Creating dev/prod/live environments

[Perseus]

Hi --

Not sure where to put this, but I need help figuring out how to set up a dev/prod/live type of environment. The site I am working on will need a place for people to register and login (he wants me to use ASP) to see premium content. I am certain we'll be using some databases...and just wondering...would I definitely need to come up with a CMS? Or is there a more simpler way of synching stuff?

I have Googled a bunch of things and am doing what research I can. I have a feeling my boss does not know what this really entails...

Thanks.

 

[billbaloney]

How robust you make your approach really depends on your hosting environment, how high the site traffic will be, and how complicated your site will be.

One straightforward method, from a bird's eye view:

1. Create two subdomains: dev.mydomain.com, stage.mydomain.com
2. Create three databases: mydata_dev, mydata_stage, mydata_live
3. Develop a straightforward process to dump the data from one database, refresh with the dev structure, and re-import.

It's all about defining a process, and following that process during every update of the site. The downside is that sometimes making a small change can seem to involve way too much work (make it to the dev site, get it approved, put it on the staging site, get that approved, take it live).

For many sites, a two-stage system is more than adequate.

Either way, migrating files from one stage to the next is almost always less involved than migrating data from one database to the next. So the most important piece of research for you will involve learning about developing a data migration process.

There are many articles about this, for instance, here and here.