Deploying on Azure

 Installing on Azure. When I first tried to run the site I got a few thousand errors. Many were plugin errors, but the two that seemed most significant were:

  1. One that said the site was currently over its licensed number of servers.
  2. Another that indicated the file store wasn’t designated.

I’m not sure how to deal with the license issue.

For the second, the instructions for Azure weren’t clear (to me). They say:

“Edit the communityserver_override.config file in the Telligent Community web package and un-comment the 2 override nodes for the filestoragegroup.”

It doesn’t mention you need to add the current file storage name/location. Maybe that should have been obvious, but it doesn’t mention it. It’s obvious now! I’m not quite sure how to edit it however. Is there an example? There’s an example for using a CDN, but not for using Azure storage.

I fixed those things in the communityserver_override.config file, but then got the error there was no default filestorage designated in the main communityserver.config file. So it seems like the override file isn't overriding ;=)

So I put the filestorage name in the communityserver.config files. That eliminated most of the errors, but the site will still not run.

Now I'm getting the following errors in cs_eceptions (which causes an "Object reference not set to an instance of an object" error:

An error occurred while initializing the plugin: Telligent.Evolution.Components.ThemeFilesFileStore
An error occurred while loading the plugin: Telligent.Evolution.Api.Content.Core.UserContentType
An error occurred while loading the plugin: Telligent.Evolution.Components.FileInstallationPlugin
An error occurred while registering tokens in the plugin: 'Telligent.Evolution.Api.Plugins.TokenizedTemplates.GlobalTokens'.
Error registering Urls for plugin 'Administrative Panel Service Plugin'
There was an error indexing content ('Groups'). 

Parents
  • Have you purchased a valid license or are you attempting to use a free version?  If you have not bought a license, you are restricted to a single server which can be an issue in Azure.  You should be able to still log into administration however and de-register servers.

    I am not sure why you would have any errors about default name, there is no changing of any names, and the entire document is about using Azure storage, a CDN sits in front of Azure storage that allows for enhanced Http features.

    I am not sure how familiar you are with Azure, but the install process is only a small part, it relies on a making sure the entire infrastructure is set up correctly, understanding how to install a community and then additionally configure community for deployment.   IF you are struggling with this I recommend opening up a support ticket and looking into engaging our professional services organization.

  • " If you have not bought a license, you are restricted to a single server which can be an issue in Azure."

    I understand that might be the case, but that's not described anywhere that I could find. Can you point me to somewhere on the site that is discussed?

    "I am not sure why you would have any errors about default name, there is no changing of any names, and the entire document is about using Azure storage, a CDN sits in front of Azure storage that allows for enhanced Http features."

    Those errors persisted until I made the changes I described. Whether or not they should have, they did. I was told by someone in your organization that the Azure deployments are relatively new. So maybe the documentation hasn't been fully battle-tested yet?

    I followed the instructions as closely as I could. The fact you don't think I should have had to change the filestorage designations even though I got thousands of exceptions until I did indicates that maybe the documentation isn't complete? Certainly I could have made mistakes in setting up what is a complex infrastructure on Azure. 

    Just curious, have you tried following the instructions as written to see how accurate they are? 

  • I have followed them, I wrote them, and I wrote them as I deployed a site to Azure a couple of times.  :) The errors you are getting are not typical to any installation which leads me to believe something is wrong with how Azure is set up, how it was deployed or some other issue.  Editing the community server override config file is literally just copy and paste what is in the document.  Changing the storage mechanism does not change the defaults which are still defined in the main configurations which should always remain untouched.   The only thing you are doing is specifying a new provider, which also assumes you have successfully set up Azure storage.   

    As for the free version restrictions I have to look , but the license page will tell you all that is restricted.    Unfortunately further investigation and assistance is going to require a Support ticket.   I would recommend opening one  https://www.telligent.com/support/.  Unfortunately the free version however is only going to give you public forum support.   If you are working with a sales representative I would suggest contacting them to work out your license question and the potential for some other form of support.

    If you are evaluating, I recommend not using Azure for evaluation at all. 

  • Well if you wrote them, you might want to take a second look.

    And as I've said a couple of times now, until I made those changes I received thousands of errors. 

    So I guess we've determined the problems are entirely of my doing. Good to know!

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