We have chosen to publish a beta release of C1 CMS 1.3 so developers can start using .NET 4, ASP.NET 4, Visual Studio 2010 and the new features in C1 CMS 1.3. You can either choose to download our installer and create a new C1 CMS Website or you can upgrade an existing CMS site.

Here is a quick intro to whats new in C1 CMS 1.3 Beta.

.NET 4 required - Visual Studio 2010 supported

Composite 1.3 runs on .NET 4 and ASP.NET 4 which was released by Microsoft in April 2010. This means that you must install the Microsoft .NET Framework 4 on the web server hosting C1 CMS to run this beta.

If you wish do any development with visual Studio you should have VS2010 installed on your machine. Both .NET 4 and VS2010 can be installed side by side with earlier releases meaning that you do not need to uninstall earlier versions of .NET or Visual Studio and those installations will not be upgraded.

You can download Microsoft .NET Framework 4 here:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=9cfb2d51-5ff4-4491-b0e5-b386f32c0992&displaylang=en

If you are using Visual Studio to develop on the CMS site you must install Visual Studio 2010. You can not use Visual Studio 2008 after you have upgraded the site to .NET 4 / ASP.NET 4.

You can read about a free VS2010 Express download here: http://www.microsoft.com/express/Windows/

Preparing for ASP.NET 4

To get .NET 4 and ASP.NET 4 support on IIS you should execute these steps:

1. Install the Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0
2. Make sure .NET 4 is registered on IIS by executing these on of commands:
   
   32 bit:
   %windir%\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v4.0.30319\aspnet_regiis.exe /i
   
   64 bit:
   %windir%\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\aspnet_regiis.exe /i
3. Make sure that ASP.NET 4 have been allowed on IIS. Use the IIS Manager to do this.
   
   IIS6:
   Locate the ‘Web Service Extensions’ folder. Make sure ‘ASP.NET v.4.0.30319’ is set to ‘Allowed’
   
   IIS7:
   It the tree view, select your server. In the details area double click the ‘ISAPI and CGI Restrictions’ element under the ‘IIS’ section. Locate all ASP.NET 4 instances relevant to your processor type (32 or 64 bit) and make sure that it’s allowed.

Installer download (new sites)

If you want to create a new C1 CMS site, execute these steps:

1. Make sure you have completed the steps in 'Preparing for ASP.NET 4'
2. Download and install the C1 CMS 1.3 Beta 2 installer
   32 bit: CompositeC1 CMS 1.3 Beta 2.msi
   64 bit: CompositeC1 CMS 1.3 Beta 2 x64.msi
3. Run the 'CMS site instller' and complete the site setup

Upgrading to C1 CMS 1.3 Beta 2

Please note that the upgrade require that you have unrestricted administrative access to the server. You are required to install system components, re-configure IIS and update the file system in order to complete this upgrade. It is also assumed that you are familiar with IIS configuration.

Upgrade Package ZIP Download: CompositeC1.1.3.Beta2.UpgradePackage.zip

To upgrade a C1 CMS Website to version 1.3 Beta 2, please execute these steps on the server:

1. Make sure you have completed the steps in 'Preparing for ASP.NET 4'
2. Make sure your C1 CMS site is upgraded to 1.2 SP5 - if not, upgrade to this version.
3. Stop doing work on the site. Make a complete backup of site (including data).
4. Launch The C1 CMS Console, login as an administrator and browse to System | Packages | Installed Packages | Local Packages
5. Install the Upgrade ZIP as a local package. This will start the upgrade procedure.
   
   Important: due to the switch from .NET 3.5 to .NET 4 C1 CMS will immediately fail after the upgrade. In this beta upgrade this behavior is expected. When you get an error, just continue with the steps below.
6. Close the C1 CMS Console (web browser)
7. Using IIS Manager, stop the application pool hosting your C1 CMS site.
8. In the IIS manager, update the website to it’s running ASP.NET 4. Here is how to:
   
   IIS6:
   Open the properties dialog for the CMS Website, go to the ‘ASP.NET’ tab and select the ASP.NET version ‘4.0.30319’. Save.
   
   IIS7:
   Locate the application pool hosting your website and change it so it uses ASP.NET 4 and make sure the pool is running in 'Integrated mode'. Save.
9. Delete the following file (on the website):
   
   /bin/Composite.Generated.dll
10. Delete the following folders:
    
    /App_Data/Composite/Generated
    /App_Data/Composite/Cache
    /App_Data/Composite/ApplicationState
11. Rename the folder "/App_Code" to "/App_Code_renamed" (if folder exists)
12. In the IIS manager, restart the Application Pool for the site
13. View the site in a browser (so C1 CMS starts up). Wait for page.
    
    Important: You may get errors at this stage if you have functions dependant on the App_Code folder. This is expected.
14. If you renamed "/App_Code" folder in step 11, rename it back to "/App_Code"
15. In the IIS manager, recycle (stop and re-start) the Application Pool hosting the site.

At this point your site have been upgraded and should be functional.