Servergrid UserLink

Hello.  I have had many problems installing DotNetNuke.  Sometimes the site works, sometimes it errors out before installing, sometimes it works but prompts me for "windows style authentication" (the dialog box that pops up) when I navigate to the site after successful install and I hit enter without entering any credentials and then the site loads, etc.  Also, I have NEVER had success installing DNN in anything other than the root directory of the site.

Here is the general procedure I am using: (I am a reseller account, by the way)

1. I have sites hosted on win18 and win20, and I know win20 is .NET 2.0 by default.  On the win18 sites, I submit a trouble ticket asking for .NET 2.0 to be installed on the site in question.  On win20, I ensure that ASP.NET is turned on.

2. Create a MSSQL User, MSSQL DB, and grant DBO on the DB.

3. Upload the standard DNN install via FTP to the root of the site.

4. Overwrite the standard web.config with one customized that changes the database connection strings in the two places specified by the DotNetNuke install documents.  Also, lately I've been changing the customerrors setting from "RemoteOnly" to "Off" so I can try to figure out the nature of the problems I've been getting.

5. Change my default index document to "default.aspx".

6. Navigate to the site name.

I like the service I have recieved with servergrid and plan on migrating a number of my existing websites to the service, if I can get DNN to work properly as I plan on using it as my standard portal, migrating away from PHP nuke and Mambo.  I have made many investments thus far in modules/addons/skins, etc for DNN and do not want to lose that investment.  However, I am having so much difficulty getting things to work consistantly, and have found hosting providers that specialize in DNN hosting which I may be forced to utilize instead.

From what I read in other places, it may have to do with not having "NT AUTHORITY/NETWORK SERVICE" have full permissions in my root and child folders.  Other places say an IIS web application is required.  One thing I read said it might require assignment of a static IP, of which I have six allocated and haven't tried yet.

Incidentally, I read that H-Sphere 2.5 supports allowing the user choose between .NET 2.0 and .NET 1.1 automatically.  Any plans to implement that?  Additionally, H-Sphere 3.0 will support installing Web Directories and web services... any plans to upgrade to that version?

Anyone... What am I doing wrong?  Is there some other list of steps I can do instead?  Any help at all would be sincerely appreciated.

Incidentally, I love the service I have recieved from servergrid and I love the quality of the hosting, so I'm really "on bended knee" trying to find a solution to this issue that I can implement standardly and have successful results each time.

Thank you so much in advance for any insight into this issue which has me literally banging my head against the keyboard.

Ben Beideman
Adcotek Corporation

Hello, we are aware of many customers who are using DotNetNuke and it is fully supported by our software environment.

To correctly install DotNetNuke first you will need to grant DBO permission on your database at https://www.servergrid.com/support/sqltools.aspx

If you are installing into a subfolder, please enter a ticket to request we set that folder as an application root in IIS. 

Then proceed with your install and it will install without error.

For the intermittent authentication prompts you're receiving, this is because of a problem with recent versions of DotNetNuke operating under a secure shared hosting environment.  The DotNetNuke developers are aware of this and are working on it.  In the meantime there are two workarounds you can apply:

1. Log in with FTP to delete all files from their Portals/_default/EventQueue folder (then you will need to repeat this any time you add a module)

-or-

2. Delete all code from the Application_Start event in global.asax (no additional action would be necessary, even when adding modules) 

All needed permissions are set by default, and are configured to allow your code to do what it needs while isolating all your data from other customers.  Dedicated IPs are not required to run DotNetNuke but you are welcome to use them if you wish.

We are currently running the latest stable version of H-Sphere which is 2.5.  Switching between asp.net versions and creating subfolder applications are slated for future versions which are still in testing.  We stay up to date with the latest versions at the time they are stable and well-tested.

The above will allow you to use DotNetNuke without issue.  If you are experiencing another problem not covered above please enter a ticket from within your control panel for additional assistance. 

Administration
Servergrid - Windows Hosting Experts
http://www.servergrid.com

Adam, Thank you very much for your quick response and insight into the issues I've described.  I plan on following your additional instructions later today to get my portals to work over here at servergrid.  I couldn't be happier with your service and the response to issues I've had, and plan on staying a long-term customer.  Have a nice day!

Benjamin Beideman
Adcotek Corporation