Can someone tell me the steps to migrate and upgrade my BBS.

source:
v3.20 on a raspberry pi bullseye armv71

target:
v3.21 on a Intel i5 with ubuntu 25.04

I've compiled and built the synchronet v3.21 on my target system.
I've got all the directories and links setup.

I just don't really understand what copy from the source to the target. -------------------------------------------------

I've attempted to copy the following:

./ctrl
./data
./extra
./fido
./mods

then run the upgrade_to_v320 script, which seems wrong because my build is at 3.21 on the target, and there is no upgrade_to_v321 script.
nonetheless I did receive an error about user.dat to user.tab no such file user.dat.

when I start up the bbs I get a critical error about name.dat doesn't match expected lenght of 0.
Also some of my emails are gone, but not all of them.

---
þ Synchronet þ Lunar Outpost BBS

Re: upgrade and move bbs raspbian to ubu intel
By: bbsing to All on Thu Mar 12 2026 02:38 pm

Can someone tell me the steps to migrate and upgrade my BBS.

source:
v3.20 on a raspberry pi bullseye armv71

target:
v3.21 on a Intel i5 with ubuntu 25.04

Migration instructions are here: https://wiki.synchro.net/faq:misc#migration Upgrade instructions are here: https://wiki.synchro.net/install:dev

I've compiled and built the synchronet v3.21 on my target system.
I've got all the directories and links setup.

I just don't really understand what copy from the source to the target. -------------------------------------------------

I've attempted to copy the following:

./ctrl
./data
./extra
./fido
./mods

then run the upgrade_to_v320 script, which seems wrong because my build is at 3.21 on the target, and there is no upgrade_to_v321 script.

'update.js' runs the approrate upgrade* scripts and binaries as and when needed.

when I start up the bbs I get a critical error about name.dat doesn't match expected lenght of 0.
Also some of my emails are gone, but not all of them.

Try the instructions and let us know if you continue to have issues.
--
digital man (rob)

Breaking Bad quote #11:
My apologies to the HR department: Grow tumescent with anticipation. - Hank Norco, CA WX: 91.5øF, 13.0% humidity, 5 mph NNW wind, 0.00 inches rain/24hrs ---
þ Synchronet þ Vertrauen þ Home of Synchronet þ [vert/cvs/bbs].synchro.net

Re: upgrade and move bbs raspbian to ubu intel
By: Digital Man to bbsing on Thu Mar 12 2026 16:58:53

Thanks Digital Man,

Re: upgrade and move bbs raspbian to ubu intel
By: bbsing to All on Thu Mar 12 2026 02:38 pm

Can someone tell me the steps to migrate and upgrade my BBS.

source:
v3.20 on a raspberry pi bullseye armv71

target:
v3.21 on a Intel i5 with ubuntu 25.04

Migration instructions are here: https://wiki.synchro.net/faq:misc#migration Upgrade instructions are here:

https://wiki.synchro.net/install:dev

I've combining the info in the two links, but started running into problems doing a pull into my repo.

On my source system:

stopped my sbbs via systemctl stop sbbs.service
tared up the sbbs directory.

waited a few days due to taking care of babies.
then last night.

I tried to update the repo on my raspberry pi using git -C ./sbbs/repo pull that got me abort due to 3rdp
-----------------------------
git -C ./sbbs/repo pull
hint: Pulling without specifying how to reconcile divergent branches is
hint: discouraged. You can squelch this message by running one of the following hint: commands sometime before your next pull:
hint:
hint: git config pull.rebase false # merge (the default strategy)
hint: git config pull.rebase true # rebase
hint: git config pull.ff only # fast-forward only
hint:
hint: You can replace "git config" with "git config --global" to set a default hint: preference for all repositories. You can also pass --rebase, --no-rebase, hint: or --ff-only on the command line to override the configured default per hint: invocation.
remote: Enumerating objects: 242, done.
remote: Counting objects: 100% (231/231), done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (178/178), done.
remote: Total 181 (delta 148), reused 1 (delta 0), pack-reused 0 (from 0) Receiving objects: 100% (181/181), 50.37 KiB | 353.00 KiB/s, done.
Resolving deltas: 100% (148/148), completed with 34 local objects.
From https://gitlab.synchro.net/main/sbbs
04435dcc64..95e02a2968 master -> origin/master
6f295340a2..95e02a2968 dailybuild_linux-x64 -> origin/dailybuild_linux-x64
6f295340a2..95e02a2968 dailybuild_win32 -> origin/dailybuild_win32
5ffb2397fa..76a0b498fd syncterm-1.8 -> origin/syncterm-1.8
Updating 57c2367a57..95e02a2968
error: Your local changes to the following files would be overwritten by merge:
exec/gopherservice.js
Please commit your changes or stash them before you merge.
error: The following untracked working tree files would be overwritten by merge:
3rdp/build/CMakeLists-cl.txt
3rdp/build/CMakeLists.txt
3rdp/build/cl-dont-validate-va-list.patch
3rdp/build/cl-fix-cbli-incompatible.patch
3rdp/build/cl-fix-cpuid-order.patch
3rdp/build/cl-haiku-build.patch
3rdp/build/cl-lowercase-versionhelpers.patch
3rdp/build/cl-mingw64-is-really-new.patch
3rdp/build/cl-mingw64-thread-handles.patch
3rdp/build/cl-mingw64-unicode-gibble.patch
3rdp/build/hashpatch.pl
3rdp/build/js-include-headers.patch
3rdp/build/js-int-main-conf.patch
3rdp/build/js-isfinite.patch
3rdp/build/js-macos-configure.patch
3rdp/dist/libffi.tgz
exec/batchxfer.js
exec/make_areas_ini.js
install/install-sbbs.mk
src/conio/ciolib.adoc
src/conio/cterm.adoc
src/sbbs3/scfg/resource.h
src/sbbs3/scfg/scfg.rc
src/sbbs3/sync.ico
src/sbbs3/trashman.c
src/sbbs3/trashman.vcxproj
src/sexpots/.gitignore
src/sftp/CMakeLists.txt
src/syncterm/CMakeLists.txt.top
src/syncterm/FBSD-mingw64.cmake
src/syncterm/PackageInfo.in
src/syncterm/haiku.rdef
src/syncterm/icons/README.md
src/syncterm/icons/generate-unix.sh
src/syncterm/icons/generate-win.sh
src/syncterm/icons/generate.sh
src/syncterm/icons/syncterm-Haiku.iom
src/syncterm/icons/syncterm-Haiku.rdef
src/syncterm/icons/syncterm-Haiku.svg
src/syncterm/icons/syncterm-mini.svg
src/syncterm/icons/syncterm.iom
src/syncterm/icons/syncterm.rdef
src/syncterm/icons/syncterm.svg
src/syncterm/relcheck.txt
src/syncterm/syncterm.ico
src/syncterm/syncterm16.png
src/syncterm/syncterm22.png
src/syncterm/syncterm24.png
src/syncterm/syncterm256.png
src/syncterm/syncterm32.png
src/syncterm/syncterm36.png
src/syncterm/syncterm48.png
src/syncterm/syncterm64.png
src/syncterm/updvers.sh
src/xpdev/lockfile.c
src/xpdev/showlocks.c
src/xpdev/sopenfile.c
web/root/error/429.html
xtrn/dicewarz/exit.bin
xtrn/minesweeper/graphics.ppm
xtrn/minesweeper/selmask.pbm
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-aqua.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-default.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-garden.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-hot.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-lilac.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-midnight.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-neon.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-rustic.ini
xtrn/mrc/mrc-theme-stone.ini
Please move or remove them before you merge.
Aborting

---------------------------------
Any idea why 3rdp is having problems?
Is this because of a different install/build process with the raspberrypi vs intel/amd?



Not really understanding how to proceed and working late before I had to go to be to get some sleep before my twin babies wake up, I tried the path to least resistance. I read I can copy over the sbbs directory, but knowing armv71 is different than intel i5, I'll try to copy the ssbbs directory to my target server and then just run the next command in the instructions, do a rebuild this way I would be on the same version as my source system.



---------------------------------
cd /sbbs/repo/src/sbbs3/

make RELEASE=1 setcap symlinks
------------------

make[2]: Leaving directory '/sbbs/repo/3rdp/src/cl'
make[1]: Leaving directory '/sbbs/repo/3rdp/src/cl'
make[1]: Leaving directory '/sbbs/repo/3rdp/build'
Compiling getctrl.c
Compiling load_cfg.c
Compiling readtext.c
Compiling text_id.c
Compiling text_defaults.c
Compiling scfglib1.c
Compiling scfglib2.c
Compiling str_util.c
Compiling findstr.c
Compiling ars.c
Compiling nopen.c
Compiling ansiterm.cpp
In file included from ansiterm.cpp:22:
sbbs.h:101:10: fatal error: jsversion.h: No such file or directory
101 | #include <jsversion.h>
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~~
compilation terminated.
make: *** [/sbbs/repo/src/sbbs3/../build/Common.gmake:546: gcc.linux.x64.obj.release-mt/ansiterm.o] Error 1

---------------------------------------

When I copied over the tar archive and untared it the file is there.
11953 2024-09-19 05:59 ./sbbs/repo/3rdp/win32.release/mozjs/include/jsversion.h

but when I try to rebuild something happens and the file vanishes, so I get the error.

---
þ Synchronet þ Lunar Outpost BBS

Re: upgrade and move bbs raspbian to ubu intel
By: bbsing to Digital Man on Sun Mar 15 2026 11:54 am

Updating 57c2367a57..95e02a2968
error: Your local changes to the following files would be overwritten by merge:
exec/gopherservice.js
Please commit your changes or stash them before you merge.

You changed that file in exec (you normally should not do that, copy to "mods" and modify there instead). To work around that git error you can pull with rebase and autostash options:
https://wiki.synchro.net/howto:git#up_alias

Or just "git checkout" the file, though you'll lose your local changes if you do that.

sbbs.h:101:10: fatal error: jsversion.h: No such file or directory
101 | #include <jsversion.h>

You likely originally built sbbs using the system's libmozjs (?) by specifying the JSINCLUDE and JSLIB build options. https://wiki.synchro.net/howto:raspbian_install

Maybe you forgot to include those build options?
--
digital man (rob)

This Is Spinal Tap quote #38:
Artie Fufkin: I'm not asking, I'm telling with this. Kick my ass.
Norco, CA WX: 82.8øF, 41.0% humidity, 4 mph WNW wind, 0.00 inches rain/24hrs ---
þ Synchronet þ Vertrauen þ Home of Synchronet þ [vert/cvs/bbs].synchro.net

Re: upgrade and move bbs raspbian to ubu intel
By: Digital Man to bbsing on Sun Mar 15 2026 16:07:01

Hi Digital Man,

Thanks for the help on links to great documentation.

You changed that file in exec (you normally should not do that, copy to "mods" and modify there instead). To work around that git error you can pull

I really have to understand this, and maybe I shouldn't be building with symlink option. I have more to learn about how that works, because files I totally intended to mod in the exec directory like the gopherservice.js, or sbbs.service to run under a different user,..etc, and xtrn end up showing up as mods, when doing a pull.

I think some of the installs in the xtrn folder symlink (startrek) need to be modded to update FQDN, and it seems like after running the auto install the only ini file was linked within the repo directory. But this is just me attempting to understand the system. YOu know far better than I do.

with rebase and autostash options: https://wiki.synchro.net/howto:git#up_alias

I tried many different options on the documentation and the only thing I could do to get a pull without errors was reset, then a pull --rebase.

Or just "git checkout" the file, though you'll lose your local changes if you do that.
You likely originally built sbbs using the system's libmozjs (?) by specifying the JSINCLUDE and JSLIB build options. https://wiki.synchro.net/howto:raspbian_install

The spidermonkey js libmozjs185-dev doesn't exist for ubuntu 25.04. The lbmozjs dev debs for ubuntu 25.04 don't contain a jsinclude.h file. .. I think its version 115, or 128. 185 which has the jsinclude.h was removed from ubuntu sometime around 2018 ... I think ... just guessing based on posts on the internets. I tried to build on my target to version 115 and 128, but still got the error about jsinclude.h.

I don't know how to pull a sbbs 3.20 version to my target system. If you or anyone else does, please let me know, and I'll try to build it on target, then migrate my data over, then pull again and get up to date on target system.

Otherwise I think I have to just try and migrate the data files over to target without building a like systems on source and target.

I may try to reset my repo, then rebuild without the JSINCLUDE and JSLIB ... basically using the current instructions for the respbian_install.

---------------------------------
The raspberrypi 2w was a fun device to try using for my bbs, but with my setup it just doesn't have the compute power to stay stable. Also its running on an micro ssd, and since its been online for almost two years, I'm scared the ssd is going to fail since they usually do after a couple of years on systems that are not read only. ->-> Going to move it to something with more resources, and more options.

A raspberry pi 4, or 5x or even a 3b+ with a ethernet port may have been better. I could have put the sbbs files on an NFS server, backups would have been easier as well. I just don't have an NFS i can expose to internets. The raspi wifi device did offer a good way to isolate it from all other hosts.

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þ Synchronet þ Lunar Outpost BBS