Scheduled Downtime On Monday

Just to confirm the world switch will be happening tomorrow as follows:

Downtime For World Switch:

Date:	Monday (9th December)
Time (UK):	9:00 am to 3:00 pm*

*3:00 pm is the earliest time the white-list is expected to be removed, it could be significantly later so please check here for updates before trying to connect.

As you can see the list of stuff to be done is pretty long: 

1. Full backup/clone.
2. Restore normal maintenance schedule.
3. Replace all plugins with fresh copies & test.
4. Replace all mods with fresh copies, apply latest patch versions & test.
5. Remove current world.
6. Undo some temporary changes made to keep server running with old world.
7. Remove all world specific data and config that doesn't apply to the new world.
8. Rename new world and change configs to match.
9. Test old configs now work correctly with new world.
10. Make several dozen config changes & test.
11. Add permissions for new plugins & features & test.
12. Set border for new world, pre-generate all chunks and scan for errors.
13. Generate new Nether world, pre-generate all chunks and scan for errors.
14. Generate new End world, pre-generate all chunks and scan for errors.
15. Delete backups and other unneeded data from the old world.
16. Setup wilderness warps (replacing current world warps) and warp zone.
17. Reset coreprotect database and other logging.
18. Double check I didn't forget anything and re-open server! 

As usual I'll post updates on here as things progress!

Switch Going Ahead Tomorrow!

I can confirm that as per my last post the switch is definitely going ahead tomorrow!

A few important notes:

Players have until 5pm (UK) today to submit modreq requests for building backups and be guaranteed they will be saved as schematics, after that time it depends on what staff can get online and how much time they have.

The Vault and VIP Island will remain available until the server goes down tomorrow so you have until it shuts down at 9:00am (UK) to store your items.

Please remember inventories will not be saved and alchemy bag contents may or may not be saved, it's likely that many will carry over. I just found out that the longer it's been since you accessed your bag the greater the chance it's contents will be lost so just taking something out, closing the bag, then opening it again and putting something back in will improve your chances of keeping the contents!

I'll post a more detailed schedule of work being done tomorrow a little later, I'm still going over the order things need to be done myself to make sure I've got everything covered!

I've been asked about placement of the copied builds by a few players, basically when you arrive in the new world just go and find a spot you like open a modreq and we'll paste the schematic in for you (larger ones may have to wait for quieter periods), we cannot rotate builds though as this will create problems with various Tekkit items, especially factories and miniblocks. Also please remember we have builds to transfer for a lot of players, it will take time to get them all done.

Switching On Monday

The number of building save requests has dropped right off and there hasn't been a new one since early yesterday so unless someone requests more time to prepare (a VIP for example) by e-mail or /modreq by tomorrow morning I intend to go ahead with the world switch on Monday (9th December).

The switch is not as simple as just disabling one world and enabling the other, several configs will have to be updated or replaced to remove data relating to the old world and a few changes planned for the new year will be implemented early as aspects of the new spawn (designed before the world corruption) have been built around them. 

For these reasons the downtime is likely to be at least 6 hours, and could be significantly longer if any serious issues come up with the changes that didn't occur on the test server, it's unlikely but not impossible.

Downtime For World Switch:

Date:	Monday (9th December)
Time (UK):	9:00 am to 3:00 pm*

*3:00 pm is the earliest time the white-list is expected to be removed, it could be significantly later so please check here for updates before trying to connect.

Because of the type & extent of changes being made  the strict white-list will be used initially and so staff will also be unable to connect for at least a few hours. 

15 Minute Restarts

Overnight restarts have been scheduled for 15 minute intervals to give maximum uptime for players to prepare for the switch.

I know it's frustrating not being able to play properly but we're all in the same situation, just remember we only have to put up with this for a few more days!

World Switch Date Revised

The world corruption is getting worse much faster than I thought so I've had to revise the 'switch-by' date, I can therefore confirm that we will switch to the new world no later than 11th December, at least five days earlier than originally hoped.

Players therefore have until this coming Tuesday, 10th December, to get builds saved and items in The Vault. Remember to open a /modreq request, or get a Helper/Mod to open one for you, to request your building is saved for transfer, unless you follow the example at spawn and open a modreq request it will be assumed that you do not wish to save your builds.

Tatankore has provided some images as a guide to placement of the gold blocks as this seems to have confused some people.

The first image is a top down view, showing the gold blocks in place at opposite corners.

The second image is an angled view, showing how one block is at the base of the build (ground level), whilst the other is in line with the top of the build.

The last image shows a sign placed on one of the blocks requesting that the area is expanded down 3 blocks below ground to include a basement or cabling etc under the floor.

Thanks again to Tatankore for the images, I hope they help anyone that was confused as to what they needed to do!

World Stability

I have done some tinkering this morning and hopefully the server will be more stable for the next few days.

Please use this time to get your items stored and builds saved if you haven't already, don't be tempted to leave it until the last minute as it is likely the switch will happen sooner than the 16th!