When I started http://www.appcmd.com, I wanted a content management system that allowed me to get up and going quickly. GraffitiCMS allowed me to do that. In one evening, I have over 30 posts in my new site +
Search enabled automatically
RSS feed capability
Customizeable navigation
Easy to create categories.
Quick integration to SQL Server express
Fast interface to update / add entries.
www.AppCMD.com is running on Windows Server 2008 web edition, IIS 7.0 and SQL Express + using the Integrated Pipeline, one of my personal favorite IIS 7 features. There is a web.config setting called DataBuddy that makes it a snap to change which database you are using.
Here are the settings:
<!- Which connection string should Graffiti use. ->
<add key=”DataBuddy::ConnectionString” value=”Graffiti”/>
<!- Which type of Database are you using. Valid Values: MSAccessProvider, VistaDBProvider, MySQLDataProvider, SQLDataProvider, SQL2K5DataProvider ->
<add key=”DataBuddy::Provider” value=”DataBuddy.SQL2K5DataProvider, DataBuddy”/>
I found one gotcha from a configuration standpoint. I run all my application pools with a custom user vs. Network Service. I kept getting an error that appears if it’s a .NET trust issue. This issue remains the only gotcha I haven’t found an answer for. GraffitiCMS has some active forums that I posted a question how to resolve this.
One other tip I found when you want to display a IMAGE in your left navigation, it took a little tinkering to get the right syntax. Here is how I did it.
Overall, if you need to quick CMS system, GraffitiCMS is worth checking out. I’ve not used DotnetNuke, PHPNuke, PostNuke in a while, but for a ASP.NET based solution, it’s met my needs.
GraffitiCMS is provided by Telligent, makers of CommunityServer
Cheers,
Steve Schofield
Microsoft MVP – IIS
http://www.iislogs.com
http://www.appcmd.com
http://weblogs.asp.net/steveschofield/