Hi, there, I'd just like to announce that I've installed Zope 2.2.0b4 via CVS and done a complete run-through of my site. It seems to work flawlessly now, and I've gone ahead and installed it on my main port for a trial period. I hope to launch the site using the final version of 2.2.0 (so hurry up, developers!!) :) Anyway, upgrading wasn't without its problems, so let me share with you some tips that will help those in my situation upgrade more successfully. Note that I've skipped some steps, with the assumption that since your upgrading an existing Zope version, you already know how to install Zope. Directories cited: Original installation: /usr/Zope-2.1.6 Fresh install of 2.1.6 (for diff'ing changes I made in the python modules): /temp/Zope-2.1.6 New CVS install of Zope-2.2.0b4: /usr/local/Zope2 (I moved it to the /usr/local volume because I had more space there). Products installed: SQLSession SiteAccess TinyTable ZMySQLDA (your product list may vary) FIRST, I like to hack the source a lot. I have my own special comment tags, such as <!--#c ... --> instead of <dtml-comment> ... </dtml-comment>, and I have my own special <dtml-var> modifier, js_friendly, which quotes all special characters so I can use them in JavaScript code. On a tip from Shane, I started using CVS to download the Zope source code so that it would merge the changes made in each upgrades with the changes I've made to the source. (Do a search for "CVS" on Zope.org). However, this was my first CVS, so I still needed to bring over the changes I'd previously made. So....... cd /usr/local/Zope2 diff -rc /temp/Zope-2.1.6/lib/python /usr/Zope-2.1.6/lib/python

MyChanges.diff patch -p3 <MyChanges.diff

NOTE: Results may vary. By the way, incase you don't want to mess around with CVS (or you're like me and can't figure out how it works), the above commands should achieve the same effect, although you might get a few failed hunks and have to fix them manually. If you don't modify the Zope source, you can skip this step. SECOND, I had all my data, external methods, and installed products on my old installation. I didn't want to lose them. Now, don't be tempted to just copy all your Products over from the lib/python/Products folder. Some of them, such as SiteAccess and SQLSession, if you have them, WON'T WORK. (Furthermore, they'll break your installation, and you won't even be able to get to a management screen). Here's what you do: 1. Back up your new var directory (incase something goes terribly wrong) and copy the old data over. cd /usr/local/Zope2 mv var var.bak cp -R /usr/Zope-2.1.6/var . 2. Copy your external methods over. cp -R /usr/Zope-2.1.6/Extensions 3. Copy *some* (not all) of your Products over. cd lib/python/Products cp -R /usr/Zope-2.1.6/lib/python/Products/TinyTable . cp -R /usr/Zope-2.1.6/lib/python/Products/ZMySQLDA . 4. Start Zope (you may have to modify the startup script and the superuser password) and load the management interface. Delete all your SiteRoots and SQLSessions. You'll have to re-create them. 5. If you're like me, you created all your 2.1.6 objects using the superuser account. You can't do that in 2.2.0. So, go to your acl_users folder and create a new account having Manager and Owner privileges. 6. Download and install new versions of SQLSession, SiteAccess, and possibly ZMySQLDA, if you have it. (Be warned, though, you may have to re-create all of your database connections and SQL methods!) 7. Re-start Zope and log in as the new account you just created. Take ownership of your root directory. (Click "Ownership" tab, then "Take Ownership"). 8. Re-create your SQLSessions and SiteRoots. Check your database folder to make sure your SQL sessions are all intact. (If not, you have no sympathy from me. I had to re-create all 40 of mine when I tried beta 2). 9. Check for bugs -- I'm sure you'll find plenty! If you're getting a lot of Unauthorized errors using external methods, check all your external methods and make sure each class has the property "__allow_access_to_unprotected_subobjects__" set equal to "1". For instance, I had a bunch of simple objects created this way: class simpleClass: pass Under 2.2, I had to do it this way: class simpleClass: __allow_access_to_unprotected_subobjects__=1 pass THIRD, I'm waiting for the next release of Zope so that I can test out this CVS feature. I'm excited! Upgrading is such a pain, and I'm hoping CVS can help to automate that somewhat. I'll let you know how it goes. One very wise thing to do before every CVS checkout, though, is a complete backup of the Zope directory! After four failed upgrades (including the alpha), I don't want to take my chances. Thanks, Zope developers, for an excellent product! - T.J. Mannos - Salt Lake Community College