How do you handle code promotion in a Sharepoint environment?

Question

In a typical corporate scenario with internal development, you may have development, middleware, and production environments. You can use SVN to contain ongoing development work in the trunk, with patches stored in branches, and your released code goes into tags with the appropriate name. Migrating binary files from one environment to another can be as simple as copying them to mid-tier servers, GAC stuff that should be a GAC, etc. In coordination with new versions of binary files, databases are updated, usually adding stored procedures, views, and adding / configuring table schemas.

In a Sharepoint environment, you can use a similar versioning scheme. User code (assemblies) ends with functions that are installed manually or through various installation programs. However, some of what needs to be promoted from dev to the stage, and then to production, may be the contents of a database that supports custom code bits.

If you are managing Sharepoint's corporate environment, share your thoughts on how you manage code promotion and content changes between environments, while protecting your work and your users and keeping them right.

Answer 1

I assume that when you talk about the contents of the database, you are referring to the actual content contained on site a or a list.

Probably the best way to do this is to use the stsadm import and export commands to export and import content from one environment to another. (Do not use backup / restore when moving from one environment to another.)

Answer 2

For any file changes (assembly, aspx), you can use the functions and then track the installers. You must install this feature and upgrade to change.

There is no easy way to sync data ... you can use stsadm import / export commands as John pointed out. But this may not be straightforward, especially if the servers are configured differently.

Alternatively, you can try Data Sync Studio ( http://www.simego.net/DataSync_Studio.aspx ).

Answer 3

Depending on the form in which the contents of the database take place, I would save its creation in code so that all this is in one place (Visual Studio project), and it can also be controlled using the source control. Deploying content can either be through a console application, or even a better recipient of features.

You may also like to read this blog post and look at the tool mentioned there for a different approach.

Answer 4

The best resource I can point to is Eric's paper:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb428899.aspx

I was part of a team that worked to improve the history of WSS and MOSS development using TFS, but I don’t know where it stands.