UNIT 02 - Installation
Objectives
After completing this unit you should be familiar with the specific system requirements and the various options for a typical FarCry installation. Completion of this unit is necessary to set up your local development environment for the rest of the course.
System Requirements
ColdFusion Application Server
FarCry runs on a variety of different servers that can interpret the ColdFusion mark-up language.
CFML Server |
Version |
Download |
|---|---|---|
Adobe ColdFusion |
8.0+ |
http://www.adobe.com/products/coldfusion/ |
Railo |
3.3.0+ |
http://www.getrailo.org/ |
OpenBD support is probably not far off – give the community a shout if you are interested in this platform
Database Platforms
FarCry supports a number of different relational database platforms.
Database |
Version |
Download |
|---|---|---|
MS SQL |
2000+ |
http://www.microsoft.com/Sqlserver/2005/en/us/express.aspx |
MySQL |
4.1+ |
http://dev.mysql.com/downloads/mysql/ |
H2 |
Railo Express |
http://www.h2database.com/ |
Contact Daemon for Support Options
Postgres |
8.0+ |
http://www.postgresql.org/download/ |
Oracle |
10g+ |
http://www.oracle.com/technology/software/products/database/xe/index.html |
Other Databases
You may have varying degrees of success with other database platforms or version numbers. Adding additional platform support is certainly possible, but talk to the community first before embarking on such an ambitious project.
Web Server & Operating System
FarCry will run on just about anywhere you can get a supported ColdFusion implementation working. As a consequence there are installations running on various versions of IIS and Apache web servers and on a variety of operating systems including Windows, OSX and Linux.
URL Rewrites
Your web server implementation will require some form of URL re-write engine in order to activate the FarCry Friendly URL sub-system. For example, mod_rewrite on Apache or an ISAPI Rewrite filter for IIS (several open and commercial options are available. https://farcry.jira.com/wiki/display/FCDEV50/Friendly+URLs
Installation Options
Deployment Configurations
Detailed information on deployment options is available on the developer WIKI
http://farcry.jira.com/wiki/display/FCDEV50/Deployment+Configurations
Standalone
Default installer configuration option.
Specifically aimed at one application per website. For standalone application deployment and/or shared hosting deployment that allows for a single project with a dedicated core framework and dedicated library of plugins.
Sub-Directory
Recommended for local development only.
For multiple application deployment under a single webroot. Specifically aimed at multiple applications per website.
Advanced Configuration (ColdFusion Mapping)
This installation configuration is not suitable for projects running in a shared hosting environment.
An enterprise configuration that allows for an unlimited number of projects to share a single core framework and library of plugins. Sharing is done through common reference to specific ColdFusion mapping of /farcry.
Advanced Configuration (Webserver Mapping)
New for Fortress. Considered an advanced deployment option similar to ColdFusion mapping.
An enterprise configuration that allows for an unlimited number of projects to share a single core framework and library of plugins. Sharing is done through common reference to specific web server mapping (aka web virtual directory) of /farcry.
Daemon Commercial Support
Daemon provides commercial priority support offerings for installation, and ongoing operational maintenance.
http://www.daemon.com.au/
Course Development Environment
This course and its associated walkthroughs, labs and sample code are based on the following local development environment:
- Railo 3.3 (Express Version)
- H2
- Resin
The courseware is based on a FarCry Express demo installation, which has its own database and web server built-in.
FarCry Express
Download the latest FarCry Express installation or a dedicated training installation provided by your instructor: http://www.farcrycore.org/builds/
Walkthrough: Installing Your Local Development Environment
The Jump Start course is suitable for any valid FarCry installation. The walkthrough details the FarCry Express demo installation as this is arguably the easiest to install (ie. you do not need to know how to configure the web server). Database references throughout the course assume the built-in H2 server, however, any supported database would be suitable for the course.
Check Port 8888
When starting the FarCry Express edition, remember that the server runs on http://localhost:8888 and so you will need to ensure nothing else is running on this port when you start the server.
In this walkthrough you will install and configure your local development environment:
- Copy the FarCry Express installation onto your local development workstation (http://www.farcrycore.org/download)
- Locate the local Demo Media and Docs folders (they should be located within the FarCry Express distribution)
- Create a development project in your IDE
- Open the IDE installed on your desktop
- Create a Project from the webroot of your FarCry Express installation; for example,
INSTALL-ROOT/farcry-express-install/webroot - Browse the project and make sure you can see all the relevant FarCry code base directories
- Your H2 database is already in place – there is no need for a database installation
- Start your FarCry Express installation (review the README.txt notes for specific instructions for your OS)
- Browse to http://localhost:8888/webtop
Double Check That Everything is Working
Please ensure that your development environment is full functional before proceeding. This is critical for the success of the rest of the course. Friendly URLs will not work with the FarCry Express installation. This is a limitation of the Express demo only.
Other Environments
The course sample code should work in any operational environment that supports FarCry. However, the specific references in the walkthrough may need to be adjusted to reflect your actual development environment.