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TDS Classic Best Practices: NuGet Build Components and TDS Classic .user configs

August 09, 2017 | Kliment Klimentov

Like most things in life, there are certain systems and processes that you can put in place to make a TDS Classic project run more smoothly. We're highlighting the best practices that our team recommends for getting the most out of TDS Classic, everything from Delta Builds and Delta Packages to using validators to catch problems earlier.

Use TDS NuGet build components when building on a build server

This is much easier and more convenient than trying to install TDS Classic on every build server and having to account for TDS Classic versions. This also works with cloud build servers.

Keep project folders paths as short as possible
Keep the project folder close to the root of the file system locally and on build servers. TDS Classic supports long Sitecore paths via a feature called "File System Aliasing". This property is used to get around the file path limit in Windows by allowing the developer to specify a shorter name. Try to shorten folder names near the top of the Sitecore tree first.

Use ‘Test’ button when configuring TDS for a new environment to make certain the environment is correctly formatted.

Use TDS .user configs for Debug or Dev Build configurations to allow for storing TDS settings a separate .user file rather than the TDS project .scproj file.

Set top level TDS items to Deploy Once to accelerate the deployment process.

Keep template and content/media items in separate TDS projects for easier management.

For even more TDS Classic tips and tricks, check out these features or try TDS Classic for yourself! 

TDS Classic Sitecore Best Practices Development

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