I am working on a website that honestly is stuck in the 2000s. It is running on DNN 4.0.1, and it needs to be upgraded to the latest DNN platform (hopefully). I bought a new skin for the website, but shortly after installing it and getting an error message, it could not be done. With a little bit of research, I found out that it is probably not compatible with the DNN 4.0.1. So here where I need help. I am working on a MacBook Pro. 

I need to create a back up of the DNN database and website, (preferably step by step, as I am trying to follow these instructions on different websites, I am not getting anywhere, I don't have a program to back it up to either, just want to back it up on my computer or create a copy of the website), install a new platform, configure the IIS, and upload a new skin.

 

I need all the help I can get and I greatly appreciate everyone's time and help!! 

It depends on the modules, you are using, whether you'll be able to upgrade your site to latest version of DNN.
Updating from versions before DNN 4.6.0 are a bit tricky, you'll need to merge changes manually into your web.config, I described it at http://www.deutschnetnuke.de/AboutDot...hren.aspx, upgrade packages up to DNN 8.0.3 are available for download from DotNetNuke.codeplex.com.
You should follow the suggested upgrade path, provided in wiki.dnnsoftware.com. after each step, uninstall all modules you don't need.

To backup your site, you need to backup all files and the database. if the database is an attached one, you should use backup option of SQL Server (right click database node in SQL Server Management Studio and select "backup" and on the target machine "restore". For the files use zip.
After restore, you'll need to modify both connection strings in your web.config file and you might need to add a value to portalalias table in the database.

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Cheers from Germany,
Sebastian Leupold

   

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