A model to show how web content management can be made reliable and flexible, using two servers. This generic model can be applied to many open source WCM tools, like Drupal, WordPress, Joomla, ExpressionEngine, etc.

1. Overview Model
Server Design for Web Content Management (WCM)
Hardware Upgrade Cycle Backup Recovery
To ensure high reliability, a web content A consistent upgrade cycle is essential for Regular backups are from the Live VM to Administrator or developers can revert
management system (WCM) is built on server security: Backup VM. specific code changes with Versioning VM
two servers: 1. Copy Live VM to Backup VM. to Develop/Test VM.
• production server for live sites 2. Copy Backup VM to Develop/TestVM. Backups of the Live VM contain all the
• staging server for backup, development, 3. Apply updates from Versioning VM to files and databases to quickly recover any In the event of hardware or software
and file version control. Develop/Test VM and test sites locally. lost data. failure on the Production server, the
4. After testing, the committed changes Backup VM can be substituted
Virtual Machines (VM) are deployed from Develop/Test VM If errors are found following an upgrade immediately for the Live VM.
to Live VM during non-peak hours. cycle, then the Backup VM is restored to
All live web sites are hosted within one
Live VM, overwriting changes.
virtual machine (VM) on the production
server, with three more VMs on staging:
• backup VM
• development and testing VM
Production server Staging server
• version repository VM
Each virtual machine (VM) contains the
Live VM Backup VM Develop/Test VM Versioning VM
database, files, server applications, and an
Web authors manage their web
operating system needed to deploy Developers manage the
content using a secure WCM interface file version repository:
a complete web server. VMs enable
Site . . . ...
Site Site Site Site Site Subversion, git, or CVS
simplified and rapid backup, development A B C A B C
...
Site A Site B Site C
and deployment. A separate VM is used to File Repository
content content content
track all file changes with version-control & data & data & data
1 2 Modules
software, such as Subversion, git, or CVS.
Users & roles Users & roles updates
Users & roles
Content Management common user & roles database Modules Themes Modules Themes
Web authors edit their site content in the Themes
3 updates
authoring interface on the Live VM. The Modules Themes WCM core WCM core
functionality interface
WCM platform is built on a set of
databases. To ensure that the site
WCM core
WCM core
databases are not altered during an updates
4
server files
upgrade cycle, all web authors' editing
access can be temporarily disabled.
Draft v.4.4 / revised: Wed Apr 08 2009, by Jonathan Woolson, webmaster@fredonia.edu