Sagres74

I was just perusing Pcarworkshop when I decided to checkout the ISV cleaning page. Below is what I found... 3 full scrolls of this garbage. Am in the process of cleaning it up. If someone has a solid write-up to offer, please do so as this siteis invaluable.

I recommend everyone validate all of the links and patrol this super useful site.

Sagres74

And another...

TJ993

I saved the original in pdf which I am more than happy to emaildirectly to you if that will help?
I am not computer literate
Send me a PM with your email

TJ

NC TRACKRAT

Looks like a number of the procedures were affected but not all. Probably some disgruntled BMW owner with time on their hands.

willus

Despicable.

It looks like the rogue changes can be undone as the wiki keeps a history of the edits. It looks like Sagres74 is already working on it (the torque spec page is back). If there's anything I can do to help, let me know.

I love and frequently use pcarworkshop!

Mike J

Thanks for the support guys! (for those who do not know, I own the site).

This site has been problematic - been dealing with lots of attacks and bots that dump crap into the wiki all the time. I did not want to wholesale lockdown the site since there are people (like above) who will help out with it and need access. Those specific pages should have been protected so not sure why they have been nuked.

From a content point of view, the site is pretty static so a Wiki might have been a wrong choice - not that many Porsche people have directly updated the site, and there is been minimal supervision of the content - hence the current problems.

Here is my bigger issue. The servers/network this runs on has been provided by another Rennlister (thank you Rob!), but now the servers are end of life and need to be shut decommissioned, and the company supporting this is also being shut down.

I am faced with a dilemma, either shut the site down, or go through the massive piece of work to move it to another hosting site (which I have not looked for yet). I do not have the time right now, but might next year if I retire. The wiki software itself is old and needs updating, which is why there are security holes.

Honestly, most of the content can be found elsewhere. The traffic to the site has not been super strong since its a very focused audience it serves. I am also losing enthusiasm to keeping it updated since I do not actually use any of the content at all.

Opinions?

Cheers,

Mike

911F1

I'm not a IT guy so I have no idea what it really takes to run something like this site. I do use the site frequently when tackling DIY projects. Maybe a go fund me account would help out? I would donate money toward the cause. I hope the site will be around in the future. Good luck and thank you for what you have done for the community thus far. Cheers!

gavonder

I need to do a lot of the things on this site to my car in the future. I think the content in one place is very helpful, & in the back of my mind, I like knowing the info is there when I need it. So I, for one, hope it somehow stays or I need to figure out a way to download the info I want.

I don't fully understand what is involved in keeping it going, or what it takes to move it - (sounds like a lot). So, if it has to go, how can it be downloaded easily?

Thanks for what you've done to keep it going.

Mike J

A wiki has a database, so no, it cannot be easily "downloaded'. I do have backups, but it will be work to restore. I suspect the pages damage were not protected, each page can be separately locked.

the problem is also I am not familiar with this software, and you have to work via the back door to do things like nuke users, etc. I am tempted to just nuke all users and have a very select community of people who can edit, subject to explicit granting of permission. Right now its using a Captcha mechanism, which can be manually done than then enable the bots.

Cheers,

Mike

gavonder

I don't really understand all of that, but again, whatever you do is appreciated.

willus

As a novice mechanic, I frequently use the site. I'm currently working through a (very slow) engine rebuild using your series on the topic. pcarworkshop is my first stop when researching a project on my 993; it is quick to find and more importantly, I know I can trust the content.

I have always been grateful (and amazed) that you run the website as a volunteer contribution to the community. While I've never run one myself, I've been close enough to have an inkling of the work required.

I like the wiki format, but can see that it causes additional security and maintenance problems. My $0.02 would be to do what you proposed "nuke all users and have a very select community of people who can edit, subject to explicit granting of permission."

I really can't contribute much time, but I could volunteer to be an assistant/secondary administrator to help with granting permissions, removing bad actors, etc. if that would be of some assistance.

AZ Targa

I use your site a lot and it really helps me out, so if there is something I can do to help out, let me know! I would hate to see the site go away due to vandalism.

BradB

I, too, have been a fan and regular visitor for many years. SAVE PCARWORKSHOP!

fsa

Awful Mike, so sorry. Your countless hours of selfless labor have helped many on this site, as the testimonials clearly state, and will continue.
If some have suggestions how we can rally and support re-instituting these data, or somehow righting this mess, please inform.
Fred, Portland

Cemoto

Yes, this does totally suck. I've used the resource many times and never thought someone would do something like this.

Right that ship!

Thank you.

.