Thread

How easy/hard is it to develop multiple sites from a development area utilizing Multi-Site Manager (all on the same server), and then launch them separately on their own server once development/sign-off is complete ?

I notice that site_id is a field that can be used to separate database content out, and perhaps develop an “extension” solution if a solution doesn’t already exist.

We are looking into the purchasing of the Multi-Site Manager for multi-site development only.

I wouldn’t recommend this path, honestly.  Plus, if you have a license for the site, we do allow you to have a development/staging/backup testing area for it.  See this kb entry.

Lisa, why wouldn’t you recommend this ? We plan on having the client pay for their own license, we may have up to three EE sites in development, and wouldn’t the ‘launch’ of the site involve:
1) exporting/importing of site specific data
2) transfer of site-specific template files
3) config/install changes where needed ?

The problem we’re experiencing is developing more than one site at a time, and having to reinstall EE, install the plugins, extensions, modules again, and then including any “hacks” that were made, prior to getting started on the new site. This takes 2-4 hours each time, give or take.

Please suggest an alternative. Keep in mind we are not cutting any corners or trying to avoid paying you your license fees. Just trying to keep things simple.

I feel that you would be best to simply maintain a “model” installation on your local drive, wiht the files setup as you want, and then moving that installation + database content in the normal way would be an easier way to spend your time.  Right now, if you wish to proceed the way you do, you would need to develop a custom solution to “spin off” a site; and that could have unexpected consequences.  If you simply use a development installation that will be moved, duplicated and exactly the same, you are much less likely to run into issues.

YOu can still develop a custom solution to spin off a site out of the MSM; but I just don’t think that it’s worth the time to do so, when simply moving over a database and copying some files a tried, true, and stable solution.

ok, you’re right, makes more sense to have a “model” installation.

Can i ask you, btw: why was the member module not done in the same manner as the weblog module, just instituting security options and sessions to maintain specific login control ? In my limited development so far of some extensions (as well as some useful hacks), it has seemed that it diverged completely from the EE weblog concept, and became more complicated than it needed to be.

Plus, templates for the member information could’ve been easily modifiable (under a ‘membership’ template group) and the ‘default template’ idea could’ve been done away with.

I understand what you’re saying, and we do value that feedback. If you have ideas for how to improve the membership system, then by all means, please do post a feature request.

Do i need to say anything more than what I just said ? Is it explicit enough ?

Well, I’d love to hear about what you envisage as far as how the member module should work; as opposed to asking why it works now. And the correct place for that would be in the feature request forum.  I am not really following quite what you are saying as to how you think it should work, though, so I do hope you’ll expand on it as an FR.