This guide covers installing the software on Windows 7, using IIS 7+.
NOTE: We recommend that you maintain 3 functional types of installs:
- Live Site (production server)- This is your public-facing live site.
- Staged Site (production server or local install)- This is a clone of your live site. Perform modifications and test them here to protect your live site from issues and down-time.
- Dev Site (production server or local install)- This is a completely stock out-of-the-box install where you can compare stock functionality and behavior with issues you get with your staged/live sites. This is also good for a quick resource of stock files as needed.
NOTE: All installs come originally loaded with 'demo' images in the \Images\Product\Large , \Medium , and \Icon folders. These 'demo' images are useful in a stock development or sandbox site, but before you start adding images to a site intended to be setup as a LIVE site, you will want to delete all of the 'demo' images before adding any of your own.
Pre-installation Procedures
The following 3 sections cover the installation of 3rd-party software required for the ASPDNSF software to run.
Note: Customers installing the software on shared hosting accounts can skip the directions in this section, as the hosting company will have done these steps for you.
Installing IIS
Windows 7 should come with IIS7 preinstalled, though it may be required to enable some features that are not turned on by default. To do so, follow these steps:
1 – First, go to Windows Button → Control Panel, and open Programs and Features
2 – In the panel on the left, click the “Turn Windows features on or off” link.
3 – In the window that opens, ensure that all of the options shown below are checked:
4 – Click “OK” at the bottom, and wait for installation to complete.
Installing .NET Framework 3.5 SP1
Windows 7 comes pre-loaded with .NET version 3.5 Service Pack 1. If for some reason you need to re-add this to your server, the download is available at http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/netframework/cc378097
Installing Microsoft SQL 2005 Express and Server Mgmt Studio Express
See this page for instructions on installing the database components.
File Setup
The first step in installing the ASPDNSF software is to get the files in place on your machine.
Note: This guide assumes the files are being installed in the default location for IIS, C:\inetpub\wwwroot\. If your server configuration requires a different location, substitute that path during the install process.
1 – Log in to http://www.aspdotnetstorefront.com/mylicenses.aspx and click the link to Download the software next to your license. Note: Your licenses page may vary slightly.
2 – The download file will be a self-extracting executable. Once the download has completed, run the executable and click Next.
3 – Read the End User License Agreement, then click Yes to indicate acceptance.
4 – Read the upgrade warning information, then click Next.
5 – Browse to the desired install folder, then click Next.
6 – Wait for the files to extract.
7 – Review the readme information if desired, then click Next.
8 – Click Close to complete the file extraction.
9 – Navigate to the folder you extracted the files into, and open the Web folder.
Note: You may not have all of the files/folders depicted here, depending on your license level.
10 – Right-click on the /images folder and click on Properties, then click the Security tab. (note, the following 5 steps will be performed on the AddIns folder as well through version 9.3.1.1 - see below)
11 – Click the Edit button, then select the IIS_IUSRS user group from the list.
Note: This guide assumes the server is configured to use the default IIS7 user group (IIS_IUSRS) for .NET applications. If that user has been changed, you'll need to check with your host or server admin to find which account to use instead.
12 –Check the 'Modify' box under the Allow column on the bottom half of the page.
13 – Click OK.
14 – Click OK again..
15 – Repeat steps 10-14 for the AddIns folder (through version 9.3.1.1).
Database Setup
Next, you need to create the database that the software will store your data in.
Note: The screenshots in this section are of a standard MS SQL Server Mgmt Studio install with no extra security measures in place. Your screens may look slightly different depending on the setup and security policies your administrator/host use.
1 – Open Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio and log in with the credentials given to you by your system administrator or host.
2 – Right-click on Databases in the tree view and click New Database.
3 – Enter a name for the database and click OK.
4 – Highlight the new database in the list and press CTRL-O on the keyboard. Navigate to the /db folder where you just extracted the new storefront files, and highlight the ‘Create AspDotNetStorefront Database’ file and click OK.
5 – Click the Execute button.
NOTE: The DB creation script does not create sample entity/product data in the new store. If this demo data is desired, after running the above script, you will also need to run an additional script against the DB the same way. For the MultiStore version, run the script named "Install Demo Website Data.sql". For MultiStore express, run "Install Express Demo Website Data.sql".
6 – Verify that the script ran with no errors.
7 – Now, you must modify the web.config file to connect to the database you just created. Navigate to the /web folder where you extracted the storefront files earlier and open up the file in notepad.
8 – Find the line pictured below, and change the ‘TBD’ to your own EncryptKey value. The value can be any combination of letters and numbers, and should be at least 10 characters long.
9 – Find the DBConn line pictured below, and change the following values:
NOTE: Your host or server admin must provide this information, AspDotNetStorefront cannot tell you what to use for these values.
• data source – This is the server/instance name where SQL is installed. If installing on a local server, this will often be simply ‘localhost’ or the machine name.
• initial catalog – This is the name of the database you just created.
• user id – the ID used to connect to the database
• password – the password used to connect to the database
10 – Save your changes in Notepad.
IIS Setup
The last step in the install is configuring IIS. Note: Your server admin or host may have to provide additional steps for this portion of the install, depending on the server configuration. These steps cover a basic install.
1 – First, open IIS Manager and expand the tree to view the folders under Default Web Site:
2 – Right-click on Default Web Site, and click 'Add Application'.
3 – Enter a name for your site in the Alias field (generally the same as the folder name) and then click the ‘Select’ button.
4 – Choose ‘Classic .NET AppPool’ from the dropdown menu, then click OK.
5 – Click the ‘…’ button and use the browse window to select the folder that contains the web.config file you modified earlier (this is the \Web folder out of the box). Click OK.
6 – Right-click the application you just added under Default Web Site, and click ‘Browse’. Your site should open in a new browser window – installation is complete!
For information on using the admin site and the default login credentials, see this page.