Upgrading from Movable Type version 3.31 to 3.33 Edit

Created 9/27/2006, updated 3/12/2020

These notes were made during the upgrade to Movable Type version 3.33.

Downloading

As has happened on previous occasions with downloads from Six Apart, the received tar archive refused to extract (downloaded and tried twice) so I had to download the zip version instead.

$ tar xzvf MT-3.33-en_US.tar.gz
tar: This does not look like a tar archive
tar: Skipping to next header
tar: Archive contains obsolescent base-64 headers
tar: Read 2394 bytes from MT-3.33-en_US.tar.gz
tar: Error exit delayed from previous errors

Upgrade

The "upgrade" procedure basically amounts to something very close to re-installing all over again.

Upgrade instructions (apparently out of date): http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/docs/mtupgrade
"Installation Guide": http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/docs/Movable_Type_Installation-Upgrade_Guide.pdf

In the section, "Configuring an Upgrade Installation", the Installation Guide provides information on how to upgrade "to Movable Type Enterprise from an existing Movable Type installation". It says it is "an easy process" and that "simply" requires you to "follow the steps". It says nothing about upgrading from one release of Movable Type to the next. The key "step" is described as follows:

Install the Movable Type Enterprise files over your existing installation;

That’s all. No more detail provided. No references to the non-enterprise version of Movable Type. No mention of filesystem permissions. No allusion to the fact that the 3.33 distribution contains over 1,300 files and directories that you’ll have to upload.

Detailed upgrade procedure

Backup the Movable Type database and installed files on the remote host.
Rename old Movable Type installation on the local host (for example, to mt-old).
Put the new files in place on the local host as mt.
Copy custom files into mt.
Use Interarchy to perform a mirror upload (uploading in-place over the old files should preserve their permissions). The purchase price of Interarchy is probably justified by the usefulness of this feature alone (together with "Auto Uploads", it is an amazing time saver). Interarchy provides a detailed transcript of activity so that you can monitor progress, as well as a report of what was actually changed (see below).
Hit mt-upgrade.cgi in your web browser
For security, remove mt-upgrade.cgi from the server

Comments on mirroring

The mirroring started at about 12:38 and finished at 12:42, taking approximately 4 minutes. It is important to remember that Interarchy does a destructive mirror so extreme care must be taken; files present on the server in the remote directory but not present in the local copy will be deleted. This is why the "Copy custom files" step above is so important.

I neglected to copy some of my custom files and so was forced to restore from a backup of those files.

Change report (mirror upload)

195 changes (14 remote deletes, 181 uploads).

Deleted files

Delete Remote	No local file	README.txt
Delete Remote	No local file	docs
Delete Remote	No local file	examples
Delete Remote	No local file	images
Delete Remote	No local file	mt-config.cgi
Delete Remote	No local file	mt-send-entry.cgi
Delete Remote	No local file	mt-upgradecheck.cgi
Delete Remote	No local file	mt.js
Delete Remote	No local file	mtview.php
Delete Remote	No local file	nav-commenters.gif
Delete Remote	No local file	schemas
Delete Remote	No local file	styles.css
Delete Remote	No local file	plugins/Markdown.pl
Delete Remote	No local file	php/lib/block.MTIfNotCategory.php

Of these deleted files, some were custom files that I neglected to copy into my local mt folder before starting the mirror so it was necessary to restore these from backup:

mt-config.cgi
plugins/Markdown.pl

One file that Interarchy did not delete even though it was not present on the local side was the .htaccess file that I use to limit access to the mt-config.cgi file:

<Files mt-config.cgi>
    <Limit GET>
    deny from all
    </Limit>
</Files>

Uploaded files

Upload	Local file changed	mt-add-notify.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-atom.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-check.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-comments.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-db2sql.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-feed.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-search.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-tb.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-testbg.cgi
Upload	No remote file	mt-upgrade.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-view.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-wizard.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt-xmlrpc.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	mt.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	default_templates/comment_preview_template.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	default_templates/datebased_archive.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	default_templates/individual_entry_archive.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	default_templates/main_index.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	default_templates/search_results_template.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT.pm
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/mt.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/styles.css
Upload	Local file changed	php/mt.php
Upload	Local file changed	search_templates/default.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	search_templates/results_feed.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	search_templates/results_feed_rss2.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tools/convert-db
Upload	Local file changed	tools/run-periodic-tasks
Upload	Local file changed	extlib/HTML/Template.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Atom.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/AtomServer.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Author.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Blocklist.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Blog.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Builder.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Callback.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Category.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Comment.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Config.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ConfigMgr.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/DateTime.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/DefaultTemplates.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Entry.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ErrorHandler.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/FileInfo.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/FileMgr.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/I18N.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/IPBanList.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Image.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ImportExport.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/L10N.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Log.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Mail.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Notification.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Object.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ObjectDriver.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Permission.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Placement.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Plugin.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/PluginData.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Promise.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Request.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Sanitize.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Serialize.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Session.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/TBPing.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Tag.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/TaskMgr.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Template.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/TemplateMap.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Trackback.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Upgrade.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Util.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/WeblogPublisher.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/XMLRPC.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/XMLRPCServer.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/default-templates.pl
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc.js
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/MTUtil.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/MTViewer.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/block.MTEntries.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/block.MTEntryIfTagged.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/block.MTIfCategory.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/function.MTArchiveCount.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/function.MTVersion.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/mtdb_base.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/mtdb_mysql.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/mtdb_postgres.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/mtdb_sqlite.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/lib/sanitize_lib.php
Upload	Local file changed	php/plugins/init.nofollow.php
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/GoogleSearch/GoogleSearch.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/StyleCatcher/base-weblog.css
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/StyleCatcher/stylecatcher.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/StyleCatcher/stylecatcher.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/TemplateRefresh/TemplateRefresh.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/WidgetManager.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/widget-manager.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/feeds-app-lite/mt-feeds.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/nofollow/nofollow.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/spamlookup/spamlookup.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/spamlookup/spamlookup_urls.pl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/spamlookup/spamlookup_words.pl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/cms/edit_comment.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/cms/edit_commenter.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/cms/edit_ping.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/cms/list_tags.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/wizard/complete.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/wizard/configure.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/wizard/header.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/wizard/optional.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	tmpl/wizard/packages.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/ActivityFeeds.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/CMS.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/Comments.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/NotifyList.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/Search.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/Trackback.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/Upgrader.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/Viewer.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/App/Wizard.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/FileMgr/Local.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/I18N/default.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/I18N/en_us.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/I18N/ja.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/L10N/ja.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ObjectDriver/DBI.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ObjectDriver/DBM.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Plugin/JunkFilter.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Plugin/L10N.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Template/Context.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/Template/ContextHandlers.pm
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/alert.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/autocomplete.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/benchmark.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/client.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/colorpicker.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/cookie.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/focus.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/frankencode.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/gestalt.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/json.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/mixer.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/preview.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/spellcheck.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/tableselect.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/tagcomplete.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/window.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/wordselect.js
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/StyleCatcher/lib/StyleCatcher.pm
Upload	No remote file	plugins/WidgetManager/default_widgets/powered_by.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/default_widgets/recent_comments.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/default_widgets/subscribe_to_feed.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/default_widgets/widgets.cfg
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/tmpl/header.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/tmpl/list.tmpl
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/spamlookup/lib/spamlookup.pm
Upload	Local file changed	extras/examples/plugins/l10nsample/l10nsample.cgi
Upload	Local file changed	extras/examples/plugins/l10nsample/l10nsample.pl
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ObjectDriver/DBI/mysql.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ObjectDriver/DBI/postgres.pm
Upload	Local file changed	lib/MT/ObjectDriver/DBI/sqlite.pm
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/mixer/display.js
Upload	Local file changed	mt-static/js/tc/mixer/tagmatch.js
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/GoogleSearch/lib/GoogleSearch/L10N.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/StyleCatcher/lib/StyleCatcher/L10N.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/lib/WidgetManager/App.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/lib/WidgetManager/Plugin.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/lib/WidgetManager/Util.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/spamlookup/lib/spamlookup/L10N.pm
Upload	Local file changed	extras/examples/plugins/l10nsample/lib/l10nsample.pm
Upload	Local file changed	extras/examples/plugins/mirror/lib/Mirror.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/GoogleSearch/lib/GoogleSearch/L10N/en_us.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/GoogleSearch/lib/GoogleSearch/L10N/ja.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/WidgetManager/lib/WidgetManager/L10N/ja.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/feeds-app-lite/lib/MT/App/FeedsWidget.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/feeds-app-lite/lib/MT/Feeds/Find.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/feeds-app-lite/lib/MT/Feeds/Lite.pm
Upload	Local file changed	extras/examples/plugins/l10nsample/lib/l10nsample/L10N.pm
Upload	Local file changed	plugins/feeds-app-lite/lib/MT/Feeds/Lite/CacheMgr.pm

Upgrading from Movable Type version 3.31 to 3.33Edit