Transition Technologist meeting report 210113

Moving the web servers meeting:

Ttech 21/01/13
Chris Croome
Jim Kirkpatrick
Ed Mitchell

AGREED:

Big shift day: Monday 28/01/13 09:30 - 14:30
JK to work on getting new test site up by 23/01
EM to bring as many testers in as possible 24/25 01
Shift on 28th.

ACTION: JK book day off work
ACTION: JK write the plan from teh drupal perspective
ACTION: JK delete all workspaces content and code

PUFFIN update
Plan had been:
- Separate the custom modules and features we've created into their own repos on Github
- Create a drush makefile based on the current setup, add that to Git too.
- Log into the new server, faff around a bit
- Give it the makefile, tell it to build the platform for TN
- Create a site instance on this platform, manually import a copy of the TN database onto it
- Test the new site
- Get Chris to import the files
- Test more, tweak
- Prep for launch
- Switch over!

This is going well and nearly done:
- site up and running 21/01
- updates in drupal broke it
- make file that builds the site is pretty much sorted
- can't now rebuild the site now - deep in the thick of it; all the hard work done -
- make file
https://github.com/transitionnetwork/transitionnetwork.org-d6.profile/bl...
BOA documentation here:
https://wiki.transitionnetwork.org/BOA_Server#Building_the_TransitionNet...

WHAT Is left to do
- differences between platforms - e.g. memecache, session443, varnish - remove from scripts
- test again to check
- import tn database
- sort out files thing (spk to chris)
- run dbase script or module on content to re-write file (names?)
- will be duplicate site
- then testing time
- news.tn.org - not yet done - simpler than tn.org - most done - will be quick

PENGUIN update
Chris -
- mediawiki running
- archive running (odd problem with 2010 - images not working)
- piwik nearly migrated
- leaving trac until last - may not be simple - might require apache reverse proxy

JIM and CHRIS questions
- 2.4 GB of files
- location: sites folder - so moved files folder to 'static' under sites: transition network prod and use symlinks
AGREED this is fine - will need documentation in publishing process

ED: workspaces - delete that's fine

ED: think about report on files over 100K
CC: suggests providing archive of movement history - key role of site

DNS - is there a wildcard pointed at *.tn.org

GO LIVE plan?
- functioning live clone - next couple of days
- put llive site into mntnce/read only
- copy site
- update dns
- rsync files
- cross fingers
- see what happens

AGREED: monday 28th for the big shift 09:30 - 14:30
ACTION: JK book day off work
ACTION: JK write the plan from teh drupal perspective

Workflow for new developer: very rough!
- dev uses github to edit files they want to change or use dev copy of site to apply any changes
- when happy, or move to test scenario,
- log into aegir
- create new platform
- test
- clone to new url and version type
- done

About the author

Ed is the Web Manager for Transition Network. This means that he works on all the web stuff from the day to day support, to tactical activities to strategic and special projects work for Transition Network about linking up all the Transition Initiative websites without them having to come to the main site all the time for updates and news.

He lives in Bristol, likes digging and climbing, growing vegetables and reading, bicycles and books, swimming, camping and generally being outdoors.