System: General Configuration

Admin CP --> System --> System Settings --> General Configuration

General settings define the name of your community along with the paths and URLs it uses to properly function. It is important that the settings on this page are accurate as the overall functionality of your community will suffer if not configured correctly here.

• Names & Addresses
  Board Name: In addition to being displayed in the browser title bar and navigation, the board name is also used to identify your community when IPB sends out emails for topic subscriptions, registration, etc.
  Website Name/Address: If both entries are completed, a link to the name you specify will appear on your community home page in the header.
  
• Other URLs and Paths
  The Upload URL and Path to Upload Directory settings are the two settings required in this section. Set the upload path to the server directory where uploaded file attachments by a user will be saved. The upload URL should be the corresponding URL which points to the specified directory.
  
  Upload form action domain, Caching PATH, Image URL are optional settings and can usually be left blank. These settings are for users who wish to use IPB in a clustered or load-balanced server environment.
  
  
  • Upload form action domain - If you are hosting IPB in a clustered server environment, you can use this setting to force all uploads to process through one server.
    For example, you have a set of four servers (server1, server2, server3, server4) and you want to specify that all uploads are processed through server1 as this server is the "master" server which handles file replication. You would enter the URL directly to server1 in this field which would force the form action on the uploads form to use that URL.
  • Caching Path - Enter the server path to a location you want IPB to store its cache files here. You may wish to use a network storage device to store cache files so skin changes and other file-cached data is consistent across a cluster.
  • Image URL - For load balancing (or when using a CDN) you can enter the URL to the location that all images serve by IPB are located.
• Other General Settings
  These settings are for debugging purposes and can generally be left off unless you are an advanced user.