phpBB • Free and Open Source Forum Software

phpBB3 needs to be installed. Once phpBB3 is installed, do not delete the install directory if you will be converting immediately. If you will be testing and setting up your phpBB3 board prior to the conversion and converting at a later time, rename the install directory to something like _install. This will allow you to use your phpBB3 board. You will be needing the install directory later for the conversion.

You will need specific convertor files for the board software you are converting from. The phpBB2 specific convertor files are included with the phpBB3 installation files. For other board softwares, you will need to get the convertor files from the appropriate phpBB3 convertor topic. These topics can be found in the [3.2.x] Convertors forum on phpBB.com

For converting from phpBB2, you only need to point your browser to {phpBB3_root_directory}/install, click the Convert tab and follow the instructions. For other board softwares, you will need to upload the convertor files to the appropriate directories. The convertor files you get will consist of two or three files, convert_xxx.php, functions_xxx.php and, optionally, auth_xxx.php. The xxx will generally be the name of the software you are converting from.