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#1 2019-11-26 17:59:20

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

No Backlight homepage

Hi!

After some trouble with which folders to install in, because I thought that I could install in whatever named folder I wanted,  I have now started from scratch and have installed in the default /backlight/ folder.

But on following the Getting started Guide I see no http://site/backlight/ homepage with the default items, but in stead I am redirected to the logon page for the Admin pages.

I suspect that there could be entries in the MYSQL database form the first install, could that be the problem? If thats the case, what should I delete.

Thanks, Steen

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#2 2019-11-26 21:20:15

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Steen, I'll try and clarify some of the folder structure.
You *can* install Backlight under any folder you want, except for under your own folder called 'backlight'., *but* Backlight has it's own folder called 'backlight' .  For example, if you install Backlight in the folder at http://yoursite.com/afolder/, you'd then have the directory http://yoursite.com/afolder/backlight.

The 'backlight' directory that comes from installing it is where all the working files are stored, and the entry point to the Backlight admin console.  If you install it under "afolder" then your Backlight-managed website will function from the URL http://yoursite.com/afolder/

What is the URL that you want your public-facing Backlight site to run from?  Have you unzipped the Backlight installer within that directory?

Backlight doesn't use MySQL, but instead uses SQLite.

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#3 2019-11-27 14:47:57

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Ben

As far as I know I have done exactly as described (just checked again) in the "Backlight Installation and setup Guide http://backlight.theturninggate.net/doc … tion_setup.

I have unzipped the downloaded Backlight folder and put everything in a newly created backlight folder like this 'site.com/backlight/'. As I have explained a couple of times the problem is that after running and finishing the installation, without errors, I am redirected to the admin login if visiting site.com/backlight. No matter where I go there is default backlight homepage, as described in the setup guide.

I have sent the login info in a Facebook PM, same thread you wrote me in.

/ Steen

Last edited by sknarberg (2020-02-17 23:40:25)

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#4 2019-11-27 15:10:18

rod barbee
Moderator
From: Port Ludlow, WA USA
Registered: 2012-09-24
Posts: 17,830
Website

Re: No Backlight homepage

If you go to steenknarberg.com/backlight/ you will always go to the Backlight login page (unless you’ve previously logged in during the same browser session)

What do you mean by “default backlight homepage”? The Backlight admin page?

I see you already have an existing site at steenknarberg.com. Is Backlight meant to augment that with galleries or is it meant to replace it? What sort of setup are you after?


Rod 
Just a user with way too much time on his hands.
www.rodbarbee.com
ttg-tips.com, Backlight 2/3 test site

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#5 2019-11-27 15:10:36

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Steen, as above, you can *not* put Backlight within your own ‘backlight’ directory. Do you currently have both a directory called backlight and another directory within that called backlight? If you do, rename the higher level directory you created to something other than backlight.

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#6 2019-11-27 15:17:18

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Ben/Rod

After reading your last reply again, I note that you say that I can install in any a folder except one called 'Backlight'.But that's apparently where it's going wrong, because that's what your installation guide says I can:

"
3. After upload, the /backlight folder should be accessible from your site's home, i.e. yourdomain.com/backlight.
4. To access the installer, visit yourdomain.com/backlight/installer.
"

So actually it's your guide, as I read it, that is the problem, as the path mentioned here is not valid. Wouldn't you agree? I think it would be very important the mention in the guide that the folder you put the installer in cannot be named Backlight.

Allow me to comment on your support. I don't think it is optimal that it is not the same person that I write with. I have explained the problem I have in detail both in the FB post, in my PM and in my first post here in the forum. Never the less I am asked to describe the problem once again i.e. the fourth time. Also when contacting people, tell them exactly where to post questions.

/ Steen

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#7 2019-11-27 15:23:00

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Upon fast rewinding to my first installation attempt; Actually I initially installed in a folder called site/billedarkiv/ and couldn't make it work. Same problem, was sent to the login page when trying to open the Backlight homepage.

/ Steen

Last edited by sknarberg (2020-02-17 23:37:00)

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#8 2019-11-27 15:25:55

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

Steen, are you here to criticise or to have your problem solved?
The ‘backlight’ in the documentation is the backlight directory you get from uploading the contents of the zip file. It is the entry point to the admin and not a directory you create and then upload to. Does that make sense?

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#9 2019-11-27 15:36:35

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

Here’s how you go about installing in [link removed by Ben] from scratch:

1. Create a directory called billedarkiv inside public_html or www on your server

2. Unzip the installer zip on your PC

3. Copy the contents of the unzipped folder exactly as-is from your PC into billedarkiv on your server. Do not just copy the contents of backlight, but the directory itself and other files on that same level. After doing so you should have directories like public_html/billedarkiv/backlight and also an index.php file and .htaccess file within public_html/billedarkiv

4. Visit [link removed by Ben] in your browser to complete the installation

At that point you should have a default Backlight site at [link removed by Ben] and a login page for the admin at [link removed by Ben]

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#10 2019-11-27 15:45:45

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Answer to Rod's question about my purpose of Backlight, I want it to function as a separate site (image archive) beneath my mainsite, Steenknarberg.com.

Upon reading your different replies and the guide again I have to say it is all very confusing. I would recommend that you give that guide a very serious overhall, totally rewriting it with very concise info on what's allowed and what's not, what to call folders etc. After that you ask ten people to follow it and then take action if it's not understood...

But for now, please reply and tell me exactly how the folder structure should look like when starting the installation.

K.r. Steen

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#11 2019-11-27 15:47:37

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

See my reply above on all the details you need to get you started.

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#12 2019-11-27 16:14:16

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Now I have tried to put the installer in site.com/billedarkiv/backlight and install.

After installation (no errors) this does not work and there is no homepage on either of the folder levels after filling in the required info in the setup. Going to https://site.com/billedarkiv/installer/ or https://site.com/billedarkiv/ just provides a page with two buttons, one of them saying "Go to backlight". Pressing that button does nothing....

Could a prior installation gone wrong affect a current installation or does deleting a prior folder clean up everything? This question should also be answered in your guide????

This is so very annoying...

/ Steen

Last edited by sknarberg (2020-02-17 23:41:41)

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#13 2019-11-27 16:21:38

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

If bilkedarkiv was empty when you started your reinstall then a previous installation should have no effect.
We can not document all the numerous ways that misteps can be made. This is why we are here providing support.

Again, you don’t install anything into a backlight directory. You copy the backlight directory and all of its contents I to the directory you want your site to become a Backlight site.

Can you provide me with FTP access via email so that I can get you past this hurdle?

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#14 2019-11-27 16:30:48

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Ben

I have followed your instructions in your #9 reply exactly. This does NOT work, see for yourself, I just get a listing of the folder contents...

https://site.com/billedarkiv/

In the setup page/form that I fill in, what should the company URL and the Site URL's look like? I have set them both to site.com/billedarkiv.

Explanations for the form fields could be more precise and fulfilling. Especially the API key explanation.

I am going on an assignment in one hour...

/ Steen

Last edited by sknarberg (2020-02-17 23:39:30)

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#15 2019-11-27 16:44:37

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Steen,  I don't believe step 3 has been followed correctly.  Here it is again with what you have missed emphasised:

3. Copy the contents of the unzipped folder exactly as-is from your PC into billedarkiv on your server. Do not just copy the contents of backlight, but the directory itself and other files on that same level. After doing so you should have directories like public_html/billedarkiv/backlight and also an index.php file and .htaccess file within public_html/billedarkiv

The company URL should be whatever is appropriate for your company.  The Site URL should be [link removed by Ben]   In most cases that should have been pre-filled with that. Explanations ofr the fields are provided by hovering over the  (i) info icons on the setup page (and also the Backlight Settings page post-installation).

I am heading out cycling.  It is a beautiful evening here in Melbourne.  I will be only in a few hours.  If you are still stuck please send me FTP access so that I can solve any remaining issues.

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#16 2019-11-27 17:22:31

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Ben

I thought I did exactly as you described, but now I see what you mean.

This is the first time I have ever come across a zip installation where files needed for an installation are unzipped outside of a folder supposed to contain an installation set of files. This is far from an optimal approach, if you ask me. and it's certainly not foolproof. As an example I very often install DaVinci Resolve which is downloaded as a zip file. The installation file is inside the unzipped folder, off course.

I have a temp folder for such things which holds a lot of other stuff, so this approach is certainly not advisable. And furthermore your guide does not highlight this. One would off course assume that everything needed would be in that unzipped Backlight folder. The least you could have written in your guide was that you need to create a folder first in which to unzip the contents of the zip. Everything in that folder should be moved to the target folder on the server, or something like that....

I think you need to change this, either in the folder layout of the zip and/or in the guide. I would recommend changing the zip, because that would eliminate any misunderstandings. 

The guide should read something like this, if you want to keep the zip folder structure as is:

1. First step, unzip the downloaded Backlight-2-Installer ZIP file in an empty folder on your hard drive. Do NOT unzip into a folder containing other things.
2. Copy all content  from the hard drive unzip folder to the folder on your server that will contain Backlight 2. The location of files on your server is host-specific. Typically, this will be under the public_html. See our notes on FTP for further information.
Be sure that everything that was unzipped into the folder on your hard drive including the .htaccess file is copied to the server folder. It may be invisible in Mac's Finder or Windows Explorer, but you should be able to see it in your FTP client; make sure it's set to show invisible files.

/ Steen

Last edited by sknarberg (2019-11-27 17:29:23)

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#17 2019-11-27 20:37:31

Ben
Moderator
From: Melbourne, Australia
Registered: 2012-09-29
Posts: 4,399

Re: No Backlight homepage

There is no requirement to create a folder.  There is only the requirement to transfer everything from within the zip to the location on your server where you want the site to reside.  How you manage that is up to you,  and dependent on the software on your PC or Mac, and your preferred workflow.  e.g. creating a folder and unzipping into it, or browsing the zip file and dragging the files to the location open in your FTP software.  This is basic stuff, and to date you are the very first person to have trouble with this.  I feel that you are projecting your frustration on to us and that it completely negates our efforts to assist you; here we are exchanging a lot of words about this while you still don't even have a working site.  Priorities.

The base Backlight files that you upload to your server are structured for a reason.  There is a lot of history to the product with a great deal of experience built into the process that accounts for permissions, a variety of server environments, and ease of upgrade.  Once you are up-and-going and have updates to apply you might start to appreciate the structure that the initial files put in place.  It is semantically almost identical whether you upload the 'only' single file onto the server, or update 'all' contents of the zip.  The contents are minimal and take just a few seconds to upload.
I don't know of many single file installations.  Wordpress, the most popular CMS in the world (analogous to Backlight, which is also a CMS), requires uploading 1,907 files totalling 48 Megabytes.  Backlight requires only 44 files totally 336 Kilobytes.

Now, what else do you need to do to complete the installation?  I have FTP access, but at the same time you have already realised the steps I outlined above that you have missed.

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#18 2019-11-27 20:37:54

sknarberg
Member
Registered: 2019-11-26
Posts: 15

Re: No Backlight homepage

Hi Ben

With the new information i finally made a successful installation and I suppose things are as they should.

I'll get back to you if I encounter other problems. I hope you guys will consider the changes I have suggested.

All the best
Steen

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#19 2019-11-27 22:31:13

rod barbee
Moderator
From: Port Ludlow, WA USA
Registered: 2012-09-24
Posts: 17,830
Website

Re: No Backlight homepage

In case you missed it, there is also an instructional video on installation at the top of the Docs page
http://backlight.theturninggate.net/docs/doku.php


Rod 
Just a user with way too much time on his hands.
www.rodbarbee.com
ttg-tips.com, Backlight 2/3 test site

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