Automatic deployment on .NET web stack (Minsk .NET meetup 12.02.14)

Automatic Deployment

Ivan Antsipau Minsk .NET Meetup #2

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Process

• Build correct version of source code• Change configuration• Stop the application(s)• Deploy (copy files)• Backup DB(s)• Update DB(s)• Start the application(s)

Automatic Deployment on Microsoft .Net stack

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Automatic Deployment

• “Web Deployment: If You're Using XCopy, You're Doing It Wrong”

– SCOTT HANSELMAN (HTTP://GOO.GL/MHWJ77)

• Mooney’s Law Of Guaranteed Failure:– In the software business, every manual process will suffer at

least a 10% failure rate, no matter how smart the person executing the process. No amount of documentation or formalization will truly fix this, the only resolution is automation.

– (http://goo.gl/nuoVzM)

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Cost

to fi

x th

e iss

ue

Issue Detection timeCI executes Daily Build Manual QA

0.25h

4h

Manual Deployment Drawbacks

• A lot of time:– Can’t run integration tests– Cant’ execute often (no visibility for managers

and stake-holders)– Can’t execute when business decides to

• Error-prone:– Didn’t you deploy the Service? – Which service?!– Manual updates of the configuration.

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Components

• MSBuild (The Microsoft Build Engine)– Build and package

• Web Deploy:– Move to target server

• CI Server: Atlassian Bamboo, TFS, TeamCity, etc– Trigger the process, report the results

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Manage Configuration

• Differ by Environments (server name, etc)• Differ by Build configuration (Debug vs Release)• We want:

– Changes to be automated– Differences to be versioned

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Manage Configuration: transformations

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Preview Transformation

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Transformations (easy xslt)

• Locator (can be omitted): – how to find

• Transform: – what to do

“The Transform attribute specifies what you want to do to the elements that the Locator attribute finds.” MSDN (http://goo.gl/7J4Mz9) 

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Locators• Match

– Locator="Match(comma-delimited list of one or more attribute names)“– <add name="AWLT" connectionString="newstring" providerName="newprovider" xdt:Transform="Replace"

xdt:Locator="Match(name)" />

• Condition– Locator="Condition(XPath expression)” (XPath appended to the current element's XPath expression)– <add name="AWLT" connectionString="newstring" providerName="newprovider" xdt:Transform="Replace"

xdt:Locator="Condition(@name='oldname'or @providerName='oldprovider')" />

• Xpath– Locator="XPath(XPath expression)“(XPath IS NOT appended to the current element's XPath expression)– <add name="AWLT" connectionString="newstring" providerName="newprovider" xdt:Transform="Replace"

xdt:Locator="XPath(configuration/connectionStrings[@name='AWLT' or @providerName='System.Data.SqlClient'])" />

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Transforms• Replace

<connectionStrings xdt:Transform="Replace"> <add name="SqlServer" connectionString=“str1;" /> <add name="Entities" connectionString=“str2;" /></connectionStrings>

• Insert• InsertBefore• InsertAfter• Remove• RemoveAll• RemoveAttriburtes

– <compilation xdt:Transform="RemoveAttributes(debug)" />

• SetAttributesMore at MSDN (http://goo.gl/7J4Mz9) 

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Publish Profile

• Corresponds to target Environment (server)– Where to publish– How to publish– How to transform

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Publish Profile Settings

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Profile is a Versioned XML File

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Profile-Specific Config Transformations

• Connections strings• External services addresses• Other environment-specific settings

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Profile-Specific Config Transformations

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Chained Transformations

Original web.config file

Configuration-specific

(Web.release.config)

Publish profile –specific

(Web.staging.config)

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Web Deploy (msdeploy)

• The right way to deploy to IIS.• IIS extension:

– Install via MS Web Platform Installer• Command-line tool:

– Comes with VS or installed separately• Bad news: scary syntax• Good news: VS team has prepared msbuild wrappers

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Features• Non-admin deployments (delegation)• Deploy over https (secure)• Powerful:

– Copy files– Remove extra files– Skip rules– Take site offline/online– Run executable remotely– Install libs into GAC– Auto back up– Etc

• More at TechNet (http://goo.gl/1aM0uu) and IIS.net (http://goo.gl/hnoMVR)

In House Azure

Web Platform Installer(3-clicks)

Pre-installed:(download publish profile)

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Command-line vs MSBuild wrappers

Msbuild.exe Web.csproj /p:DeployOnBuild=true /p:Configuration=Release /p:PublishProfile=staging /p:VisualStudioVersion=11.0 /p:Password=p0ssw0rd

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Web Deploy Settings in Publish Profile

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Command-line runMsbuild.exe Web.csproj /p:DeployOnBuild=true /p:Configuration=Release /p:PublishProfile=staging /p:VisualStudioVersion=11.0 /p:Password=p0ssw0rd

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Run From CI

Msbuild.exe Web.csproj /p:DeployOnBuild=true /p:Configuration=Release /p:PublishProfile=staging /p:VisualStudioVersion=11.0 /p:Password=p0ssw0rd

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Update Database

• Migrations:– Run on AppStart – Run before/after deployment

• Database project:– Run before/after deployment– Has publish profiles

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Database Project

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Command-line publishing

Msbuild.exe /p:VisualStudioVersion=11.0 /t:Rebuild;Publish /p:SqlPublishProfilePath=Database.staging.publish.xml Automatic Deployment on Microsoft .Net stack

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Process

Build correct version of source codeChange configuration• Stop the application(s)Deploy (copy files), skip uploaded files• Backup DB(s)Update DB(s)• Start the application(s)

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Tips and Tricks: version

• MSBuild Community Tasks (https://github.com/loresoft/msbuildtasks)• NuGet package available

Task Description

Add Add numbers

AddTnsName Defines a database host within the Oracle TNSNAMES.ORA file.

AppPoolController Allows control for an application pool on a local or remote machine with IIS installed. The default is to control the application pool on the local machine. If connecting to a remote machine, you can specify the and for the task to run under.

Xslt A task to merge and transform a set of xml files.

XslTransform XslTransform task for Sandcastle.

AssemblyInfo Generates an AssemblyInfo files

Attrib Changes the attributes of files and/or directories

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Usage

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Output Version

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Customize Web Deploy

• ProjectName.Wpp.targets – imported for any web project before build– Web.csproj -> Web.Wpp.targets

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Ignore user-generated files

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Set ACL Permissions

• Use .wpp.targets (see http://sedodream.com/2011/11/08/settingfolderpermissionsonwebpublish.aspx ).

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App_offline.htm

• Takes down the application• Serve static app_offline.htm to notify users

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App_offline.htm

• Store as app_offline.template.htm• Rename to app_offline.htm before deployment• Update db, do other stuff• Skip on deployment (do not delete)• Rename to app_offline.template.htm when done• See details at http://goo.gl/qbGrKA • Alternatively: use AppOffline rule (http://goo.gl/tC0qxz)

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Complex scenarios

• Using MSBuild to:– Prepare– Build– Update Configuration– Execute Deployment– Etc

• Regex-based transformations for multiple similar environments (QA1-QA10, Test1-Test10).

Thanks for Your Attention

[email protected]://www.facebook.com/Ivan.Antsipau

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Links

• App_offline http://sedodream.com/2012/01/08/HowToTakeYourWebAppOfflineDuringPublishing.aspx

• VS2010 Guide http://www.troyhunt.com/2010/11/you-deploying-it-wrong-teamcity.html

• VS2012 Deployment Guide http://www.asp.net/mvc/tutorials/deployment/visual-studio-web-deployment/introduction

• http://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/webdeploy• http://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/msdeploy• http://blog.richardszalay.com/tag/msdeploy/

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Links

• http://msbuildbook.com/ (examples on github)• MSDN

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/0k6kkbsd.aspx

• Sayed Ibrahim Hashimi http://sedodream.com/ , @SayedIHashimi

• http://www.msbuildexplorer.com/• http://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/msbuild• http://

msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms171483.aspx incremental build