How do I know if my project is using Azure Shared Cache? - azure

Azure Shared Caching is to be deprecated 1st Sept 2014.
I have been asked to evaluate if a project that I did not build utilizes the Azure Shared Cache.
I know the project does use a form of Azure Caching but I am struggling to identify which one.
How would I know if we use it or not?

According to msdn:
To create and manage caches, you must go to the Cache section.
On the main page of the Management Portal, click Service Bus, Access Control, & Caching at the bottom of the left pane. In the left pane, expand Services, and then click Cache.
I am not sure if this info is still actual.

If you're using Azure Shared Cache, more than likely it will be configured in web.config. That would be the 1st place to start. Under <dataCacheClients> section there look for the following:
<host name="yourcachename.cache.windows.net" cachePort="22233" />
If you're using this, then you're definitely using shared caching.
You may also find this link useful for further identification: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/azure/gg278342.aspx as this link lists down other options as well.

Related

How do I copy a website from one azure website to another (not deployment slots)?

I have 2 azure websites in the same subscription and I want to copy the site from one to another. I know I can copy the entire site down to my local machine using FTP then upload the entire site, but it seems like there should be an easier way, especially considering the FTP hostname is the same for both sites.
These are not deployment slots, so I can't just swap them in the interface.
Thanks.
I think you can use the SiteReplicator site extension to do that. You can find it here https://www.siteextensions.net/packages/sitereplicator/.
The scm site can be found at URL_OF_Your_SITE.scm.azurewebsites.net and then go to Site Extensions to install it if it's not visible in the portal under the Site Extensions gallery.
You can use backup/restore feature. That will create a ZIP file from your site, store it in your storage account (including configuration serialized to XML) and then you can restore to a different/new site. In the end it is basically copying files around anyway, but maybe it is fancier than doing it manually through FTP. Another benefit is that also the website's configuration is copied around. This is one time thing only though. It is not clear from your question whether you want to do copy one time or periodically (that I would suggest the site replicator mentioned in the other response here).
Some links which might help:
Backup - http://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/documentation/articles/web-sites-backup/
Restore - http://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/documentation/articles/web-sites-restore/

VS2012 - How to GET all files on an existing site?

Alright, I am obviously missing something here. I have moved several websites over to Azure to take advantage of all that it has to offer. Traditionally our team has always used DreamWeaver to ftp up/down and such. What I don't understand is how I go about getting hooked up to an EXISTING site on Azure. I can easily setup and web deploy to a NEW site, but I am trying to give the rest of the team access to the sites I have setup and I am lost as to how to approach this.
I have tried the File > Open Web Site route, and the issue with that is it never then saves the project/info anywhere in VS, and we are required to hook back up to it each time.
All of our local sites are on a shared network drive, so we all access the same local resources. I thought I could simply pass them all the publish profiles and they could then import, get, and then edit and publish files... but it never gives the option to "get all files" from the server.
Hope this makes sense?! Thanks in advance! :)
For multiple developer scenarios, it would be in your best interest to use a source control system such as Git or TFS. This will allow you not only to share the source across team members, but also give you the benefit of tracking changes and merging files that are modified across team members.
If you aren't comfortable with source control, you do still have access to the files via FTP or Secure FTP.
You could also use WebMatrix which has the concept of download from server built directly into the tooling.

Feature Event Handler called multiple times for Farm level feature - sharepoint 2007

I've a farm scoped feature which has an event handler. The feature is activated by default on installation. After I installed the feature I found that the FeatureActivated event has been raised mutiple times (I've three web apps in total excluding central admin and it is called three times).
Because of this the feature deployment is extremely slow (as I'm doing some webconfig modifications for each web application).
Any ideas?
I have had a similar problem in the past. I created a static flag in the FeatureReceiver that indicates if it has triggered before.
Dirty, but effective.
If you make it a farm scoped feature, then the first install we be easier, sure, but then in 6 months when you create another web application, the settings wont be applied automatically and likely forgotten.
If though, you make it a web application scoped feature with the property ActivateOnDefault="TRUE" in your feature definition, then the feature will be activated in all new web applications when they are created.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms436075.aspx
And i hope you are using SPWebConfigModification to make the web.config changes, otherwise if you add new servers to the farm, then the web.config mods wont be applied either.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/microsoft.sharepoint.administration.spwebconfigmodification.aspx
Do you need these web.config changes for all the web apps ? Including central admin ?
The first change I would do is to make it a Web Application scoped feature and selectively activate on required web application.
Also, do not make it Activate by default on installation. If you are deploying through script, have a separate command for activation. That way, you can easily debug if the bottleneck is in deployment or activation.

IIS virtual directory from web.config

I have a IIS problem that I think this blog gives me a fix for:
To resolve it, Right Click on the virtual directory - select properties and then click on "Create" next to the "Application" Label and the textbox. It will
automatically create the "application" using the virtual directory's name. Now the application can be accessed.
However I don't have access to the IIS GUI. Is there a way to do the same thing by editing the web.config file?
I'm afraid this isn't possible. Configuring a directory as an application, setting up the AppPool, etc is the responsibility of the web server. Typically your web hosting provider will offer a control panel that lets you configure the virtual directories. If not, you'll need to contact them through their support channels to have this done.
You can not create a virtual directory via your web.config. If this is on a web host then you will need to use whatever user interface they give you to create Virtual Directories.
or on some hosted sites that you're allowed access to, you need to put in a ticket to the service center or help desk to get them make it an app. They will need to know which version of the .net framework you want it to be also.
The ImageResizer project has a way to create a virtual folder using its own mechanism. It isn't recommended for production, but it may suit some needs.
Add
<add name="VirtualFolder" virtualPath="~/" physicalPath="..\Images" vpp="false "/>
to the <plugins /> section.
http://imageresizing.net/docs/v4/plugins/virtualfolder

How to update web.config on each WFE in a SharePoint server farm?

We have a SharePoint farm with multiple WFEs. A new application requires us to write some custom code to the web.config during deployment. What is the best way modify the the web.config file during deployment, ensuring that each WFE in the farm get updated?
I'm assuming you'll be deploying your code via a WSP; if not, using a tool like WSPBuilder is a great starting place that allows you to get rolling without forcing you to learn all of the intricate details of solution package construction.
You should leverage the SPWebConfigModification type from within a custom SPFeatureReceiver. Normally, the FeatureActivated method of the SPFeatureReceiver would be coded to write the changes out to the web.config files impacted by your activation. Those same changes would then be retracted in the FeatureDeactivating method.
The nice thing about the SPWebConfigModification type is that SharePoint takes care of determining which web.config files should be modified -- across servers and across extended web apps.
I hope this helps!
As part of your deployment, use the SPWebConfigModification class to add/remove entries from web.config. SharePoint will manage updating the WFEs for you if you use this.
A blog post entitled, Modify the web.config file in SharePoint using SPWebConfigModification, is a great summation of the gotchas involved and contains links to other helpful resources.

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