I've been working with Umbraco since v4 (2010-ish) and up through v8.x I've always done traditional fresh remote installations (download ZIP package, upload files via FTP, run setup through URL) and just dived into the backoffice from there. That's all I've ever known.
Obviously this process has changed with v9 and higher using CLI and not a ZIP. I haven't yet attempted a v9 installation. Unfortunately all the documentation and tutorials only seem to walk through setting up and running a local website instance via IIS and stopping there, which is fine for some folks but that's not what I'm looking for.
My (Windows-based) web host only allows access via Plesk web control panel and FTP, so I can't just remote in to their server and run/publish as if I was working on a local machine. I'm looking for step-by-step instructions to run and publish a fresh Umbraco v9 installation on a remote server using nothing more than uploading files via FTP. I can ask their tech support for help on adjusting IIS settings if need be.
I have the means to create a new MS SQL database so that's not an issue, it's the rest of the setup I'm not sure what to do. Sorry for my ignorance on this matter but I only have surface-level knowledge of .NET Core and CLI (still used to using .NET Framework) and am behind the learning curve.
Do I simply create, run, and publish a local copy of Umbraco 9+ and then upload all the output files via FTP and continue using the back office from there? From the tutorials I've watched, it doesn't seem like it'd be that simple.
With the impending release of v10 I'd like to prep the remote server for a brand new website but need these instructions in-hand before that time arrives. Has anyone gone through this procedure or could list steps on what to do? Thanks so much.
Though I haven't tried this, I might be able to give you some pointers.
Since Umbraco v9, your web.config should've changed drastically. It likely runs in-process in iis and your web.config points to a dll in your filesystem.
To create a deployable build, you can use the dotnet CLI publish command and publish to a folder. If you run in an environment that has the .NET 5 / 6 runtime installed, then you can publish platform independent, otherwise you should do a platform specific publish.
The output of the publish operation can be packed in a zip and uploaded to your server. Unpack the folder in the root of your website (where your web.config file lives) and you should be good.
This is how I've hosted a small .NET Core website on raspberry pi (without umbraco).
I'll happily answer any questions that you may have
Hey Dennis thank you for posting your pointers. Now that Umbraco 10 has been released I decided to tackle the installation this evening.
I found that simply using CLI to publish to a folder and then move the files via FTP to the remote server was throwing an Error 500.30 (could not start .NET Core app). So that was a dead-end.
However having experience with Visual Studio, I downloaded the latest VS2022, rebuilt the Umbraco 10 project and then published via FTP server, overwriting everything uploaded prior. That somehow did the trick and I got the install screen! Defined the MS SQL Server as usual and I'm now in the back office.
Wasn't as bad as I feared, I'm thrilled that a simple publish via Visual Studio was the key to making it work. I'm hoping that upgrades are just as simple (upgrading the project via CLI, rebuilding and republishing). I'll give it a go with 10.1 when it arrives.
Umbraco 9+ Remote Installation
Hi all,
I've been working with Umbraco since v4 (2010-ish) and up through v8.x I've always done traditional fresh remote installations (download ZIP package, upload files via FTP, run setup through URL) and just dived into the backoffice from there. That's all I've ever known.
Obviously this process has changed with v9 and higher using CLI and not a ZIP. I haven't yet attempted a v9 installation. Unfortunately all the documentation and tutorials only seem to walk through setting up and running a local website instance via IIS and stopping there, which is fine for some folks but that's not what I'm looking for.
My (Windows-based) web host only allows access via Plesk web control panel and FTP, so I can't just remote in to their server and run/publish as if I was working on a local machine. I'm looking for step-by-step instructions to run and publish a fresh Umbraco v9 installation on a remote server using nothing more than uploading files via FTP. I can ask their tech support for help on adjusting IIS settings if need be.
I have the means to create a new MS SQL database so that's not an issue, it's the rest of the setup I'm not sure what to do. Sorry for my ignorance on this matter but I only have surface-level knowledge of .NET Core and CLI (still used to using .NET Framework) and am behind the learning curve.
Do I simply create, run, and publish a local copy of Umbraco 9+ and then upload all the output files via FTP and continue using the back office from there? From the tutorials I've watched, it doesn't seem like it'd be that simple.
With the impending release of v10 I'd like to prep the remote server for a brand new website but need these instructions in-hand before that time arrives. Has anyone gone through this procedure or could list steps on what to do? Thanks so much.
~j
Hi Joey,
Though I haven't tried this, I might be able to give you some pointers.
Since Umbraco v9, your web.config should've changed drastically. It likely runs in-process in iis and your web.config points to a dll in your filesystem.
To create a deployable build, you can use the dotnet CLI publish command and publish to a folder. If you run in an environment that has the .NET 5 / 6 runtime installed, then you can publish platform independent, otherwise you should do a platform specific publish.
The output of the publish operation can be packed in a zip and uploaded to your server. Unpack the folder in the root of your website (where your web.config file lives) and you should be good.
This is how I've hosted a small .NET Core website on raspberry pi (without umbraco).
I'll happily answer any questions that you may have
Hey Dennis thank you for posting your pointers. Now that Umbraco 10 has been released I decided to tackle the installation this evening.
I found that simply using CLI to publish to a folder and then move the files via FTP to the remote server was throwing an Error 500.30 (could not start .NET Core app). So that was a dead-end.
However having experience with Visual Studio, I downloaded the latest VS2022, rebuilt the Umbraco 10 project and then published via FTP server, overwriting everything uploaded prior. That somehow did the trick and I got the install screen! Defined the MS SQL Server as usual and I'm now in the back office.
Wasn't as bad as I feared, I'm thrilled that a simple publish via Visual Studio was the key to making it work. I'm hoping that upgrades are just as simple (upgrading the project via CLI, rebuilding and republishing). I'll give it a go with 10.1 when it arrives.
Here's some more related info, not really a solution for your FTP query but there is some info about running a site on an external server: https://our.umbraco.com/forum/umbraco-9/106583-how-to-deploy-local-umbraco-9-to-a-hosting-vps-running-iis
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