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Deploying WSS 3.0 Application Templates
By: Will Robinson | Posted: August 5, 2007 at 10:15 PM
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Microsoft released the "Fantastic" 40 earlier this year for WSS 3.0 which also works for Office SharePoint Server 2007.  I had trouble implementing a few of these templates given the sparse instructions provided by Microsoft. 
 
Here are the steps I used to successfully deploy the templates and create a site using the templates.  I'm going to focus on just the server admin templates (.wsp) or solutions and not the site admin .stp files. 
 
  1. Download all the application templates.  You can also download them individually.  Given the small size, I downloaded the package containing all the templates. 
  2. Running the EXE extracts the files.  Do so on a SharePoint server where the deployment will occur.  Make sure you create a new folder. 
  3. You have to install each template individually.  I suggest creating a batch file if you want to install all of them.  I only needed to see the help desk related templates so I did this individually.
  4. The first step is to make sure Windows SharePoint Services Administration service is running.  Open the Services MMC and start it.  This is the timer job that installs the template.
  5. Install the ApplicationTemplateCore template.  I missed this the first time.  It is required to make any of the other templates work.
  6. Navigate to the directory containing the stsadm utility.  Do not try to copy and paste these commands.  For some reason this doesn't work.
  7. To install a wsp file first run the following command: stsadm -o addsolution -filename c:\sw\applicationtemplatecore.wsp.  Use your file path location.
  8. Next run stsadm -o deploysolution -name applicationtemplatecore.wsp -allowgacdeployment -immediate
  9. Repeat these steps for any other template you want to deploy.  The template is not deployed until the timer job runs.  I found that was not good enough.
  10. To run the timer job immediately, run stsadm -o execadmsvcjobs
  11. The next command to run is stsadm -o copyappbincontent
  12. Finally, run an iisreset
 
When you go to a site and create a new site, there is a new template tab called "Application Templates".  Click on the tab and you will see the new application templates.  Good luck.
 
 
 
Regional Settings in SharePoint 2007
By: Will Robinson | Posted: February 18, 2007 at 10:33 AM
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Global companies use different date formats depending on the employee's home office location. SharePoint 2007 provides two methods of setting regional settings: Global and Local. Contrary to popular belief, SharePoint does not use the server regional settings. In fact, SharePoint 2007 provides fewer options than Windows 2003 and Windows XP. For example, the format DD-MMM-YYYY is not supported. A good example of this format would be 5-Feb-2007. Leaving this out does not seem to be a big deal. However, to Americans, 9-11-2001 is a major date in our history. To Europeans and most of the world, that date is interpreted as November 9, 2001. The formats DD-MM-YYYY and MM-DD-YYYY are confusing. Back to SharePoint configuration.

When a site collection is created, the default regional setting is English (U.S). Configuring regional settings can be found in the site settings of each site. This includes the top level website. By default, regional settings on newly created child sites inherit from the parent site; but only on creation. If you do not change the regional setting in the top level site before creating child sites, you will have more than one site using the incorrect date format. Regional Settings contain more than date formatting, but that is my focus for this posting.

 

Site Level Settings

 

Fortunately, there is an action that allows you to reapply regional settings to child sites. Open Site Settings for the top level web site. The easiest way to confirm you are in the top level web site is to use the Manage Site Content and Structure page. This is found under Site Actions.

 

At the top node, select Settings | Site Settings.

This is the page to configure the available regional settings for this site. To apply the settings to all child sites as well, enable the checkbox - All sub-sites inherit these Regional Settings.

 

When you select OK, SharePoint will apply the settings.

 

Personal Regional Settings

 

For global companies, it is rare that a team site will be used by employees from a single country. You can override the site's regional settings with your own regional settings. When you login to SharePoint, there is a Welcome control at the top of the page containing your name. Select the drop down, and choose My Settings.

 

Select My Regional Settings.

 

Configure your personal regional settings. It is important to uncheck the box – Always follow web settings. Disabling will allow your settings to override the site settings.

 

Moving SharePoint Indexes with STSADM
By: Will Robinson | Posted: January 29, 2007 at 9:27 PM
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Our disk drives for the SharePoint indexes arrived after SharePoint was configured.  I had to move the Indexes on the search and index servers.  Here's how I did it.

 

 

  1. Format the new drives on each server
  2. Create a new folder on each server to host the indexes
  3. I'm going from c:\searchindexes to e:\searchindexes for my example
  4. I have a medium server farm (SPS 2003 terminology) which consists of 2 web front end servers also hosting the query role.  I have a dedicated index server.
  5. Login to the Index server
  6. To move the index, you need to know the Shared Services name that his using the index. 
  7. In Central Administration, you will find the name of the Shared Services in the left navigation bar.  Mine is using the default - SharedServices1.
  8. Open a command prompt and navigate to the BIN directory hosting the stsadm tool

  9.  

     

  10. Once the index has been moved, delete the old index.  I have not found a definitively way to determine when the move is complete.  There are event log entries stating something happened.  My index is 16 MB so it may have moved in seconds. 
  11. Next step is to move the search indexes on the query servers.  This must be executed on each server locally.
  12. Login to the first search server
  13. Open a command prompt and navigate to the BIN directory hosting the stsadm tool
  14. Execute stsadm -o osearch -propagationlocation e:\searchindexes

 

 

  1. You can go to the Shared Services Search settings page and see the propagation to the new location occur. 
  2. Delete the old indexes.
  3. I had to restart the Office SharePoint Search service on the server to get search functioning.
  4. Repeat and rinse on the second search server.
  5. Test that search works on both web front end servers. 
  6. Since we are using windows network load balancing, I had to create alternate access mappings for the server name URL of each front end server.  Enjoy.

 

Converting SharePoint 2007 License Types
By: Will Robinson | Posted: November 27, 2006 at 10:30 AM
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Here we are in November where Office SharePoint Server 2007 has been released to manufacturing.  The 180 day evaluation software is available but the production license keys are not.  Can I upgrade my test and production environments now with the evaluation copy and convert to a valid production or non-time bombed license later? 
 
The answer is Yes.  
 
The SharePoint team submitted a posting last week on this very topic.  There is a FAQ section that speaks to converting from evaluation to valid license, converting from standard to enterprise, etc. 
Adding SharePoint Search to IE 7
By: Will Robinson | Posted: November 12, 2006 at 10:04 PM
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Internet Explorer 7 allows you to add multiple search providers in the search toolbar.
 
 
This allows you to quickly search a specific repository without having to navigate to the specific site to do so.  For example, if I wanted to search the PointBridge blogs, I'd have to go to https://blogs.pointbridge.com and enter the search criteria.  The search provider does it for me from my IE browser.  To create a new search provider do the following:
 
  • Go to the web page that contains the search functionality that you want to add (e.g. https://blogs.pointbridge.com).
  • In the search field, enter TEST; all caps. 
  • Execute the search. 
  • Copy the URL of the search results.
  • Select the dropdown from the search control in IE 7 and select Find More Providers

  • Paste the URL in the step 3 field in the Create Your Own box.
  • Give the search provider a name

  • Select Install
  • You will be given a warning box and the opportunity to make this provider the default provider when entering search criteria in the search control.

  • Select Add Provider
  • Select the search control drop down again and you will see the new provider as an option.
  • Select the new provider
  • In the search field, enter a search criteria.
  • You will see the results page for the search provider you added. 
 
 
 
 

 About Will Robinson
Engagement ManagerWill Robinson is an engagement manager for PointBridge. He has over 10 years of experience in the IT industry delivering and managing large scale projects in the insurance, banking and publishing indu... [more]

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