Locked out of our Gallery.

[AandMDCI]

 Hello there,

Where do I start.......Our web site ( www.aandmdeluxecustoms.com ) has used Copper mine for a photo gallery for 6yrs now and We have only seen our gallery home page to log in at. Then last week that disappeared and this showed up instead of the home page for our gallery. ( www.aandmdeluxecustoms.com/gallery/login.php  ).  So we tried our user name and or pass words, but they do not work. If we Google our name (A&M Deluxe Customs) go to images, we can find a few of our photos (an example at bottom in link) but soon as there clicked on it goes to the sign in page.
So to be able to use this forum I had to register as a new user, in hopes to restore 6 years worth of work on our websites gallery.
Stuck & Concerned 6year old Newbie's,
A&M

Example photo link
http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=32I&sa=X&tbo=d&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=fflb&biw=1173&bih=808&tbm=isch&tbnid=pRrkW59KUU2ORM:&imgrefurl=http://www.aandmdeluxecustoms.com/gallery/displayimage.php%3Falbum%3D79%26pos%3D7&docid=FKwtrUIWb50ViM&itg=1&imgurl=http://www.aandmdeluxecustoms.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10002/2012%252520A%252526M%252520open%252520house%252520%282%29.jpg&w=800&h=532&ei=enS_UPvOIe3RiALc5IAg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=185&vpy=302&dur=3678&hovh=183&hovw=275&tx=87&ty=201&sig=103629680326161198643&page=2&tbnh=144&tbnw=204&start=24&ndsp=27&ved=1t:429,r:30,s:0,i:183,

[phill104]

6 years and it appears you have not upgraded in all that time - <!--Coppermine Photo Gallery 1.4.10 (stable)-->

CPG 1.4.x has not been supported for quite some time as we are now on CPG 1.5.x

There are a number of reasons you might be locked out such as crashes, being hacked (quite likely with such an out of date gallery) and numerous other things. Do you have a backup of your site and database? Are the files in tact in the albums directory? Are you familiar with phpmyadmin?

We should start by trying to restore your access so search the old cpg1.4.x for "lost admin password" and it will detail how to recover that. If you are unable to do that via phpmyadmin come back and I will try and help you.

[AandMDCI]

Hello Phill,
Thanks for your response to my request.
- I have a back up/ file of the website, but do not have back up of the Coppermine files.
- No idea how to check to see if the files are in tact in the albums directory.
- I looked into phpmyadmin, but don't understand it.
- The person who designed and maintained our website is no longer availible. He taught me how to upload photos and change my album   as needed.
- I had no idea about the updates from the 1.4 or anything beyond our home photo page.
- What should I do now being I have no experience on the admin side of things?
Thanks,
A&M

[phill104]

You have a few options and should start by reading the docs regarding upgrading. It is not complicated but essential if you want to keep your gallery safe and up to date. There are a few things you need to learn and do first.

1: - How to use an ftp application such as Filezilla (the one we recommend). This is a simple application that allows you to connect to your hosing space and brows, upload and download files. It really is simple. Install the app (a free download, just google it and dowload and install the Filezilla client). When installed you will need to enter your ftp account details which your host can provide. Then simply drag and drop files to and from your hosing space once connected. It works just like any normal windows file browser. Take a copy of the entire coppermine directory to your local machine so you have a copy of all your files.

2: - Learn how to use the Export facility in phpmyadmin to take a backup of your databas. Again this really is simple and google is your friend. With just a few clicks you can download a complete copy of your database so you are protected before doing any work.

3: - Once you have done the above search the cpg1.4 forums for details on how to restore your admin password. Here is a link to one such thread and a file that can be used to reset your password - http://forum.coppermine-gallery.net/index.php/topic,33512.msg158620.html#msg158620

4: - If that succeeds and you  can access your gallery reset your password then follow all the upgrade steps as outlined in the docs. It is a veery simple procedure and if you can follow the simple instructions carefully and have backed up as above then you should have no problems whatsoever.

If you cannot do the above then you should either get someone to help you or consider paying someone to do the job for you. It really is simple to learn and once you have the above skills you will be able to keep up to date. Just like windows and online software needs updating from time to time and unless you want to pay everytime this needs doing then learning those simple skills will save you a lot of cash and worry. We've all been through this and having good backups and the skills to take those backups takes all the stress away when something fails.

[AandMDCI]

Thanks for your time Phill.  I'll try your suggestions and or find someone who can as you suggest.

[Brooklyn]

If you can't figure this out, I'll do it all for you free of charge. I'll get you back in as admin, delete whoever shouldn't be in there and upgrade you from whatever version you're running to current.  This will involve you supplying a lot of credentials, however, which you really shouldn't do unless absolutely necessary and then only to those you trust. That said, I'm available if you decide to take my offer and this route. If you do, I will need:

CPG administrator access.
FTP server access.
cPanel (or equivalent) phpMyAdmin access.

@ Phil - cross reference my IP to former Dev Team members (if you haven't figured it out already).

[phill104]

Thanks for steeping up and offering help.  Hopefully A&M can learn the skills with or without your help so at least future upgrades and backing up can be performed.