Dear Forum Family,
I deeply apologize for the recent challenges we've faced with our server and the impact it has had on our website and services.
Over time, we encountered difficulties with server updates that raised concerns about potential issues with the GRUB bootloader during server boot-up. To mitigate this, I temporarily halted doing updates, which led to a delay in keeping our systems up to date.
As we planned an upgrade to our forums, one of the prerequisites was PHP 8.0. To address the potential server issues, I decided to take proactive measures. I performed a comprehensive backup of our server data, including nightly, monthly, and full backups. These backups were supposed to be stored securely on an external drive.
However, an unexpected issue surfaced. In 2019, the connection to the external backup drive was lost, unbeknownst to me. The drive was not mounted with the remount flag. Consequently, the server had started saving backups on the server drive instead of the external one. This remained unnoticed over the years as I verified the existence of the backups and pruned out-of-date nightly backups.
To resolve the GRUB bootloader issue, I initiated the re-partitioning of the server drives, which included creating a new boot partition at the front of the drive and installing the GRUB loader there. As a precaution, I disconnected the external drive to eliminate any potential complications.
Upon completing these tasks, I proceeded to install the latest version of the operating system. Thankfully, the boot problems were resolved. However, when I remounted the external drive and attempted to restore our website and server files, I discovered that the files were dated from May 2019.
This unfortunate turn of events resulted in the loss of four years' worth of posts, and some members who had registered during that time were no longer active. Additionally, members who had deleted their accounts within that period were involuntarily restored, and for that, I deeply apologize.
I then began doing an upgrade on the forum to bring us to the current version. This took 1223 minutes and 40 seconds due to the large size of the forum, even back in 2019. I was only able to grab intermitten sleep during that time.
To prevent issues with canceled subscriptions, I had to cancel all active subscriptions. I kindly request that you please take a moment to restore your subscriptions, as this site cannot survive without member support! I will be working on re-implementing the donation system as well.
As a part of the upgrade, I had also issues restoring the WordPress installation that managed our front page, and since much of the WordPress content was out of date, I decided to make the forum the main page of the website, adding a redirect from the previous location.
I sincerely apologize for the technological oversights and the impact they have had on our community, the lost memories, posts, and the wonderful support members of the community had given in those lost years. I also apologize for anyone who needed peer support over the New Year's Holiday and couldn't receive it.
I assure you that hard lessons have been learned from this experience, and I am committed to ensuring that these types of mistakes do not ever recur.
For those who may be revisiting our community, We had recently taken a series of steps to deal with perceptions that moderation on the site was heavy-handed including revisions to our TOS and content policy. We did a total ban wipe. We removed the prohibition on discussing dosages in relation to Hormone Replacement Therapy, Our censored word list was heavily pruned. Our renewed focus is to create a supportive environment where everyone is welcome, supported, and both seen and heard.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support. We look forward to those whose memberships were dropped re-registering.
I really hate having to ask for your help, but your support for the website and myself is more crucial than ever during this period. We offer a range of monthly subscription options from $5 to $1000, and your contribution in any form will be deeply valued. You can also donate via paypal through my paypal me link which goes to site's account.
paypal.me/SusanElizabethLarsonSincerely,
Susan Larson
Susan's Place Transgender Resources
