Aegir

half-way through a big refactor

Basics

• Aegir
• Aegir file system structure
• Aegir contexts

System/process overview

Aegir uses Drupal multisite features to share one Drupal codebase install as a 'platform' between sites. Distributions are equal to platform+site, i.e., turnkey solutions. Content can be shared (migrated) between sites using an updated or different platform (with the same content modules, natch). A platform and site distribution is created from a .make and .info using Drush Make. The Profiler library is installed with the .make and uses a .info file to specify modules to be initialised, including site sections/etc. from the Features module plus configuration settings via the Strongarm module. Provision initialises a site on that platform and installs the platform+site in Aegir. Features and theme are stored using Git, --working-copy can be used to build a dev site then content can be migrated from live for testing. Dev platform is perfected, then rebuilt as live without --working-copy.

Stack

See: BOA

Also;

• http://drupal.org/project/puppet-aegir
• http://drupal.org/project/puppet-drush
• https://redmine.koumbit.net/projects/puppet-apt
• https://labs.riseup.net/code/projects/shared-common

Dev/production workflow

• Drupal deployments & workflows with version control, drush_make, and Aegir (mig5, Oct 28 2009)
• Using drush hosting-import to auto-create your platform node (and other entities) (mig5, Jan 11 2011) - Updated workflow on Aegir mailing list
• From Zero to Distribution using Features, Profiler, and Drush Make (dimitri, March 9, 2011)

Drush

Drupal on the command-line. The backend of Aegir is the Provision module for Drush.

• Drush - issues
• Drush.ws
• example.aliases.drushrc.php Drush context alias example

• Manage your Aegir system from the command-line

• https://github.com/webflo/drush_zsh_completion

Drush Make

Drush Make is part of Drush as of Jan 2012.

• Drush Make readme
• Drush Make theory for happy profile development
• Using drush_make to optimize workflow - Basics of make/profile management from mig5's first article

Example make files

• example.make
• github search
• https://github.com/mig5/builds
• http://drushmake.me/ - automatic generation demo

Libraries

Using the Libraries API, make files can specify external libraries to be downloaded.

; CKEditor
libraries[ckeditor][download][type]= "get"
libraries[ckeditor][download][url] =  "[ckeditor zip url goes here]"
libraries[ckeditor][directory_name] = "ckeditor"
libraries[ckeditor][destination] = "libraries"

Profiles

• Developing installation profiles
• Install Profile Packaging
• Packaging a profile on drupal.org (make file -> install profile)

Profiler library

• Profiler - use .info like syntax for profiles
  • Readme
  • Examples

Features and settings

To do: Features

• Features enables the capture and management of features in Drupal. A feature is a collection of Drupal entities which taken together satisfy a certain use-case.
• Strongarm gives site builders a way to override the default variable values that Drupal core and contributed modules ship with. [1]
• Global variables

• Hosting Features - provides a Task to Hostmaster that provides integration with a site's Features. It is currently in development but works for the most important task: Update & Commit Features

Aegir

Usage

• Migrate sites from one Aegir to another (Apache)

• remote_import - Drush extension that allows you to fetch remote sites from remote Aegir servers
  • http://drupal.org/project/hosting_remote_import hosting_remote_import] - module that provides a UI for remote_import

Provision

• Provision - the Aegir backend
• API reference
• purge option for platforms (--force)

Importing a site

• http://community.aegirproject.org/content/importing-complete-drupal-platform
• http://community.aegirproject.org/content/importing-existing-aegir-backups

Clone sites

• http://community.aegirproject.org/node/24

Migrating and updating platforms

• http://community.aegirproject.org/node/23
• http://community.aegirproject.org/migration-tips

Migration between Aegirs

• Remote import - Provision, Remote import - Hostmaster - Drush extension allows you to fetch remote sites from remote Aegir servers.

Aegir contrib.

• https://github.com/computerminds/aegir_make_working_copy - provides git working copy option un hostmaster gui for dev sites.

Misc tools

• https://github.com/Vertice/puppet-aegir