Kunena 6.2.4 Released

The Kunena team has announce the arrival of Kunena 6.2.4 [K 6.2.4] which is now available for download as a native Joomla extension for J! 4.3.x/4.4.x/5.0.x. This version addresses most of the issues that were discovered in K 6.1 / K 6.2 and issues discovered during the last development stages of K 6.2

Question K 4.0.2 needs PHP 'fileinfo'

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8 years 8 months ago - 8 years 8 months ago #1 by skybax
Is PHP extension 'fileinfo' realy needed?


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Last edit: 8 years 8 months ago by skybax.

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8 years 8 months ago #2 by xillibit
Replied by xillibit on topic K 4.0.2 is
Yes fileinfo is needed, it's provided in default php package. You have to enable it in your php.ini

I don't provide support by PM, because this can be useful for someone else.

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8 years 8 months ago #3 by skybax
Replied by skybax on topic K 4.0.2 is
that's the problem, until now it wasn't needed and the shared hosting that im using can't provide it on current plan witch i already extended for 2 more years 3 months ago :(

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8 years 8 months ago #4 by xillibit
Replied by xillibit on topic K 4.0.2 is
You revert this change in the K4.0.2 package : github.com/Kunena/Kunena-Forum/commit/6d...707e544117f99f49516e

in order to be able to install k4.0.2 but fileinfo is used to determine if the attachment is an image or not, i need to find an another to that to remove the fileinfo requirement

I don't provide support by PM, because this can be useful for someone else.
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8 years 8 months ago - 8 years 8 months ago #5 by sozzled
The PHP fileinfo extension is only required for people who want to use some of the additional functionality included by the Crypsis template. It is not required by Blue Eagle or by other templates derived from Blue Eagle.

For most users who use a shared webhosting platform, the ability to enable the fileinfo extension is beyond their capability. Enabling or disabling PHP features (in a shared hosting environment) is determined under the policy of the webhosting provider.

By requiring, in the K 4.0.2 pre-installation check, the need to have the PHP fileinfo extension enabled, this effectively means that people are unable to install K 4.0.2 on their websites. Of course, if people have complete control over their webhosting environment (because they use VPS or localhost (e.g. XAMPP, MAMP etc.) they can enable/disable PHP features as they like. However, VPS solutions are expensive and localhost environments are really only useful for local testing (that is, not for production purposes).

Since K 3.0.7 was released, there have been numerous problems with installation of Kunena on Joomla. As we are all aware, the Install by URL method had been impossible to use since the installation kits were relocated to GitHub. In the time since we began discussing the Install by URL method , we know that the Kunena upgrade guide has been changed .

The current K 4.0.2 installation package requires that the PHP fileinfo extension is installed and enabled on a user's webhosting platform. The pre-installation check is not required if people do not want to use the Crypsis template and it can be removed if that is what people desire.

Unless people have the ability to install or enable various PHP extensions, they will not be able to install or upgrade to K 4.0.2 while this pre-installation check exists. This probably means that 9 out of 10 people (who use shared hosting environments) will be unable to install or upgrade to K 4.0.2 while this dependency exists in Kunena. I think that's important and something people need to be aware of.

I would suggest that this topic be made sticky and allow full, open and honest commentary/feedback from the community.
Last edit: 8 years 8 months ago by sozzled.

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8 years 8 months ago - 8 years 8 months ago #6 by sozzled
Replied by sozzled on topic K 4.0.2 is

xillibit wrote: You revert this change in the K4.0.2 package : github.com/Kunena/Kunena-Forum/commit/6d...707e544117f99f49516e

in order to be able to install k4.0.2 ...

True. I was able to install K 4.0.2 on my website by changing the install.script.php file. But it is not possible to upload attachments ... even with Blue Eagle!

There is an additional dependency involved.



If people do not have the PHP fileinfo extension enabled (and that is 9 out of 10 people on a shared webhosting environment) then they will not be able to upload attachments even if they use Blue Eagle (or another template derived from Blue Eagle—and that's 99% of all alternative Kunena templates).

So there is more than just a one-line change involved here.
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Last edit: 8 years 8 months ago by sozzled.

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8 years 8 months ago - 8 years 8 months ago #7 by xillibit
Replied by xillibit on topic K 4.0.2 is

sozzled wrote:

xillibit wrote: You revert this change in the K4.0.2 package : github.com/Kunena/Kunena-Forum/commit/6d...707e544117f99f49516e

in order to be able to install k4.0.2 ...

True. I was able to install K 4.0.2 on my website by changing the install.script.php file. But it is not possible to upload attachments ... even with Blue Eagle!

The issue only happens with blue eagle and legacy templates not with crypsis

sozzled wrote: There is an additional dependency involved.



If people do not have the PHP fileinfo extension enabled (and that is 9 out of 10 people on a shared webhosting environment) then they will not be able to upload attachments even if they use Blue Eagle (or another template derived from Blue Eagle—and that's 99% of all alternative Kunena templates).

So there is more than just a one-line change involved here.

The requierement was to avoid this fatal error, the fileinfo php extenion is needed to use FINFO class so it's the reason of this fatal error

I don't provide support by PM, because this can be useful for someone else.
Last edit: 8 years 8 months ago by xillibit.

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8 years 8 months ago #8 by skybax
Replied by skybax on topic K 4.0.2 needs PHP 'fileinfo'
This change should have been implemented with a toggle and retain old functionality and also add the new one for compatible environments, because we need to be honest here most of us wont be able to implement the new changes from kunena over night. If the implementation of PHP 'fileinfo' would have been announce before the release the K 4.0 Beta 1 we could have,

Here is the replay from my webhosting provider:

"Hello,
For security reasons this extension is not active in Shared Hosting environment. If your application for operation necessarily requires this, we recommend you to orientate your attention to a dedicated solution (VPS or dedicated server) where you can create your own security policy in terms of extensions used."

And i don't think many people will be able to solve this very fast.

I really hope that Kunena Team will be able to find a workaround.
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8 years 8 months ago - 8 years 8 months ago #9 by sozzled
This information may be helpful for those who do not have fileinfo enabled on their webhost: nl.php.net/manual/en/fileinfo.installation.php

skybax wrote: This change should have been implemented with a toggle and retain old functionality and also add the new one for compatible environments, because we need to be honest here most of us wont be able to implement the new changes from kunena overnight. If the implementation of PHP 'fileinfo' would have been announce before the release the K 4.0 Beta 1 we could have

I totally agree with you. Further, the additional dependency on the fileinfo extension should have been highlighted in both the release notes and in the technical requirements documentation. This important information is missing in both places.

I have spent the past three weeks trying to work with K 4.0. It has been a difficult time. Again, I agree with you and being just as totally honest, most of us will not be able to absorb the new changes overnight.

skybax wrote: Here is the reply from my webhosting provider:

"Hello,
For security reasons this extension is not active in Shared Hosting environment. If your application for operation necessarily requires this, we recommend you to orientate your attention to a dedicated solution (VPS or dedicated server) where you can create your own security policy in terms of extensions used."

And I don't think many people will be able to solve this very fast.

Like you, I have only in the last month re-contracted for another three years a shared hosting plan. The difference between a shared hosting plan costing $300 for three years and a VPS solution costing $300 per month is considerable and we're not all as fortunate as those who have access to this kind of money.

Like you, I also wrote to my webhosting provider but, unlike you, I luckily received a favourable response to enable the PHP fileinfo extension. I am now able to upload images on my forum using any of Crypsis, Blue Eagle or any of the templates that I developed myself.

The main issue here is that a change was introduced by the development team that can paralyse people wanting to upgrade from K 3.0.x or K 4.0.x before the current version. The change can effectively cripple anyone who uses the Blue Eagle template or templates derived from Blue Eagle.

We really should not have to be doing "trial-and-error" to see what works and what does not work. I always read the release notes and technical information to see what I need before I attempt to upgrade any software. The vital information—that K 4.0.2 has a pre-installation check relating to the PHP fileinfo extension—was missing in the announcement, in the release notes and in the technical requirements guide.

Perhaps the development team has overlooked the fact that almost all alternative templates for Kunena are derived from Blue Eagle? Perhaps the Kunena developers are unaware that not everyone is as enthusiastic about Crypsis as they are?

In any event, I really feel very sorry for skybax and other members of the community who are like him.

This is an important topic! I repeat my request to have this topic made sticky to draw people's attention to the fact that they cannot install K 4.0.2 unless they have the PHP fileinfo extension enabled. Futher, the topic needs to be stickied because, even if people do install K 4.0.2 by using the techniques we have discussed, if they do not have the PHP fileinfo extension enabled on their webhost they will not be able to upload attachments using the Blue Eagle template.
Last edit: 8 years 8 months ago by sozzled. Reason: minor typos
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8 years 8 months ago #10 by severdia
This not really smart to make this a requirement in a minor point release. Many shared hosting providers have this disabled by default (including cPanel setups) even though it's technically enabled by default in newer versions of PHP. The reason for adding it in Crypsis is non-essential and there are other options. If Drupal can weight the pros and cons (and also give people plenty of warning BEFORE it's needed in Drupal 8), you guys should be able to handle that as well.

www.drupal.org/node/2290261

In my opinion, you should fix this and maybe throw in a few quick fixes and release this as 4.0.3 ASAP.

Author of Using Joomla from O'Reilly Media. | www.usingjoomlabook.com
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