SharePoint Solution Deployment: Best Practices and Insights

SharePoint solution deployment is a critical aspect for developers and administrators. Understanding the intricacies of the deployment process can help avoid potential issues in maintaining SharePoint environments. This article discusses best practices and insights related to SharePoint solution deployment, focusing on globally deployed solutions and web application targeted solutions.

Globally Deployed Solutions

When a solution is deployed globally, all SharePoint application pools, including the one for Central Administration, are automatically recycled.

Pros and Cons of Global Deployment

• Pros: Recycling application pools is beneficial for reloading GAC-installed DLLs that have been upgraded.
• Cons: Recycling application pools can negatively impact the availability of the entire SharePoint farm, which may not be desirable in certain scenarios.

For instance, if a globally deployed solution is used by only one web application, it may be acceptable for that web application to be unavailable during the deployment process, but not for the other web applications in the farm.

Web Application Targeted Solutions

Web application targeted solutions offer a workaround for the availability problem associated with globally deployed solutions. By including a dummy web application scoped feature, even solutions that would otherwise be deployed globally can be targeted to specific web applications.

Advantages

When a web application targeted solution is deployed or retracted, only the application pools of the targeted web applications are recycled, minimizing disruptions to other web applications in the farm.

Upgrading Solutions

When upgrading solutions, the upgradesolution stsadm command may not comprehensively apply all changes. It is recommended to fully retract and remove the old solution, then add and deploy the new solution to ensure that upgraded features are properly implemented.

Tips for Web Application Targeted Solutions

• Avoid the -allcontenturls switch: When deploying and retracting a web application targeted solution, only target web applications that will use the solution, preventing unnecessary recycling of application pools.
• Central Administration application pool recycling: If you are upgrading a web application targeted solution and your web application scoped features have associated feature receivers, you must recycle the Central Administration application pool after removing the old solution and before adding the new solution.

By following these best practices and insights, developers and administrators can better manage SharePoint solution deployments and minimize potential negative impacts on SharePoint environments.