By mikeincousa on

Drupal Stuck at Database Configuration

I have spent the better part of three days trying to get past this problem.

I think I have tried every solution on the web including the drill at http://drupal.org/node/332730

And I tried this fix;
$db_url = 'mysql://username:password@localhost/databasename';

# $db_url = 'mysql://mike:[my password]@localhost/mike';

Along the way I posted a cry for help at http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1606531
It illustrates my methodology: With all my hacking on this problem I may have changed something since that post, but I do not think so.

What's a highly motivated, talented, and determined fellow to do?

Have you ever heard the expression, “You have one chance to make a first impression?

Can you offer something--anything--to help me get Drupal going? End the cursing? Stop the frustration?

Thank you.

Comments

khanz’s picture

khanz commented

Is there any error?

These simple tricks might work for you;

- I guess both 'default.settings.php" and settings.php are present if not both should be present to install Drupal.
- Try disconnecting from internet and then installing it, ofcource this works if you are installing on a local machine.

------------
Volvo, Video, Velcro. (I came, I saw, I stuck around.)

mikeincousa’s picture

mikeincousa commented

I changed the destination to localhost first in each and then both files: That's because I could not ferret out if both should be altered to get over the stuck spot. Do you know if both need to be changed?

I left the template syntax in the file with a "#" thinking that would comment it out. Realized this morning PHP may not recognized this standard Linux notations?

I am not following your logic about disconnecting from the Internet and installing it off-line. One of the last things I tried before throwing in the towel and writing this post was to re-install PHP via Synaptic: I thought I had somehow corrupted the defaults file. I could not find it in /etc... Not sure of the source now. Do you know where it lives from the get-go? Still too much of a newbie.....

simpson123’s picture

simpson123 commented

Mr. Khan!!
I'm a new bie here and doesn't the process clearly so please bare with me.
I'm trying to decipher what you actually saying, but as regarding your posts i done all the tricks that you were mentioned here, but find it don't work's either off the internet connection or offing it.
Can you please suggest me some more to figure out what the error actally.
Any help would be much helpful. Thanks a lot once again for all this.

xionghongyu’s picture

xionghongyu commented

Seems the sites/default/settings.php never be updated by install script.
Even though it has the permission to write the following files or directories
sites/default/settings.php, sites/default/, sites/default/files

mikeincousa’s picture

mikeincousa commented

Leaving this line in settings.php moves the install from the "Choose language" screen to the "Database configuration" screen

.....$db_url = 'mysql://username:password@localhost/databasename';

Completely removing it and using this statement freezes the rendering of the "Database configuration" screen about a third of the way into it.

......$db_url = 'mysql://mike:[my password]@localhost/mike';

Dead in the water after that.

Oconus756’s picture

Oconus756 commented

I had the same issue and took me days as well but I was able to get Drupal installed and here is what I did:

I removed the default htaccess (inside the drupal install folder) placed a new htaccess file with one line (php_value register_globals 0).

Went through the installation as normal, and it allowed me to install drupal fine.

Replaced my htaccess with the drupal default htaccess file with no issues.

Let me know if this worked.

Carolyn’s picture

Carolyn commented

Why did you put the hash in there? Take the # out. It needs to read that line to know your database settings. If you are stilling having problems, start over with a fresh codebase and empty database.

mikeincousa’s picture

mikeincousa commented

I put the hash mark in to comment out (park) the template line for the routine to see the data for my site. I Thought the # would let me flip back and forth between my data and the original syntax of the template was written. Tried every combination of the two in both config files; none changed the bottom line. Could have made a critical mistake. In the next session, I'll look at this again.

Last yesterday I deleted and reinstalled Drupal.

In the next session I will start again from step one. Ugh!

The hardest part of this, besides the frustration and cursing, is the disparity of potential solutions, the spread of them over time and versions of Durpal, and plowing through wordy narratives to get to the nuggets.

From here I'm going to try and re-cast the steps I will take into the start of a checklist; if comes out I'll publish it here.

Note.
Given the level of problems people report here, I'm surprised the Drupal folks do not have a simple concise listing (not running on and on narratives) of all current potential solutions, with links to background info for those that may need that education (like me many times). Ex. I realized yesterday that Drupal asks for "mysqli." Not knowing what that was, I had to see what it was and if I had it installed. All OKAY, but that simple "i" affixed to "MySQL" added another epoch side-trip into the kingdom of php code, and left my head spinning and mind exhausted.

Much to do this weekend. Hard to say if I'll get to this.

Stay tuned for late breaking news.

mikeincousa’s picture

mikeincousa commented

I started completely over.

I did everything as I had learned it the hard way.

With all the earlier hacking, I proceeded quickly to my stop point.

Got through it in a flash.

The only difference I noted in this path, the native presence of /sites/default.settings.php and settings.

Suspect it ran deeper than just copies of these two files though.

So much for this thread.

It's been a biter pill to swallow.

boaz_r’s picture

boaz_r commented

Oh my gosh. So much text on such a small problem that indeed should not have happened:

in my case, when told in earlier installation phase to:
* Copy the ./sites/default/default.settings.php file to ./sites/default/settings.php
* Change file permissions so that it is writable by the web server. If you are unsure how to grant file permissions...

I copied default.settings.php, corrected permissions, but also deleted the original default.settings.php. The last action seems to be the culprit. Drupal needs this default install file to later install step - the database configuration step. If it didn't exist in 'default' dir then Drupal will remain stuck in that installation step without any meaningful notification.

Copied back settings.php to default.settings.php solved it for me.