skills who can dedicate themselves to set-up and maintenance. Also, they don’t offer migration services, so we’d have to start over from square one.

Therefore, Xenforo is really the best option. To be sure, it will take some getting used to, but having newer and more robust features will make it well worth it. There *is* a ‘in reply to’ feature that will help keep track of the conversations.

Check back here for updates. If you can’t get in, you can email me at altaira@theonering.net with any questions. But, keep in mind that we’re still at the very initial stages of getting this going, so I don’t have any answers to questions about how things will look or work. I’m guessing that will take at least 3-4 weeks, and will also all be laid out in a new board FAQ.

Keep persevering, and we’ll have shiny, new forums soon!


(This post was edited by Altaira on May 5, 3:42am)


grammaboodawg
Elvenhome


Jan 26, 7:30pm


Views: 2772
Thank You! :D

What a monumental Quest! That TORn can be saved is such a relief. And that the guts of our Community since 2007 can also be saved has put a huge smile of relief on this ol' gammer's face, though it sounds like the posts previous to 2007 won't make the trip. *sniffle* Still... this is a fair trade, imho!

Praise our TORn home and Admins with great praise!!! Heart





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Lissuin
Doriath


Jan 27, 3:40am


Views: 2763
Cheers, friends!

That is, indeed, good news and worthy of a toast with the best ale in the Shire.

[Inline Hobbitcheer.jpeg]


Lissuin
Doriath


Jan 27, 3:50am


Views: 2763
Cheers, friends!

That is, indeed, good news and worthy of a toast with the best ale in the Shire!


Felagund
Mithlond


Jan 28, 1:57pm


Views: 2750
Good to know / plea for help!

Not sure if this migration is the cause but most of my login attempts are resulting in a 'You are banned' notice. If I've been actually banned, then that's on me but the Internet tells me that this is a relatively common problem for Message Board denizens. Is there anything you can do in the interim to help?

Cheers in advance!

Welcome to the Mordorfone network, where we put the 'hai' back into Uruk


NottaSackville
Doriath

Jan 28, 2:46pm


Views: 2742
Amazing! Thank you so much!

It's such a gift to have so many people that are still willing to spend the time and effort to keep our little community going. Your work is greatly appreciated!

Happiness: money matters, but less than we think and not in the way that we think. Family is important and so are friends, while envy is toxic -- and so is excessive thinking. Beaches are optional. Trust is not. Neither is gratitude. - The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner as summarized by Lily Fairbairn. And a bit of the Hobbit reading thrown in never hurts. - NottaSackville


Otaku-sempai
Elvenhome


Jan 28, 6:15pm


Views: 2732
Thanks for the Heads Up!

And I'm glad to see that the 'bots have been beaten back for now.

“Hell hath no fury like that of the uninvolved.” - Tony Isabella


Altaira
Superuser

Jan 28, 9:02pm


Views: 2723
Banning legitimate users is accidental (and a note on vpns)

First off, you for sure haven't been banned.

To fight the bots, I have to ban IP address ranges because they're so sophisticated now that their IP address changes slightly with every click they make. But, the first group of numbers is usually the same, or very similar.

As most of the bots are from China, India, etc., it's usually safe to do it that way because the chances of accidentally banning a legitimate user is low. However, it's not zero. In fact, I've accidentally banned myself several times because even static IP addressed change periodically! LaughLaugh

I'll look into it and tweak things which should fix it. Smile

Also, a note to anyone who uses a vpn to protect your browsing location: sometimes IP address vpns use to mask your location may, temporarily, be in a banned range. The solution is either to close your browser and re-open it, or turn off the vpn while using TORn. Not sure how the new forums will handle this, but it may not be an issue soon. That's a bridge we'll cross in the near future.


(This post was edited by Altaira on Jan 28, 9:20pm)


cats16
Gondolin


Feb 2, 8:52pm


Views: 2649
Thanks so much for the update!

Sounds like great things are coming soon - very exciting! Thanks so you and everyone behind the scenes sorting it all out.

Smile

Join us every weekend in the Hobbit movie forum for this week's CHOW (Chapter of the Week) discussion!




noWizardme
Gondolin


Feb 5, 5:13pm


Views: 2616
Best of luck with the migration to the new software...

Best of luck with the migration to the new software. And thank you to all those doing the work! Heart

~~~~~~
"I am not made for querulous pests." Frodo 'Spooner' Baggins.


Meneldor
Doriath


Feb 8, 7:08pm


Views: 2581
Ditto


In Reply To
Not sure if this migration is the cause but most of my login attempts are resulting in a 'You are banned' notice. If I've been actually banned, then that's on me but the Internet tells me that this is a relatively common problem for Message Board denizens. Is there anything you can do in the interim to help?

Cheers in advance!

I think it's been more than a month since I was able to even read here. It's still very slow and glitchy today. I'm looking forward to the move.



They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. -Psalm 107


Lossefalme
Mithlond


Feb 16, 10:34pm


Views: 2458
Thank you!

All good info and it IS time for an update. I appreciate all of your hard work and care!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Aragorn threw back his cloak. The elven-sheath glittered as he grasped it, and the bright blade of Andúril shone like a sudden flame as he swept it out. “Elendil!” he cried. “I am Aragorn son of Arathorn, and am called Elessar, the Elfstone, Dúnadan, the heir of Isildur Elendil’s son of Gondor. Here is the Sword that was Broken and is forged again! Will you aid me or thwart me? Choose swiftly!” TTT, Book III, Chapter 2
And Éomer answered: “Since the day when you rose before me out of the green grass of the downs I have loved you, and that love shall not fail.” RotK, Book VI, Chapter 5


Finding Frodo
Dor-Lomin


Feb 21, 2:12am


Views: 2321
Me too!

I’m delighted to learn that I didn’t accidentally offend someone and lose my TORnsibs, even though I’m not around much. Thank you, Admins!

Where's Frodo?


CuriousG
Gondolin


Feb 22, 9:32pm


Views: 2230
I kinda liked getting the "You have been banned" notice

Normally it's a lotta work to get banned from TORN. You have to say things like:
  • "There are too many women in LOTR, and all the men are wimps."
  • "The best wizard in LOTR is Obi Wan Kenobi."
  • "I hope Frodo's ship to the West hit an iceberg and sank."
I've said stuff like that for years, and just get a "tsk tsk," but suddenly I used a VPN, and it's ban-dom for me. Who knew it was so easy? Smile

Jokes aside, I hope the migration work is going well, and thanks to all involved. Don't talk to any Black Riders on empty country roads as you migrate or pick up any shiny golden rings!


Jeremy
Ossiriand


Feb 28, 4:02pm


Views: 2094
XenForo

XenForo is very functional forum software and it will be a great upgrade for TORn!


Eldy
Dor-Lomin


Mar 2, 12:10am


Views: 2079
I'm delighted to hear ...

... that the 2007–present "newboards" will be carried over, rather than this being a hard reset. I'd understand if that was necessary, of course, but this way is the best of both worlds. Thank you to everyone involved!


Ethel Duath
Gondolin


Mar 2, 9:01pm


Views: 2056
I suggest starting a TORn "banned" garage band. Or

a very long thread on all possible ban-related puns.

Or, a discussion on all things "banning" in the Legendarium.



Tintallë
Mithlond


Mar 5, 5:01am


Views: 2054
First time in a very long time!

And, it seems, just in time for this announcement of a change.


Roheryn
Dor-Lomin

Mar 11, 10:02pm


Views: 1958
My TORn garage banned...

would be Split Entz. Or possibly Mordorhead. Cool

(These boards have gotten sooo slow! Great to see that they're getting a much-needed migration.)


dernwyn
Forum Admin / Moderator


Mar 12, 3:24pm


Views: 1952
And also

Aulesmith. And of course, the Eagles.

Great to see you, Ro, I hope all is well with the family!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"


CuriousG
Gondolin


Apr 13, 7:24pm


Views: 1858
The Eagles rock band?

That begs the question every fan labors over: why didn't The Eagles take the One Ring on tour with them to sing backup??? Dang, now I'll never fall asleep tonight.


Lissuin
Doriath


Apr 14, 11:28am


Views: 1754
Fletwood Mac, you've been banned from Lórien.

That's alright. Don't stop. Go your own way!

(Oh, gee whiz! It feels sooo good to finally be able to pun at you guys again! Missed y'all! Heart )


grammaboodawg
Elvenhome


Apr 14, 1:53pm


Views: 1709
Don't get hit by the Rolling Stones off Caradhras!

Gimmie shelter for the Fellowship!

Don't start me up about this, cuz you'll get no satisfaction there! Then again, like Saruman found out... you can't always get what you want.



sample

We have been there and back again.


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Altaira
Superuser

May 5, 4:00am


Views: 1138
5-4-26 UPDATE

Greetings!

Progress is being made on the migration, but has been dependent on coordinating between a number of people with *gasp* real lives. So, the ball is rolling, though way slower than I anticipated. As of today (May 4th, 2026 - and yes, may the 4th be with us!):

1) an initial test migration has been completed and looks really good, with only a few issues to be ironed out.

2) The issues have been communicated to the migration person.

3) Once we have what looks like a solid test migration result, I'll be able to start tweaking things like user permissions, board rules, etc.

4) Once the tweaks are done, and another test or two, a final migration will be completed to capture the data/posts from the initial test migration to the date of the final one. This may require some down-time which will be kept to the least amount of time possible.

5) I have a goal of the end of May for the final migration but, again, it depends on other people, so it could be sooner or later.

6) We have Corvar to thank for making these old rickety boards work a little faster for just a little longer. Hopefully, they'll keep chugging along with no, or only one or two, more nudges needed.

Keep checking here for updates. SmileHeart


(This post was edited by Altaira on May 5, 4:14am)


grammaboodawg
Elvenhome


May 5, 1:41pm


Views: 1123
*mods up!* Awesome :)

Massive thanks to you and Corvar and all who are making this happen :D Of course we've already proven we can handle any "down time" that is necessary... so BRING IT! Cool

Thanks so much for the update, Altaira... and for your resilience and determination. *bows deeply* Heart



sample

We have been there and back again.


TIME Google Calendar


Meneldor
Doriath


May 6, 2:15am


Views: 952
Thanks for the update!

I've been getting the Banned tag so long I was about to start taking it personally.

The Star Wars board did their switch over from the old Xenforo version to the new one, took about a day. Only minor glitches and it seems to be working better than the old boards now.



They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. -Psalm 107


dernwyn
Forum Admin / Moderator


May 6, 1:41pm


Views: 939
Thank you, Altaira!

There is so much involved in getting this done, thank you so much for all the work you've been putting into it! Heart


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"


NottaSackville
Doriath

May 6, 2:44pm


Views: 935
Amazing! Thanks to everyone that is making this happen //

 

Happiness: money matters, but less than we think and not in the way that we think. Family is important and so are friends, while envy is toxic -- and so is excessive thinking. Beaches are optional. Trust is not. Neither is gratitude. - The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner as summarized by Lily Fairbairn. And a bit of the Hobbit reading thrown in never hurts. - NottaSackville


Loresilme
Doriath


May 9, 7:02pm


Views: 870
Thank you so much! Looking forward to it! //

 


Meneldor
Doriath


May 10, 4:15am


Views: 850
Question

Will the new boards be at the same web address as the old ones?



They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. -Psalm 107


Altaira
Superuser

May 11, 3:57am


Views: 815
Yes, same web address

It hasn't been tested yet but, in theory, links and saved urls for the old boards will simply take you to the new ones. It's baked into the services Xenforo offers.


N.E. Brigand
Gondolin


May 12, 3:49am


Views: 805
Thanks for this update. //

 


Glory to the heroes.

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