# Install Discourse on Vultr and import from Kunena3

**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/install-discourse-on-vultr-and-import-from-kunena3/74269
**Category:** Sysadmins
**Tags:** how-to, install
**Created:** [17 november 2017 om 14:59 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/install-discourse-on-vultr-and-import-from-kunena3/74269 "2017-11-17T14:59:07Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![frold](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/frold/32/82547_2.png) [@frold](https://meta.discourse.org/u/frold)
#### Post date: [17 november 2017 om 14:59 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/install-discourse-on-vultr-and-import-from-kunena3/74269/1 "2017-11-17T14:59:07Z")

</div>

This guide shows how I was able to setup discourse and import 10.000+ users and 38.000+ posts from kunena.

I was running an outdated Joomla! 2.5.28 version with kunena 3.0.8 on top and it was hacked. Therefore I was looking for a new solution for my site. I knew discourse from another forum I use as a visitor, not as an owner. For me, without other skills than basic SSH and unix skills, I found it very hard to install and import. I’m a medical doctor, a GP, not a programmer… I have spent a week of my spare time of trial and error as I knew nothing about docker at all. I still don’t, but it seems like my board is running now 🙂 !

First I did setup a new server at [vultr.com](http://vultr.com) I chose the 5dollars 1 cpu, 1gb memory, 25gb ssd solution. I did choose Ubuntu 17.10 x64 (64 bit OS) as the OS

I made a local SSH key and added it to the server during the setup.

**Then I connected to my new server**

```
ssh root@serverip

```

**First I did get the latest Ubuntu updates for the version**

```
sudo apt-get update 
sudo apt-get upgrade

```

**Then I installed docker**  
I did use this guide to install docker: [discourse/docs/INSTALL-cloud.md at main · discourse/discourse · GitHub](https://github.com/discourse/discourse/blob/master/docs/INSTALL-cloud.md)

`wget -qO- https://get.docker.com/ | sh`

**Then the install of discourse**

```
sudo -s
mkdir /var/discourse
git clone https://github.com/discourse/discourse_docker.git /var/discourse
cd /var/discourse

```

And then run the setup. I use elasticemail as a smtp host.

`./discourse-setup`

**Discourse settings**

In Admin \>\> Settings change the following

- download remote images to local → enable
- download remote images max days old → 10000
- slug\_generation\_method → ascii
- disable edit notifications → enable

After I have finished my setup via the email activation I got my vanilla board up running. 🙂 It was time for a reboot

`reboot`

**Now the database fun**

Entering the docker container called app. And that was a step I missed in the beginning. You have to enter the container to see the import scripts, oooh. Newbie I am.

```
cd /var/discourse
./launcher enter app

```

First it have to be up to date

```
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade

```

Let us install the software needed in the container

`sudo apt-get install mariadb-server libmysqlclient-dev nano`

Test if mysql is available

`mysql`

If you get this error

> ERROR 2002 (HY000): Can’t connect to local MySQL server through socket ‘/var/run/mysqld/mysqld.sock’ (2 “No such file or directory”)

Run [this tutorial](http://www.zyxware.com/articles/5539/solved-cant-connect-to-local-mysql-server-through-socket-var-run-mysqld-mysqld-sock). After this is done try the mysql command again. If it works you are ready for the next step.

```
sudo gem install mysql2
echo "gem 'mysql2', require: false" >> /var/www/discourse/Gemfile
cd /var/www/discourse
su discourse -c 'bundle install --no-deployment --without test --without development'

```

And you get a error like this:\_ sudo: no tty present and no askpass program specified\_  
Now run:

`bundle install`

**Connect to the database**

```
mysql -u root -p

CREATE USER 'kunena'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'kunena';
CREATE DATABASE kunena;
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON kunena . * TO 'kunena'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
Exit

```

To ensure that the database is created login to the database with the new user: kunena and password kunena:

`mysql -u kunena -pkunena`

If you want to show the table status

`show table status from kunena;`

If you want to see the databases the user kunena got access to

```
show databases;

```

**Import the old Joomla/kunena database**

First I did clean up my old forum. I did ensure I only had a 1 level structure (so NO subforms).

Forum 1 Forum 2 ….  
I had to rename the tabels prefix to “jos\_” even then the script let you edit the prefix - but I was getting some error.  
I did export using phpmyadmin and did exported kunena and standart Joomla tables only.

**Upload file to server**

Upload your file to root in your server using the password you find in the vult server manager and port 22

Restart your shell to connect to your servers root and not being inside your docker app.  
To be able to to see the file in the app directory you have to copy the file inside the app dir.

`docker cp databasefilename.sql app:/var/www/discourse/databasename.sql`

Start the app container

```
cd /var/discourse
./launcher enter app
ls -ls  

```

Do you see the file on the list of files? I hope so!

**Import the sql file into the new database**

First you have to set the right owner of the file

```
chown discourse:discourse databasename.sql

```

Now import the sql file to the kunena database using the kunena user and password

```
mysql -ukunena -pkunena kunena < databasename.sql

```

Let us ensure the database isn’t empty. If you see rows it worked 🙂

```
mysql -u kunena -pkunena
show table status from kunena;
exit

```

**Edit the import script**

We need nano to be able to edit files. If you didn’t install nano earlier, do it now

`sudo apt-get install nano`

Now we can edit the import script file

```
sudo nano script/import_scripts/kunena3.rb 

```

like so

```
export DB_HOST="localhost"
export DB_NAME="kunena"
export DB_USER="kunena"
export DB_PW="kunena"
export KUNENA_PREFIX=“jos_” # "iff_" sometimes
export IMAGE_PREFIX="http://URL/media/kunena/attachments"
export PARENT_FIELD="parent_id" 

```

Go to your old server and chmod 777 the “media/kunena/attachments” folder.

Back in your vultr server. And inside the app container we need the screen script to be installed before we run the import script. In my case it took 5 hours to run.

`sudo apt-get install screen`

Open Screen

`screen`

Brew some coffee and then In the screen window

`su discourse -c 'RAILS_ENV=production ruby script/import_scripts/kunena3.rb'`

Then the show begins…

```
loading existing groups...
loading existing users...
loading existing categories...
loading existing posts...
loading existing topics...
fetching Joomla users data from mysql
fetching Kunena user data from mysql
creating users
        8 / 8 (100.0%) %)
creating topics and posts
    38888 / 38888 (100.0%) [196 items/min]
updating bumped_at on topics
updating last posted at on users
updating last seen at on users
Updating topic reply counts...
    10625 / 10623 (100.0%) [8242 items/min] .Updating first_post_created_at...
Updating user post_count...
Updating user topic_count...
updating featured topic users
    15723 / 15723 (100.0%)
updating featured topics in categories
       12 / 12 (100.0%)
updating user topic reply counts
    10623 / 10623 (100.0%)
resetting topic counters
    15723 / 15723 (100.0%)
Done (04h 27min 25sec)

```

When it is done you can remove the packages we don’t want to use… I hope this little guide will save you time!