Getting started with Nuget packages in Deployment Manager

[swinghouse]

I have to admit I feel a little bit lost as to how I should set up Nuget packages for my applications (ASP.NET + WinForms + WinServices) and deploy them through Deployment Manager.

Any recommended whitepapers or other resources I should study?

/Mattias

[csmith]

Hi Mattias,

Thanks for your post. I'm not sure whether you have already found the below links, but there is some supporting information on our website that might help.

* Further information about NuGet packages and NuGet servers: http://www.red-gate.com/supportcenter/Content/Deployment_Manager/help/1.0/dm_nuget_packages
* 'Automated deployment using Red Gate tools' whitepaper, which describes an example Deployment Manager use case. Page 6 talks about Package-based deployment.

We are really keen to help you get set-up with Deployment Manager, so you can evaluate the product. So, please let me know if these help, and if you have any further questions or feedback.

Best regards,
Chris
_________________
Chris Smith
Project Manager
Deployment Manager

[swinghouse]

Hi Chris,

Thank you for your prompt feedback.

I've seen the http://www.red-gate.com/supportcenter/Content/Deployment_Manager/help/1.0/dm_nuget_packages page but haven't found the whitepaper you mention. It sounds very promising indeed!

Where do I find it?

Thanks,

Mattias

[csmith]

Hi Mattias,

Sorry, I meant to include the link in my first post... here it is:
http://assets.red-gate.com/delivery/deployment-manager/assets/pdf/automated-deployment-whitepaper.pdf

Let us know how you get on!

Best regards,
Chris
_________________
Chris Smith
Project Manager
Deployment Manager

[swinghouse]

Hi Chris,

Thank you for the url!

Experimenting with the Widget Shop demo application described in the whitepaper is very helpful.

There is one thing that worries me, though. From what I gather you're relying on the excellent support for web.config transforms provided by Microsoft? But what about other types of .NET applications, such as WinForms applications and Windows Services, which - as far as I know, but I'd love to be proven wrong - doesn't benefit from the same built-in support for .config transforms from Microsoft? Is it possible to integrate these types of applications in Deployment Manager as smoothly as ASP.NET applications?

/Mattias

[david.conlin]

Hi Mattias -

That's right, we do use the Microsoft libraries to perform .config file transformations, but we ensure they're performed on all files with a name of the form "*.config", so if you wanted to deploy a non-ASP.NET application, it would be just as easy to configure.

If you do have any problems with configuring your application, let us know. If there's anything else you need to make your life easier, we have a forum for feature requests and suggestions here.

Hope this helps!
_________________
David Conlin
Software Developer
Deployment Manager

[swinghouse]

Further to my initial query in this thread:

I'm getting used to working with NuGet packages and don't see them as an obstacle anymore!

While testing Deployment Manager, I've been using the NuGet Package Explorer to simplify my playing around with NuGet packages.

Moving slowly into the world of Continuous Integration, I'll probably switch to package generation scripts to automate this process.

/Mattias