SharePoint development is an intelligent ASP.Net 2.0 application that extends the framework of ASP.Net development through the installation of customized components such as HTTP module, Virtual Path Provider and HTTP handler etc. This undoubtedly creates a provisioning engine that can be utilized for developing websites based on the various templates that accompany it. SP development is about adding customized codes that would enhance the out-of-the-box functionality that is ideally included with SharePoint. Some of the instances of SharePoint Development include:
- Adding customized ASPX pages that assist users in acquiring a particular business function
- SharePoint developers wanting to develop a widget type of control that can be used on more than one page
- SharePoint consulting team can also perform operation through the code whenever anyone uploads a document to the SharePoint library.
- SP developers need to write code for customized workflow because not all the solutions are available with the out-of-the-box workflow that SharePoint comes with.
There are also a couple of important points that developers need to keep in mind while creating custom SharePoint development site.
Hive:
Situated at C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft shared\Web Server Extensions\12 this is a folder comparison of the files that SharePoint uses. The folder also contains a number of other folders and each of the folders serves a distinctive purpose. SharePoint developers are aware that the most important folder for them is the sub-folder called Template. This file is important because development team is aware these files provide its own functionalities.
XML Based development: SharePoint development companies know that SharePoint needs a number of XML schema to create different SharePoint elements and for even performing different operations in SharePoint.
No F-5 debugging: Most developers have worked on Visual Studio and made use of the feature of F5 debugging that automatically attaches debugger to the process that requires debugging. During development, Visual Studio does not offer this debugging feature.
Visual Studio Project Templates:
Another feature that SharePoint development platform may lack is the pre-built templates that Visual Studio does not offer SharePoint related projects. However, developers will be able to use the Visual Studio Extensions for WSS 3.0, which offers project template support for WSS and SP development.
Deployment:
SharePoint development team is aware that SP development needs certain files to be copied under certain folders to be able to use them. One of the ways to achieve this is through the usage of batch files. WSS 3.0 brings out a new concept known as WSS Solution Framework that packages all of the different files created during the development phase in one comprehensive.wsp file. SP development and the tools accompanying it know exactly how to use such files and how to process the files as well. SP developers need to use the appropriate tools to deploy the.wsp file in SharePoint. Once this file has been deployed, one can have the custom code and files copied over to the right kind of SharePoint folders.
