Installing new 1.51, parse error on Settings Php

[Lance L]

I am trying to do a brand new install of 1.51 final. I am getting a parse error on line 125 of Settings.PHP on step 5. This is what I see:

Parse error: parse error in /opt/www/rmcadmin/html/yabbse/Settings.php on line 125

Warning: Undefined variable: db_server in /opt/www/rmcadmin/html/yabbse/install.php on line 581

Warning: Undefined variable: db_user in /opt/www/rmcadmin/html/yabbse/install.php on line 581

Warning: Undefined variable: db_passwd in /opt/www/rmcadmin/html/yabbse/install.php on line 581

Warning: Undefined variable: db_name in /opt/www/rmcadmin/html/yabbse/install.php on line 582

Warning: Undefined variable: db_prefix in /opt/www/rmcadmin/html/yabbse/install.php on line 584

Warning: Undefined variable: db_prefix in /opt/www/rmcadmin/html/yabbse/install.php on line 588

I pulled down the Settings.php file and here is what line 125 looks like. (lines 120 - 131)

$timeoffset = 0;               # Time Offset (so if your server is EST, this would be set to -1 for CST)
$TopAmmount = 15;               # No. of top posters to display on the top members list
$MembersPerPage = 30;         # No. of members to display per page of Members List - All
$maxdisplay = 20;               # Maximum of topics to display
$maxmessagedisplay = 15;      # Maximum of messages to display
$MaxMessLen = 10000;               # Maximum Allowed Characters in a Posts
$MaxSigLen = 300;               # Maximum Allowed Characters in Signatures
$ClickLogTime = 60;            # Time in minutes to log every click to your forum (longer time means larger log file size)
$max_log_days_old = 21;         # If an entry in the user's log is older than ... days remove it
# Set to 0 if you want it disabled
$fadertime = 5000;               # Length in seconds to display each item in the news fader
$timeout = 5;      

I downloaded this yesterday.

[Lance L]

Further info...

I am hazarding a guess that the problem is in install.php and not settings. I made up a very small file to do the include on the settings file and I get no parse error.

Weird.

[[Unknown]]

Upload a fresh Settings.php and then try the install again.

-[Unknown]

[Lance L]

[Unknown]: I did re-up the Settings file and still had problems. I also..

- created a test.php that all it did was the require for the settings file--no parse error.

- in frustration, I copied the settings.php file inline where the require was in install.php (about line 580 I believe) and it worked like a champ. My thinking about it after a night's sleep is that possibly there is some behavior differences across the PHP versions in the require/require_once function.  Pure speculation on my part. (I believe the server is running 4.1.2 or something close to that.)

I am somewhat puzzled as to why and what happened as I don't recall this problem happening on an earlier YABB install on the same server for a different domain. (I believe its 1.1 that was installed.)

[noir]

I ran into something very similar. Just for the archive here is the link.

http://www.yabbse.org/community/index.php?board=131;action=display;threadid=21193

Damn, I really like YSE, but how can I recommend it to friends now if it has got installation(!) problems?    

And why this error always appears in those lines of Config that are related to database?

[[Unknown]]

This is bothering me.  I really want to find out what the cause is.

I'll give a reward to anyone who can tell me why the installer messes up Settings.php on the first run.

To anyone having this problem.... please try uploading the Settings.php from the safe mode package.

-[Unknown]

[Lance L]

[Unknown]: What it looks like to me is that the require on line 580 was failing. Because the message I was getting was the DB_ variables being undefined, which indicates to me that the only way this could happen is if the settings file not come in cleanly--or at all.

Another thought is that this could be a Unix issue too. If I recall the code correctly, the section above it writes the settings file out, then does a require_once to pull it back in.

If the server's filesystem still did not see the file as closed and available, I would think the require would fail. Or maybe the file is defined but showing empty, which would be why the require did not fail, but the variables were not defined.

Anyhow, this is speculation on my part. I am in an MBA program and haven't had the time the last two nights to get back to this issue. I will be looking at a it a little tonight and may play with it a bit.

My suggestion to fix this problem would be to not use the require to pull the file back in. Go ahead and assign those variables in the code at the same time you write the file. Yeah, it would be longer, but I suspect it would eliminate this rather sporadic behavior.

I understand why it bothers you. It freaked me too when I pulled the settings file into a small test file and nothing went wrong. Very weird.

[[Unknown]]

In some many words.... I forgot to close the file.

Darn.

Hmmmm.... so what reward shall I give ye?

-[Unknown]

[Lance L]

 

You mean that wild-assed speculation was it??

If that had been a snake, we'd all have been in trouble.

No reward is necessary. If that truly fixes the problem then it is a good thing for all of us that were baffled by this thing.

Or the real reward is that the install goes smoother and there is less headaches for everyone. That works for me.

[noir]

Lance, You are THE genius!!!   Cheers!!!

And one more thing. That's exsactly why open-source soft is the best thing in the world, - it can be reviewed by 10 ⁶ programmers one of whom will eventually do something useful.