Announcements

EarlG

(21,949 posts) Mon Mar 25, 2024, 12:22 PM Mar 25

IMPORTANT: At 9PM ET tonight (Monday, March 25) we will be making our second attempt at a required software update

This discussion thread was locked by EarlG (a host of the Announcements group).

tl;dr: DU will be offline for up to an hour starting at 9PM tonight (Monday) for a required update. After that, we may have to temporarily restrict access to the site for certain visitors, depending on what happens after the update is complete.

If the site cannot handle a full traffic load, we will temporarily restrict access so that only registered members can access DU.

If the site cannot handle the traffic after that, we will temporarily restrict access so that only Star Members can access DU.

While we have done everything we can to avoid the possibility, there is still a small but non-zero chance that we will have to take DU offline again, revert the update, and try again at another time.

While the goal is to have DU up and running for all visitors as soon as possible, this situation could last for anywhere from a few hours to a few days. For a complete explanation, read on.

On February 28, we attempted a required software update which we needed to perform in order to avoid issues with our service provider. Unfortunately the update failed and we had to restore the site from a backup. Ultimately, it turned out than the update process was significantly more complicated that originally anticipated.

Elad has spent the last 3+ weeks working behind the scenes to resolve these issues, and we are now ready to attempt the update again. Here are some important things you need to know.

At 9PM ET tonight (Monday) DU will go offline for a brief period of time while Elad performs the update. This is (hopefully) the easy part, and we expect the downtime to last for no more than 30-60 minutes.

The next phase is more complicated. All the work on the update so far has been performed in a test environment, which means we don't need to interrupt the live site. The problem with this is that the test environment has essentially zero traffic compared to the live site, which means that everything can look good during testing, but once the site is opened back up to everyone and we have a full traffic load, issues can arise. And the only way we're going to be able to identify and fix these issues is when they start occurring.

So once the update is complete, one of two things will happen:

1) Everything will work just fine and there will be no major issues. Any minor issues can be resolved while the site is open to everyone.

OR

2) The updated software will not immediately be able to handle a full traffic load, and the site will slow down to a crawl (which is what happened last time).

We're not going to rule out number 1, but to be completely honest, number 2 is the more likely scenario. However, this time, instead of reverting the update and restoring the site, we will push through the problem and fix it as it's happening. Elad will work on optimizing the software while we have live traffic coming to DU.

In order for this to work, we may have to restrict access for certain visitors, possibly for anywhere from a few hours to a few days. If the site cannot handle a full traffic load, we will temporarily restrict access so that only registered members can access DU. If the site cannot handle the traffic after that, we will temporarily restrict access so that only Star Members can access DU.

These restrictions will only last for as long as it takes to resolve the issues, at which point the site will re-open for everyone. If we do have to restrict access at any time, we will provide clear explanations and updates about what's going on.

This update has been a huge project and an enormous pain in Elad's ass for months now, so we are really hoping to get it over and done with as soon as possible, so that we can move forward and get back to working on other DU development. We're sorry for the service interruption which may occur starting tonight, but we will work as hard as we can to make sure DU is back to normal as soon as possible.

As always, we appreciate your patience while we work on improving DU.

Thanks for reading!

EarlG, on behalf of Elad -- the DU Administrators

41 replies

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Highlight:

IMPORTANT: At 9PM ET tonight (Monday, March 25) we will be making our second attempt at a required software update (Original Post) EarlG Mar 25 OP

EalG, thanks for the announcement - today is March 25. c-rational Mar 25 #1

Belated Happy 7th DUnniversary to you! niyad Mar 25 #4

Thank you niyad. Time flys. So happy I found DU. I can thnk my wife who has been here since 2001. c-rational Mar 25 #10

It does indeed. I am thankful every day for this wonderful community. niyad Mar 25 #14

Oops, thanks EarlG Mar 25 #8

Good luck gang - may the Force be with you. n/t CincyDem Mar 25 #2

Thanks for the heads up. Let's hope there isn't a major news event during that time. JohnSJ Mar 25 #3

Thanks for the update...fingers crosed ! Demsrule86 Mar 25 #5

Excellent opportunity to go outside to see the lunar eclipse and maybe aurora borealis. Thank you. Cheers! cbabe Mar 25 #6

Thank you for this. Fingers crossed for easy, successful upgrade. niyad Mar 25 #7

🍀🍀🍀Good Luck! 🍀🍀🍀 hlthe2b Mar 25 #9

Thank you, EarlG and Elad, for all that you do. n/t Mister Ed Mar 25 #11

Thasnk you and good luck! 2naSalit Mar 25 #12

Good luck, EarlG and Elad ificandream Mar 25 #13

You have my most sincere hopes, thoughts, and prayers Rocknation Mar 25 #15

Is there place for status updates if the site remains down longer? JoseBalow Mar 25 #16

There is a Democratic Underground page on Facebook Marthe48 Mar 25 #39

I hope for your own well-being that it works and you can get some well-deserved riversedge Mar 25 #17

Thank you and good luck. I know how stressful this can be. nt Buns_of_Fire Mar 25 #18

could u please post updates on the du fb page? mopinko Mar 25 #19

got my fingers, toes . and ears crossed that all goes well. see ya on the other side. AllaN01Bear Mar 25 #20

TY.. Glad I'm a Star Member! Cha Mar 25 #21

Kick to stay visible. William769 Mar 25 #22

Solar flare, eclipse, DU denied to its addicts -- I will be in my fallout shelter. Hermit-The-Prog Mar 25 #23

lol (and possible true???) orleans Mar 25 #35

We appreciate YOU, EARLG and ELAD!!!! Fla Dem Mar 25 #24

Thanks for all the hard work! HuskyOffset Mar 25 #25

Thank you guys for everything you're doing to keep us sane judesedit Mar 25 #26

Here's hoping it works and gives you an early night Warpy Mar 25 #27

Thank you for the heads up. MontanaMama Mar 25 #28

Thanks for the heads-up, and for all the work you and Elad do. I have a question about getting back to DU if there are highplainsdem Mar 25 #29

When the site is completely offline EarlG Mar 25 #33

Thanks! It's reassuring that we will still be able to log in. highplainsdem Mar 25 #34

Thanks! Hope22 Mar 25 #30

How do you say go ahead and watch Rachel live, without saying go ahead and watch Rachel live? ms liberty Mar 25 #31

This stuff can be very hard, you're doing a great job! relayerbob Mar 25 #32

Cross fingers all goes smoothly blogslug Mar 25 #36

Good luck! OhMcNo Mar 25 #37

Kick and rec. Wednesdays Mar 25 #38

Thanks to you and Elad for all the hard work and dedication. It's a good time for this to be done. Thanks again. msfiddlestix Mar 25 #40

Thank you I_UndergroundPanther Mar 25 #41

c-rational

(2,593 posts)

1. EalG, thanks for the announcement - today is March 25.