phpBB Weekly

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Episode Duration: 1:26:00
On This Episode: Douglas Bell (Fountain of Apples) and David Lewis (Highway of Life)

We were hoping that this episode of phpBB Weekly just might turn out to be a shorter show, but apparently it wasn’t going to happen. Nevertheless, it turned out to be a rather interesting and informative show that came bundled with a rather interesting and informative live audience.

phpBB3′s Permissions system is one of the most powerful and most comprehensive new features, but also one of the most intimidating, as Douglas can tell you from experience. We go through the basics of using phpBB3′s permissions system and also look at a number of common things that can confuse people about the system (like why no one can see the forum you just created or the difference between Yes, No, and Never). For more information on the Permissions system beyond what we’ve covered in this episode, check out the Flash tutorials on managing forums and on custom usergroups. You can also check out the Setting Permissions quick start guide, or the more detailed section on users and forum permissions.

Then, Douglas gives us a phpBB History Lesson, as we take a look back to the release of phpBB 2.0.11 which took place exactly three years ago on November 18, 2004. We look back at the highlighting exploit that caused that released and which caused the infamous Santy worm of December 2004 which defaced over 40,000 phpBB-based bulletin boards and hurt phpBB’s security reputation, and we look at some of the changes that the phpBB teams in response to the uproar. Josh W. (A_Jelly_Doughnut), one of the MOD Team members, also comes on briefly to look back at the Santy worm with us. Finally, we take a look at what has changed with security in phpBB3 and the various steps that have been taken by the teams in the last three years to ensure that nothing like this happens again.
Additional links mentioned:
howdark.com “exploits”
howdark.com exploits – follow up
phpBB 2.0.11 released – Critical update
phpBB 2.0.11 upgrade reminder
Netcraft: Santy Worm Spreads Through phpBB Forums

The MOD of the Week is User Shield for phpBB2 by Wo1f, and the Style of the Week is DAJ_Glass for phpBB2 by Krezno.

phpBB Weekly is a proud member of the Tech Podcast Network. Check them out for other great technology podcasts.

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Download MP3 Episode (16.5 MB)

Episode Duration: 41:18
On This Episode: Douglas Bell (Fountain of Apples)

Continuing our tour of the permissions system in phpBB3, Douglas talks about detailed management of users and groups. For users, this includes a guide through all of the features in the new User Administration panel, how to use the new Inactive Users panel, and the one or two updates to the Ranks admin panel. In addition, Douglas describes everything new for Groups in phpBB3, including the age-old question of the difference between Special Groups and User-Defined Groups.

Then, Douglas describes how to set Global Permissions for users and groups. This includes permissions for what users can and can’t do in their User Control Panel (including private messages permissions, etc.). Global Permissions also allows admins to grant users and groups full or limited access to the moderator or administration panels, with very detailed control over what users can and cannot access in these panels.

Finally wrapping up the tour of the Permissions tab, Douglas explains the layout of Permission Masks (a place to view current permissions set without editing them), and also goes through how administrators can create their own custom Permission Roles.

The MOD of the Week is Event Registration by NetizenKane, and the Style of the Week is Morpheus eXtreme by CyberAlien.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download MP3 Episode (18 MB)

Episode Duration: 45:01
On This Episode: Douglas Bell (Fountain of Apples)

You do have permission to download this episode (pun intended). We’re still waiting for a new phpBB3 release, but team member Vic D’Elfant has joined the Development Team. Douglas gives a long tutorial on how to setup forums in phpBB3, and how to assign permissions for new forums to users on phpBB3 so that they can actually use those new forums! Included is a guide on how to navigate the new permissions system and also all the ways that it can be used to show as many (or as few) permissions as you need. Douglas also shows how you can now control how much (or how little) moderators can do on a board.

The MOD of the Week is Topic Description by Swizec, and the Style of the Week is phpBBXP2 by Vereor.

Next week we will continue talking about permissions, including how to set permissions for non-forum-related features on the board, and how to edit and configure your own permission roles beyond the default ones.

Correction: During the episode I recommended using the “On Moderation Queue” as the default role for Global Moderators. I was incorrect: Under the default settings, “On Moderation Queue” means that all posts that that user or group makes must be approved by a moderator before they appear on the board. Global Moderators should be assigned “Full Access” to the board, and control over whether or not they moderate that board is set under the Forum Moderators panel as I described. Thanks to Lastof for pointing this out!