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April 17, 2012 6:05pm
Subscribe [2]#1 / Apr 17, 2012 6:05pm
The ee database is growing and growing. Over the years there are tons of spam. I delete it in the control panel. But I see, that the spam resist in the ee database in the table exp_comments. 25 MB spam already! Has anyone an idea, how I can clean it up?
#2 / Apr 17, 2012 10:33pm
Are you using any spam checking service at all? If not, you should download and install Low NoSpam. It’s free and requires a free Akismet account.
If the amount of spam in the database is more than you can manually delete through the Control Panel, you may have to run a sequel query to delete the spam. Is that something you’re comfortable with or know how to do?
#3 / Apr 18, 2012 2:30am
Thank you Ryan!
I delete the spam manually in the CP -> comment module. That isn’t a problem. I do it every day. It works fine. After I deleted it, the spam isn’t on the website any more.
Also it isn’t any longer in the comment module.
But: It stays in the mysql database, table exp_comments. Over 3500 spam comments, 25 MB. So the ee database will be bigger and bigger. In an future time it may not be usable for backups, reinstalling, upgrading, because it is too big.
I want to delete the spam out of the database table exp_comments.
“may have to run a sequel query to delete the spam. Is that something you’re comfortable with or know how to do?” - Sorry, I don’t know, how to do.
#4 / Apr 18, 2012 10:33am
Interesting. I always thought deleting the comments actually removes them from the database. Let me look into that. What version of ExpressionEngine are you on?
#5 / Apr 18, 2012 11:44am
Version 2.2.1 with MSM.
#6 / Apr 20, 2012 10:28am
As far as I can tell the comments should be deleted from the database when you choose Delete. I’m going to see if someone from EllisLab can chime in.
#7 / Apr 20, 2012 11:46am
Thank you so much, Ryan. You helped me - another way:
I tested it again, some comment are deleted from the database, some not. The solution: A “forgotten” site with a spam hole in one entry. I closed it. Now there are 34.000 Spam comments (!) in the database. I deleted 300 spams manually in the Comment Module and they are also deleted from the exp_comments table. Perhaps there is a more radical way to get them out? Perhaps not, because in another MSM-Site there are comments, I don’t want to loose.