1

Contents Chapter 1 ................................................................................................................ 5

Introduction ............................................................................................................ 5

1. DotNetNuke Corporation ........................................................................... 5

2. Overview ..................................................................................................... 5

A. The DotNetNuke Advantage................................................................... 5

B. DotNetNuke Platform ............................................................................. 6

C. The DNN Difference ................................................................................ 6

Chapter 2 ................................................................................................................ 7

DotNetNuke Platform ............................................................................................. 7

1. Overview ..................................................................................................... 7

2. Advanced Web Content Management ....................................................... 7

3. Optimize Content for Mobile Devices ........................................................ 7

4. Performance & Scalability .......................................................................... 8

5. Keep your Site Safe and Secure .................................................................. 8

6. Share and Manage Documents .................................................................. 8

7. Cloud Ready ................................................................................................ 9

8. Powerful Development Platform ............................................................... 9

9. Unlimited Technical Support ...................................................................... 9

Chapter 3 .............................................................................................................. 10

DNN 7.0 ................................................................................................................ 10

1. DNN 7.0 Overview .................................................................................... 10

2. What's New in DNN 7.0? .......................................................................... 10

A. For Content Editors .............................................................................. 10

B. For the Enterprise ................................................................................. 13

C. For Web Designers ............................................................................... 14

D. For Web Developers ............................................................................. 15

Chapter 4 .............................................................................................................. 16

DNN Mobile .......................................................................................................... 16

1. Mobile Web .............................................................................................. 16

2. Device Detection and Redirection ............................................................ 16

3. Content Preview ....................................................................................... 16

4. Site Groups ............................................................................................... 17

2

5. Cross Site Module Sharing ........................................................................ 17

6. Mobile Site Template ............................................................................... 17

Chapter 5 .............................................................................................................. 18

SharePoint Integration ......................................................................................... 18

1. SharePoint Connector .............................................................................. 18

2. SharePoint Lists ........................................................................................ 18

3. Live, Bi-Directional Connection ................................................................ 18

4. Secure, Synchronized Connection ............................................................ 19

Chapter 6 .............................................................................................................. 20

Compare Platform Editions .................................................................................. 20

Chapter 7 .............................................................................................................. 23

DNN Social ............................................................................................................ 23

1. Get Social. Now ........................................................................................ 23

2. A single solution means a seamless experience ....................................... 23

3. Gamification maximizes engagement ...................................................... 23

4. Powerful analytics optimize community health ....................................... 24

5. Users help innovate your product & services .......................................... 24

6. Community members provide each other support .................................. 25

7. Blogs increase online interaction and traffic ............................................ 25

8. Discussions power social interactions ...................................................... 25

9. Activity stream brings it all together ........................................................ 25

Chapter 8 .............................................................................................................. 26

Developer Support ............................................................................................... 26

1. DotNetNuke Developer Support Professionals ........................................ 26

2. Typical Developer Support Services ......................................................... 27

A. Developer Mentoring ........................................................................... 27

B. Phone-an-Expert Support ..................................................................... 27

C. Web Content Management Strategy Consulting ................................. 27

3. Elite Support ............................................................................................. 29

Priority management .................................................................................... 29

Guaranteed two hour ................................................................................... 29

Extended support hours ............................................................................... 29

Installation or upgrade assistance ................................................................ 29

Source code access ....................................................................................... 29

3

Chapter 9 .............................................................................................................. 30

Training ................................................................................................................. 30

1. Training for Content Editors and Site Administrators .............................. 30

A. Content Administration ........................................................................ 30

B. Site Administration & Configuration .................................................... 31

2. Training for Designers .............................................................................. 32

3. Training for Developers ............................................................................ 33

Chapter 10 ............................................................................................................ 35

DNN Resources & Help ......................................................................................... 35

1. DotNetNuke Operations Manuals ............................................................ 35

2. DotNetNuke Training ................................................................................ 35

3. DotNetNuke Wiki ...................................................................................... 35

4. DotNetNuke Support Network ................................................................. 35

5. DotNetNuke Forums ................................................................................. 36

6. DotNetNuke Answers ............................................................................... 36

7. DotNetNuke Projects Library .................................................................... 36

8. DotNetNuke Language Packs ................................................................... 36

Chapter 11 ............................................................................................................ 37

Limitations ............................................................................................................ 37

1. Background ............................................................................................... 37

2. Reserved words ........................................................................................ 37

A. Pages..................................................................................................... 37

B. Portals ................................................................................................... 38

3. Size limitations.......................................................................................... 38

4. Number of portals .................................................................................... 38

5. Number of users ....................................................................................... 39

6. Number or roles ....................................................................................... 39

7. Number of roles per user ......................................................................... 39

Chapter 12 ............................................................................................................ 40

The Future of DNN................................................................................................ 40

Chapter 13 ............................................................................................................ 41

Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 41

Appendix A ........................................................................................................... 42

DNN Installation ................................................................................................... 42

4

1. System Requirements............................................................................... 42

A. Supported operating system ................................................................ 42

B. Microsoft Web Server .......................................................................... 42

C. Database Server ................................................................................... 42

D. Microsoft .NET Framework .................................................................. 42

E. Recommend Environment .................................................................... 43

2. INSTALLATION GOAL ................................................................................ 43

A. Setup DotNetNuke Locally.................................................................... 43

B. Local SQL Server ................................................................................... 43

3. INSTALLATION STEPS ................................................................................ 43

A. Download ............................................................................................. 43

B. Setup File System ................................................................................. 43

C. Setup Web Server ................................................................................. 44

D. Setup Database..................................................................................... 45

E. Run Installation Wizard ........................................................................ 47

Appendix B ........................................................................................................... 48

Bibliography .......................................................................................................... 48

5

Chapter 1

Introduction

1. DotNetNuke Corporation

DotNetNuke Corp. is the steward of the DotNetNuke open source project;

the most widely adopted Web Content Management Platform for building

web sites and web applications on Microsoft. Organizations use

DotNetNuke to quickly develop and deploy interactive and dynamic web

sites, intranets, extranets and web applications. The DotNetNuke platform

is available in a free Community and subscription-based Professional and

Enterprise Editions with an Elite Support option. DotNetNuke Corp. also

operates the DotNetNuke Store where users purchase third party apps for

the platform.

2. Overview

A. The DotNetNuke Advantage

The Internet has become, for most businesses, the first time potential

customers and partners really interact with your brand. But creating

satisfying user experiences that run visitors into customers, and customer

into fans, has become increasingly challenging. Competition for user

attention is fierce, and providing rich, engaging sites and communities

often necessitates multiple vendors, costly customization and high ongoing

management costs.

DNN provides solutions that make designing, building, and managing

feature-rich sites and communities fast, easy and cost-effective. Using

DNN, you can optimize your online presence through fresh content,

stunning visuals and immersive communities that keep users excited,

engaged and, most importantly, loyal.

6

B. DotNetNuke Platform

The DotNetNuke Platform offers a simple yet powerful CMS for creating,

managing and refreshing rich content, with an intuitive interface that

makes the system accessible to everyone. Using DNN you can manage

media, content, and campaigns in real-time, ensuring your site positively

reflects your brand.

The DotNetNuke Platform makes it easy to create beautiful and engaging

web sites with a flexible CSS foundation that improves cross-browser

compatibility, extends standards compliance and increases site

performance. And with DNN, users can easily update content whenever

they have it. The interface makes adding copy, images, videos, banners,

etc. simple, and the changes go live immediately.

C. The DNN Difference

In order to engage users and keep them loyal to a site, you need features

and functionality that other sites don’t offer. Providing richer, more

engaging experiences is essential, and DNN offers the widest range of

functionality available. In addition to our own broad, flexible solutions, we

have a huge community of partners and module providers who offer plug-

in features that enrich web experiences.

DNN is the only provider to offer a seamless user experience to online

visitors. Through our integrated solutions, we can reduce management

time, improves ROI and accelerate deployment of content-rich,

community-oriented sites. No other vendor provides the depth of CMS

functionality available in the DotNetNuke Platform, and no single social

business vendor combines content and community as thoroughly as we do

through DNN Social. From state-of-the-art CMS to creating and nurturing

online communities’ right out-of-the-box, DNN provides the broadest,

deepest functionality.

7

Chapter 2

DotNetNuke Platform

1. Overview

DotNetNuke helps organizations build and manage content-rich websites,

social intranets and online communities. It is the most widely adopted Web

Content Management Platform for Microsoft .Net, powering over 700,000

production web sites worldwide. The powerful web application

development platform allows businesses to easily customize and extend

their desktop and mobile websites.

2. Advanced Web Content Management

DotNetNuke delivers a powerful content management solution with an

intuitive, easily understood interface designed for non-technical content

contributors. It includes a powerful suite of applications for a wide variety

of web development needs. You can also choose from thousands of

additional apps which can be easily installed through a direct connection to

the DotNetNuke Store and DotNetNuke Extensions Forge.

3. Optimize Content for Mobile Devices

DotNetNuke makes it fast and easy for organizations of all sizes to deliver

tailored online experiences for thousands of unique mobile devices.

Features for managing mobile device detection, page routing, site groups

and delivering content optimized for mobile browsers will help you build

and maintain highly modern websites.

8

4. Performance & Scalability

As your business grows, DotNetNuke grows with you. DotNetNuke

includes features for page and module caching to speed the delivery of

web pages and provide visitors with a more satisfying experience.

DotNetNuke provides web farm support to increase performance and

guarantee content delivery.

5. Keep your Site Safe and Secure

DotNetNuke helps to secure one of your most important business assets. It

provides security roles; a granular permission solution and content

approval workflows that let you control that can view, edit and publish

content on your site. DotNetNuke also includes powerful features to

monitor the health of your site, detect changes to your source code and

proactively notify you about security updates.

6. Share and Manage Documents

Available exclusively in the DotNetNuke Enterprise Edition, the Microsoft

SharePoint Connector enables fast, secure publishing of documents stored

in SharePoint to public web sites, extranets or intranets. You can securely

manage your document library within SharePoint and selectively publish

specific documents using the flexible, cost effective DNN platform.

DotNetNuke also includes a full document management solution which

allows your organization to store, control and view documents online.

9

7. Cloud Ready

The DotNetNuke platform is fully compatible with Windows Azure

Hosting. It also provides cloud service integration with the Windows

Azure Storage and Amazon S3 folder providers. DotNetNuke is a great

foundation for moving to the cloud, whether you want to move your whole

site to the cloud or just your file storage. If you would like to participate in

our DNN Cloud Services beta program, make sure to submit your

application today.

8. Powerful Development Platform

DotNetNuke is both a powerful Web Content Management System (CMS)

and a Web application development framework. The flexible DotNetNuke

architecture allows you to easily add functionality or change the

appearance of your web site through the addition of DotNetNuke apps.

You can choose from thousands of commercial apps in the DotNetNuke

Store, hundreds of free apps in the DotNetNuke Extensions Forge, or build

your own custom apps. DotNetNuke features an open API to empower

your own custom app development.

9. Unlimited Technical Support

Unlimited online technical support is provided through the DotNetNuke

Support Network. An Elite Support option is also available and includes

phone support, priority trouble ticket management and extended support

hours. DotNetNuke offers a Developer Support option for organizations

that require design and web strategy consultation.

10

Chapter 3

DNN 7.0

1. DNN 7.0 Overview

DNN 7.0 makes creating and managing content-rich websites, social

intranets and online communities easier than ever, with benefits for web

content editors, enterprises, web designers and web developers. It's our

easiest to use version and provides new features to make you more

productive. DNN 7.0 is also our most advanced development framework to

date, allowing you to build powerful web applications. With support for

Active Directory and SharePoint Lists, DNN 7.0 can also be

seamlessly integrated with popular enterprise applications.

2. What's New in DNN 7.0?

A. For Content Editors

a) Control Panel

DotNetNuke 7.0 includes a brand new control panel for managing your

site. Each menu has been updated to offer a more intuitive experience.

We've even made it possible for end users to personalize the menu by

creating their own bookmarks within the menu. The Host and Admin

menus include areas for common items, advanced items and personal

bookmarks. The Modules, Pages and Users menu items provide quick

access to common features in those areas.

11

b) View Mode by Default

Navigating page by page while in edit mode has never been the most

efficient way to navigate a DotNetNuke site. Edit mode increases the

overall page payload and browser rendering. In DotNetNuke 7.0, users are

now always in View mode. The Edit Page menu gives the user the ability

to quickly toggle edit mode along with providing quick access to common

page tasks.

c) Edit Mode Improvements

DNN 7.0 has View Mode as the default view for all users. You can also

choose to select "Stay in Edit Mode" which switches the default view to

edit mode. The default View Mode improves page rendering and response

time for general purposes

d) Drag and Drop Modules

DotNetNuke 7.0 brings back Drag-n-Drop and its better than ever you can

now drag modules between panes and from the control panel to a pane

while in edit mode.

e) Cross Site Module Sharing

For DotNetNuke installs with multiple sites, there is a fairly common need

for the ability share content across different sites. In DNN 7.0 Professional

and Enterprise Edition, you now have the ability to share modules across

multiple sites within the same DotNetNuke instance. Sharing the HTML

module is very simple. Just choose "Add Existing Module" from the

Modules menu then select the site that contains the module you would like

to share.

12

f) Actions Menu

In DNN 7.0 we have removed the Manage button in favor of a new

approach that will provide greater consistency with skins. The Manage

button has been replaced by an Actions menu that properly separates

common module tasks. You will see three icons that represent Edit,

Manage and Move. The Edit menu will be used for module defined

actions. The Manage menu is used for settings and admin tasks. The Move

menu is used to move a module between panes when drag-n-drop isn't

available.

g) HTML Module Auto Save

Have you ever been working on a piece of content and have your browser

crash? Maybe you thought you were trying to clean up a few browser

windows and accidentally closed the wrong window. If you have been a

victim of lost HTML work you will love the new auto save feature. Simply

enable the Auto Save option from the HTML Module setting’s window

and you'll manage content easier knowing that your hard work is being

saved in the background.

h) HTML Module Version Compare

Have you ever wanted to know what changed in a piece of content

between versions? DotNetNuke makes it easy for you to keep track of

multiple versions of your content, but now we have made it even better!

With Version Compare, you can easily see the difference between each

stored version of content. You can choose to highlight the actual text

changes, or for those that want even more detail you can switch to HTML

view and see the actual code that was changed.

13

i) New Default Skin & Template

The Dark Knight skin has had a good run, but it was time for Awesome

Cycles to step up their game. The clean and simple Gravity skin is a great

example for designers to use to become familiar with the CSS

improvements with 7.0.

j) Simplified Installer

The first thing you will notice is that the installer has been updated. Not

only have we updated the look and feel, but we also simplified the overall

install process. You shouldn’t have to click through a series of screens in

order to just get your website running. With the 7.0 installer we have taken

an approach that allows for the application to be installed quickly, but also

provides you with the ability to configure advanced features if you wish.

k) New Getting Started Page

The first thing you will see after you have completed the install is our new

Getting Started page. The 7.0 Getting Started page includes quick access

to two intro videos, the new Advanced Settings page and quick links to

community resources.

B. For the Enterprise

a) Active Directory

Enterprise users can now login using their Active Directory credentials.

This provides the added security and simplicity of single sign-on across

multiple web sites that complies with the organization’s existing security

policies.

14

b) SharePoint List Integration

Available exclusively in the DotNetNuke Enterprise Edition, the Microsoft

SharePoint Connector enables fast, secure publishing of documents stored

in SharePoint to public web sites, extranets or intranets. You can securely

manage your document library within SharePoint and selectively publish

specific documents using the flexible, cost effective DNN platform. DNN

7.0 extends your SharePoint investment by adding support for popular

SharePoint Lists in our Microsoft SharePoint Connector.

C. For Web Designers

a) Overhauled CSS Foundation

DNN 7.0 makes it easy to create beautiful and engaging web sites with an

overhauled CSS foundation that improves cross-browser compatibility,

extends standards compliance and increases site performance. DNN 7.0

provides standard form patterns that designers can reuse or extend to build

frequently used user-interface elements.

b) Style Guide

A new style guide provides an easy way for skin developers to see how

headings, buttons, lists and HTML content types will be rendered.

Designers can then quickly customize and adjust their CSS to optimize

new design skins.

15

D. For Web Developers

a) Service Framework

DNN 7.0 gives developers the ability to build and expose secure web

services through the DNN Service Framework, which is now based on

Microsoft’s Web API. The included jQuery, jQueryUI and Knockout.js

libraries make it even easier for developers to utilize web services to create

modern, interactive client-side applications.

New Data Access Layer

Data access has been simplified through the introduction of a micro-ORM,

allowing simpler and more secure database interactions with fewer lines of

code.

b) Full Razor Support

With the baseline DNN platform requirements moving to ASP.NET 4.0,

Razor is now a first class citizen in the framework for developing

advanced modules with full support for packaging and distributions.

ASP.NET Razor is now optimized for developing dynamic extensions and

for combining code and content in a fluid and expressive manner.

16

Chapter 4

DNN Mobile

1. Mobile Web

DotNetNuke makes it fast and easy for organizations of all sizes to deliver

tailored online experiences for thousands of unique mobile devices.

Features for managing mobile device detection, page routing, site groups

and delivering content optimized for mobile browsers will help you build

and maintain highly modern websites.

2. Device Detection and Redirection

Whether the end user is on a tablet or mobile phone, site developers can

use DotNetNuke to redirect mobile users to landing pages optimized for

their device. Using adaptive rendering techniques available with CSS and

HTML 5, DotNetNuke automatically detects the specific characteristics of

thousands of mobile devices and tailors the design and content of the page

as desired by the site authors. Multiple site types can be supported for

individual pages that allow for the delivery of specific experiences for

tablets, Android phones or other devices.

3. Content Preview

DotNetNuke provides a mobile content previewer that makes it easy for

developers, designers and content owners to optimize the mobile

experience of their websites early in the process without requiring physical

access to thousands of different mobile devices. The content previewer

supports Android, Apple iOS, Windows Phone 7 and Blackberry devices,

all without leaving the DotNetNuke platform. The Content Preview

capability will make it easier for our customers to create and manage

content targeting multiple devices.

17

4. Site Groups

DotNetNuke simplifies the management of users across multiple websites.

In addition to a single sign-on capability for content owners, a simplified

set of administration screens allows administrators to set up and manage

granular permissions for the same users across many different sites.

5. Cross Site Module Sharing

For DotNetNuke installs with multiple sites, there is a fairly common need

for the ability share content across different sites. In DotNetNuke 7.0

Professional and Enterprise Edition, you now have the ability to share

modules across multiple sites within the same DotNetNuke install. Sharing

the HTML module is very simple. Just choose "Add Existing Module"

from the Modules menu then select the site that contains the module you

would like to share. Then choose the page where the module exists and

you will see a list of shareable modules come sliding across.

6. Mobile Site Template

A mobile website template sets a new standard for flexible and adaptive

layout for various devices including smart phones and tablets. You can use

the mobile template out of the box or customize it to deliver a branded

mobile experience. The template is responsive to different screen

resolutions so visitors will always have the most optimal experience on

their device.

18

Chapter 5

SharePoint Integration

1. SharePoint Connector

The Microsoft SharePoint® Connector enables organizations to leverage

the power of the SharePoint Enterprise Content Management solution and

the flexibility of the DotNetNuke Web Content Management Platform.

The SharePoint Connector takes advantage of the SharePoint Document

Library 2007 (MOSS and WSS 3.0) and 2010 (Foundation, Standard and

Enterprise) enabling you to schedule the deployment of SharePoint Views,

Folders and Lists from your SharePoint Document Library to your

DotNetNuke site.

2. SharePoint Lists

The SharePoint® Connector provides support for popular Microsoft

SharePoint Lists, which are used widely by businesses to improve

operations, promote team project collaboration, keep employees up to date

on current business projects and tasks, and improve business productivity

3. Live, Bi-Directional Connection

Organizations have the ability to establish a bi-directional, real-time

connection between SharePoint and their DotNetNuke website. When

updates are made to SharePoint documents, corresponding website files

are automatically updated. And when website files are updated, connected

documents stored in SharePoint are also updated.

19

4. Secure, Synchronized Connection

You also have the option of creating a synchronized connection which will

allow you to periodically push updates from SharePoint to your

DotNetNuke website. Your SharePoint server remains safe behind your

firewall and only the specific documents you choose to publish are made

available on your DotNetNuke site. Once files are published to your

website you can use the DotNetNuke granular security options to control

access to documents on your site.

20

Chapter 6

Compare Platform Editions

21

22

23

Chapter 7

DNN Social

1. Get Social. Now

The social web has become a fundamental aspect of Internet life. Social

media has altered the customer decision path – the way they think, act and

buy. DNN Social™ brings the power of communities – engagement,

interaction, and affinity – right to your site. You control the conversation.

It’s not enough to simply have a Facebook or Twitter presence – you want

to build social communities into your site, so your users have a seamless

experience – and you can own the information. Unlike proprietary social

tools, DNN Social is a fully unified, integrated solution with the DNN

Platform™. This unified web solution provides a consistent user

experience and reduces your integration and operating costs.

2. A single solution means a seamless experience

Only DNN combines the broadest range of leading edge social

functionality with an enterprise-class content management system. This

means your customers get a single, seamless experience throughout your

content, rich media and communities. They only log in once, comments

they make in one place can be reflected in another, and all branding

elements and site design are consistent across your site.

3. Gamification maximizes engagement

24

The Gamification features in DNN Social enable you to reward interaction

through point awards, special privileges, badging, and recognition based

on activity and contribution, with leaderboards that show users’ points and

rankings. Creating a community is just the beginning – gamification

features of DNN Social also ensure that community stays active and

engaged.

4. Powerful analytics optimize community health

DNN Social provides powerful data analytics and reporting to help you

optimize community health. The interactive dashboard shows metrics

based on users, groups and all user generated (and user-shared) content.

Activity within the dashboard is used to help you identify trends and

gather insights to influence desirable community behavior. DNN Social

makes it easy for marketing, support, and product innovation personnel to

manage the community – without the need for social website

administrators.

5. Users help innovate your product & services

Crowd sourced ideation enables faster and better product and business

model innovation. DNN Social enables you to solicit feedback and

collaborate with customers to gather insights to improve products and

services. It lets you allocate users a fixed set of votes, ensuring prudent

voting for the most valued ideas. And users who feel they’re impacting

product improvements become loyal advocates.

25

6. Community members provide each other support

DNN Social lets you provide crowd sourced knowledge management, in

which community members contribute valuable answers and support.

Members submit or search for questions and answers to gain input from

peers and receive more “real” customer service. Q&A can significantly

reduce your customer service costs and build a more engaged community.

7. Blogs increase online interaction and traffic

Blogs are a proven mechanism to enable increased community

engagement and boost traffic to your website. They help users increase

media exposure and provide you with the opportunity to stay ahead of

competition. DNN Social includes a completely re-written blogging tool

that is fully integrated with the activity stream.

8. Discussions power social interactions

Adhoc discussions create the opportunity for personal interaction with

other community members to provide community support, enable ideation,

and increase customer stickiness. The DNN Social discussion forum

supports comments and is fully integrated with the activity stream.

9. Activity stream brings it all together

DNN Social contains a completely redesigned activity stream bringing all

aspects of the social site together in one place, enabling users to easily

manage all interactions in a fun, engaging and intuitive manner. It is fully

integrated with all DNN Social features, including gamification, badges,

discussions, and notifications.

26

Chapter 8

Developer Support

DotNetNuke Corp. offers organizations operating or building mission-

critical web sites development support services to speed the

implementation of their DotNetNuke web site or web application. If your

organization needs assistance configuring DotNetNuke or requires help

developing new DotNetNuke software extensions, we offer the technical

resources to help your team succeed.

1. DotNetNuke Developer Support Professionals

The DotNetNuke Corp. Developer Support Team (DST) provides world-

class technical developer support services. We are the creators and

maintainers of the DotNetNuke web application framework with more

than six years’ experience supporting developers and enterprise customers

to meet their unique business requirements. Our DST engineers are

directly responsible for the ongoing development and integrity of the

DotNetNuke platform. We can handle your development support needs

related to the core framework, APIs, skin design, custom module

development, or systems integration. DotNetNuke Corp. provides support

worldwide, delivering timely, reliable service to ensure the success of our

customers.

27

2. Typical Developer Support Services

Our DST can customize their efforts to address your most pressing needs.

The DST specializes in high value consulting activities such as design and

architecture reviews, developer mentoring, and identification of best

practices. DST services are provided remotely via phone and email.

Typical service engagements include:

A. Developer Mentoring

We work with your development team to identify your requirements,

develop strategies for achieving your goals, and providing code and

configuration examples to guide your team to a successful project

conclusion.

B. Phone-an-Expert Support

Your development team can use their developer support hours at their

convenience to call our Developer Support Team with questions or to

request guidance on specific technical challenges as they arise.

C. Web Content Management Strategy Consulting

Web content management project can be complex. They may require

decisions about how to model content, create relationships between web

projects, architect the deployment and delivery topologies, and understand

how these elements fit into your web site design. Architecture guidance for

your first project is often highly valuable and our DST can assist you in

navigating these issues to develop an optimal design for your needs. Your

organization can then utilize this design model to create your web site or

application either using internal resources or working with one of our

highly skilled design partners.

28

The DotNetNuke Corp. Developer Support Services is a premium offering

available only to Professional Edition and Enterprise Edition customers. It

can assist your organization if you require short-term assistance on

pressing DotNetNuke development issues. The majority of your

implementation will typically be performed by your own technical staff or

a DotNetNuke Systems Integrator with our DST serving as a

complementary resource to support these efforts. If you are not sure if our

Developer Support Services are right for your organization, please contact

our sales team to identify your requirements and assess the fit with your

needs. If your needs are beyond the scope of the services we can provide,

we will work with you to identify one or more appropriate DotNetNuke

Systems Integrators that may be a fit for your needs.

29

3. Elite Support

DotNetNuke Elite Support is for organizations deploying DotNetNuke in

critical applications. Elite Support provides a higher level of technical

support including:

Live phone support in addition to online support with second level

support from DotNetNuke Corp. engineers and architects

Priority management of trouble tickets

Guaranteed two hour support response

Extended support hours from 6 am to 6 pm PST

Installation or upgrade assistance to ensure a successful initial launch

Source code access including the proprietary Professional Edition

modules

DotNetNuke Corp. professionals in the United States and Europe provide

first level support with second level support by DotNetNuke architects and

engineers. Your online support requests submitted by 4 pm PST Monday

through Friday receive a response the same business day. Requests

submitted after 4 pm PST will receive a response within 2 business hours

the next business day.

30

Chapter 9

Training

1. Training for Content Editors and Site Administrators

A. Content Administration

Prerequisites: You must be able to click on links and buttons.

Duration: 0.5 days

Content editors are the owners of the content that you want to be

maintained. As a content owner, you may be expected to do common

tasks such as creating web pages, creating new content, maintaining

content, and managing digital assets such as documents.

The Content Administration course begins at half a day and takes you a

deep dive on topics such as:

Users and Security

Pages and Modules

Commonly Used Modules

Best Practices of Editing Content

Tips and Tricks to be Highly Productive

31

B. Site Administration & Configuration

Prerequisites: You need to have a high-level understanding of how pages

and websites work. No technical knowledge is necessary.

Duration: 0.5 days

Your primary responsibility as the administrator of a website is quite

simply to make sure everything is running smoothly. Administrators

manage numerous things including managing users and user security,

defining login & registration, determine the hierarchy of pages, and even

some content editing. Basically, you may end up doing a little bit of

everything.

Site Administration & Configuration begins as a half day course and

includes the following topics:

Installation

Site Management

Page Management

Module and Containers

Security Configuration

File Management

Event Viewer

Advanced Configuration Options

Best Practices for Administration

Tips and Tricks to Ensure a Smooth-Running Site

32

2. Training for Designers

The training course for designers is a two day training session. The

skinning curriculum is designed to give you the full understanding of the

of the most flexible and robust skinning engine architecture available and

also covers the best practices of building skins (designs) for your

DotNetNuke website.

Prerequisites: You must have a solid understanding of HTML and CSS.

JavaScript would be helpful too.

Duration: 2 days

This skinning course will give you an overview of the essential

information that you need to take advantage of the DotNetNuke skinning

engine. You will learn how to create, install, and utilize skins and

containers in this two day course.

The topics you will master include:

Skinning Engine Overview

Anatomy of a Skin

Third Party Skins

Default CSS

Creating a Skin

Skin Objects

CSS Precedence

Creating a Container

HTML vs. ASCX

Navigation Options

Dynamic Designs

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3. Training for Developers

Developers of all levels will find that they can productively extend

DotNetNuke by building custom modules and customizing existing

modules to meet project requirements. This training course is designed to

produce efficient module developers. At the end of this course, you should

not only be proficient at building modules, but also have all of the

background knowledge to be able to extend DotNetNuke using only best

practices.

Prerequisites: You should have a solid understanding of the ASP.Net

HTTP Pipeline and know T-SQL, VB.Net and/or C# for ASP.Net web

forms. Knowledge of how to administrate DotNetNuke would be helpful.

Duration: 2 days

As a module developer you will be expected to deliver highly functional

and integrated mini-applications for your website. Modules are the most

common way to do this. Before you get started with your first module,

you might feel that you need this initial bit of training to get yourself

familiar with working within the DotNetNuke framework. The module

development course is meant to give you that needed confidence to churn

out world-class modules.

The following topics are but only a few of those you'll master:

Development Environment

Module Architecture

Module User Controls

Localization (multi-lingual site development)

Module Styling

Navigation

Data Access Layer Options

34

Content Items

DAL2

Module Packaging

Module Deployment

Best Practices for Module Developers

Extension Points

35

Chapter 10

DNN Resources & Help

1. DotNetNuke Operations Manuals

Download the DotNetNuke User and SuperUser Manuals now. Over 2,000

pages for each DotNetNuke release will help you install, build and manage

your DotNetNuke web site.

2. DotNetNuke Training

DotNetNuke Corp. offers a variety of training options. The best value

comes from our Training Subscription which gets you access to all of our

live online training, and recordings from past training sessions.

3. DotNetNuke Wiki

The DotNetNuke Wiki is a living repository of knowledge. Search for

answers to your questions, suggestions for new ways to use DotNetNuke,

or contribute and help other community members.

4. DotNetNuke Support Network

DotNetNuke Professional Edition and Enterprise Edition customers can

access the DotNetNuke Support Network to download updates, review the

Knowledge Base, and submit support requests and more.

36

5. DotNetNuke Forums

The DotNetNuke Forums allow our community to interact on a wide

variety of DotNetNuke topics. Search for answers to your questions, post

questions for others to answer, or help others by posting answers.

6. DotNetNuke Answers

The DotNetNuke community has a wide variety of experts that can answer

your questions online in our Community Exchange portion of the website.

7. DotNetNuke Projects Library

The DotNetNuke Projects Library has the latest downloads for tens of

DotNetNuke modules. Install or update the latest version of a wide range

of standard installation modules such as blogs, forums and more.

8. DotNetNuke Language Packs

Select from a language packs library that includes hundreds of packs for

tens of languages. Incorporate a language pack with the DotNetNuke

Content Localization Management feature for optimal benefit.

37

Chapter 11

Limitations

1. Background

As an asp.net application, that typically utilizes a SQL Server backend, a

sites scope and size is typically only restricted by the hardware available.

However, due to architecture and design there are a few limitations that

site owners should be aware of Note: Defensive code is being added all the

time to catch these issues and warn the user , but if you are using old

versions of DotNetNuke, then it is possible to generate an error without

understanding why.

2. Reserved words

A. Pages

When creating pages, there are a few page names that cannot be used as

these are already used as physical pages or handlers. These include

ErrorPage

Default

LinkClick

SiteMap

Alert

BIN

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B. Portals

When creating a new portal, the admin can create either a child portal or a

parent portal. A parent portal has a fully qualified domain name (FQDN)

such as www.mysite.com so the only restriction is that applied to DNS

records. However, if you create a child portal this creates a folder. As the

new folder will exist on a Windows file system, it must respect windows

folders naming rules. The following names are not allowed

AUX

CON

NUL

In addition, the series of reserved words for COM and LPT from 1 to 9

cannot be used i.e. COM1, COM2 ... COM9 and LPT1, LPT2 ... LPT9

More details of Windows Folder naming rules can be read @

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa365247.aspx

3. Size limitations

It is difficult to accurately estimate any size capabilities of DotNetNuke, as

typically the first time a limit is discovered, it's often found that the

underlying OS/Database/RAM is the true limiting factor, so the following

figures are provided here for informational purposes only and to help

identify any potential bottlenecks.

4. Number of portals

A number of DotNetNuke users are known to run with 3000+ portals, but

they require sufficient hardware to support this. When using a lot of

portals, queries that join to the portals & portal aliases start to slow down

and this can have a large effect. If you wish to run with 1000's of portals,

you should ensure your SQL Server(s) have sufficient RAM and CPU's to

support this.

39

5. Number of users

DotNetNuke has approximately 870285 + users (Nov '11) Anecdotal

evidence in the forums, as well as a number of sites that do not wish their

details to be public known have suggested that having multiple-million

user bases is possible, theoretically limited only by database

size/processing power

6. Number or roles

Theoretically as many as you like, but as the user's portal roles get

refreshed every minute, if you have too many roles this will greatly impact

your site.

7. Number of roles per user

User's roles are cached within a cookie (which is refreshed every minute),

so the number of roles per user is limited by cookie size. All the browsers

allow 2k-4k per cookie, with the majority allowing the larger limit. The

exact number of roles cannot be precisely fixed as the limit is also

dependent of the length of the role name, but a number of users have

reported problems when they assign 40-50 roles to a user. You are

recommended to minimize the number of roles and where you need to

grant permissions to a select group of users, consider adding user

permissions.

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Chapter 12

The Future of DNN

Technology is a tough world. As soon as you buy a new computer, it is

already out of date. The same goes for a lot of web software solutions. But,

DOT NET Nuke ™ has proven it can be different. Since 2002, it has

changed, grown and expanded to keep up with the competition and to

incorporate all the new technologies. The community keeps expanding and

the newer versions blow the competition out of the water every time.

Computer, it is already out of date. The same goes for a lot of web

software solutions. But, DOT NET Nuke ™ has proven it can be different.

Since 2011, it has changed, grown and expanded to keep up with the

competition and to incorporate all the new technologies. The community

keeps expanding and the newer versions blow the competition out of the

water every time. We are confident that DOT NET Nuke ™ is not going

anywhere and will grow with the new technologies that emerge.

If you choose to host your own web application, we will contact you when

an upgrade is available and assist you with this upgrade. If you select our

recommend host, this is part of your package.

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Chapter 13

Conclusion

DNN is difficult and expensive to set up initially. However it makes up for

it through solid integration with Windows authentication methods, as well

as performance management features like database replication. The

decisive factor is likely the officially verified 'Professional' and 'Elite'

versions of DNN, which offer dedicated support for business critical

applications.

DNN sites can be made much quicker. A number of the improvements can

come from IIS, since in my opinion the default settings for IIS for a site

focus on limiting resource usage, and not on site performance. You can

change these settings for the benefit of your production sites, if you give a

DNN site even more attention and focus on compressing and minifying

things, performance can become even much better. And these one-time

improvements work for every page hit, your work multiplies itself to the

benefit of the site visitor as well as search engines. It is a win-win.

DNN is a very solid step forwards for the platform.

42

Appendix A

DNN Installation

1. System Requirements

A. Supported operating system

Windows7

Windows8

Windows Server 2008

Windows Server 2008 R2

B. Microsoft Web Server

IIS 7.0, 7.5, 8.0

C. Database Server

Microsoft SQL Server 2008

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express

Microsoft SQL Server 2008

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express

D. Microsoft .NET Framework

4.0, 4.5

43

E. Recommend Environment

Windows Server 2008 R2

IIS 7.5

SQL Server 2008

.NET Framework 4.5

2. INSTALLATION GOAL

A. Setup DotNetNuke Locally

http://localhost/dotnetnuke/

B. Local SQL Server

3. INSTALLATION STEPS

A. Download

I. Download the latest stable release of DotNetNuke, using the

INSTALL package

II. Extract the contents of the ZIP package to a folder on your

computer.

B. Setup File System

44

I. Create a directory in the c:\inetpub\wwwroot\ folder called

DotNetNuke which would look like

c:\inetpub\wwwroot\dotnetnuke\

II. Copy the contents of the extracted DNN INSTALL package to the

c:\inetpub\wwwroot\dotnetnuke\ folder

III. Go to the properties of the c:\inetpub\wwwroot\dotnetnuke\ folder,

click on the Security tab, be sure to add the permissions for the

appropriate user (WinXP uses the local ASPNET account,

Win2003/Vista/2008/7 use the local Network Service account).

Give this account modify permissions on the folder

IV. For Windows 7 or Windows 2008R2 running IIS 7.5 you'll need to

add the application pool ie; "IIS AppPool\{AppPoolName}"

(without the quotes). The application pool should be given modify

permissions. The application pool should be given modify

permissions.

C. Setup Web Server

I. Open up the web server IIS Console, start->run->INETMGR

II. Expand the websites node

III. Expand the default website node

IV. Right click on the DotNetNuke folder under the default website,

click on Convert to Application, if you don't have that option,

choose properties and then add the application.

45

D. Setup Database

I. Open up SQL Management Studio (2005 / 2008 / 2008R2 / 2012)

II. Connect to your database server (might be local)

III. Expand the server node (name of the SQL server/computer) and

right click on the Databases node, choose New Database.

IV. Define the database name and other properties, click OK to create

the database.

V. Configure the SQL User Security/Account

a) Integrated Security

i. Expand the Server/Security node

ii. Verify that NT Authority\Network Service is listed, if not add a new

account and search for the local NETWORK SERVICE user (if

using Windows XP use the local ASPNET account)

iii. For Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008R2 running IIS 7.5 you'll

need to add the application pool ie; "IIS

AppPool\{AppPoolName}" (without the quotes). The application

pool should be given modify permissions.

iv. Right click on the NT Authority\Network Service account and

choose properties.

v. Choose the User Mapping section on the left. Select your database

on the right, and then down below choose the db_owner option,

click OK.

46

b) SQL User security

i. Right click on Server/Security and choose New Login

ii. Define new SQL Server authentication login information,

username/password.

iii. From the User Mapping section choose the new DNN database and

configure the db_owner role membership. Click OK.

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E. Run Installation Wizard

I. Browse to your website using http://localhost/dotnetnuke

II. Step through the installation wizard, use Typical or Custom.

III. When you get to the database screen you need to choose SQL

2005/2008/2012 (not the SQL Express option). If you have only

one instance of SQL running on your server, and you intend on

using the SQL instance on your machine, you can enter a '.' for the

database location or use (local) as the local instance name (the

brackets are necessary(. Otherwise, if you have more than one

instance of SQL running on your localhost (SQL2005,

SQL2008Express, SQL2008, SQL2012) and you are going to use

one of the local instances enter a period followed by a slash and the

instance name. For example '.\SQL2008'

IV. Depending on your choice at step D-V , you should choose to use

or not use integrated security.

i. Integrated Security (no changes)

ii. Not using Integrated Security

Uncheck Integrated Security

Type in the Username and Password from steps D-b-ii.

V. Test the database connection, if successful continue

VI. Step through the remainder of the installation wizard configuring

the Host and Admin accounts.

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Appendix B

Bibliography

http://www.dotnetnuke.com

http://www.google.com