Top 5 SharePoint Collaboration Apps for Android

SharePoint wildly popular as an enterprise platform for many reasons such as integrates meta data stores, document repositories and successful social enterprise deployments.

According to IT survey on enterprise collaboration, last year it was found that 73% of its respondents were using SharePoint for their business apps. And slowly it gained success as a new collaboration and knowledge sharing platform. SharePoint 2010 SharePoint 2010 lacked mobile support, hence SharePoint 2013 came to picture with new enhancements and customized features. Finally SharePoint 2013 has finally gone mobile supporting varied screen sizes with different kind of gadgets.

Some of the new unique features makes SharePoint all the more interesting and useful for creating best business apps:

Mobile Browser Experience
SharePoint provides different browsing options depending on the usage of the mobile browsers they can be called as Contemporary View, Classic View, the and Full Screen UI. The Contemporary View is new to SharePoint 2013. This view renders beautifully in HTML5 and is made available to the newest mobile browsers such as iPhone’s Safari 4.0+, Mobile IE9.0+ and Android 4.0+. It is a clean view with the goal of providing quick access to document libraries, lists and other common SharePoint content. The Classic View gives backward compatibility for older mobile browsers. It is always meant for a specific purpose and function and it is not going to win any user design awards. The Full Screen UI deals with a full desktop view of the site shown on the mobile device.

• Device Channels – Device Channels renders content flawlessly on different devices. SharePoint 2013 cleans up. master pages, page layouts and style sheets that can be mapped to specific mobile browsers, allowing much more control over the usability of content.
• Push Notifications – SharePoint library fulfils the needs of every business and gets notified on mobile device when a new or changed document is posted to that list. Alert functionality was there before and even one can send an email or text. Now SharePoint 2013 takes it a step further by providing users with notifications on their mobile devices when specific activities occur on SharePoint site. This powerful tool keep users informed of key changes to SharePoint-based sites and business solutions. It can automatically push notifications to the employee who submitted the idea each time the status of that idea changes. This is a great way to keep occupied users and increase overall use of solutions.
• Location – With the help of geolocation field type in SharePoint many numerous application can automatically log the location of a user each time they enter any information. This powerful feature of SharePoint-based applications where mobile users capture information through their smartphones is unique. Bing Maps helps to display this exact location information.

SharePoint 2013 and the Office Web Apps Server work together better than ever before to provide a higher quality experience for users who interact with documents on their phones. This covers Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents and the viewer for these documents is now optimized for phones. Microsoft continues to enhance this experience, since viewing and editing documents on our mobiles devices is becoming much more common.

Top 5 SharePoint Collaboration Apps

SharePlus
It offers secure SharePoint browsing from anywhere. The app supports all Content Types and there’s native support for Office files. To ease collaboration, one can share documents via email or send a link. Collaborate with team, sharing documents and tasks lists right from the meeting room, a taxi, or when out visiting a client. Browse documents, discussions, announcements, wiki pages and custom lists.

Filamente
Filamente is a SharePoint client for iOS from Aircreek. It gives users a touchscreen optimized interface for SharePoint, the ability to upload files from a mobile device and offline access to resources.

Forms Central
Formotus offers a SharePoint client for Android, iOS and Windows Mobile called Forms Central. Like Filamente, it provides offline access to SharePoint data. It’s free to download, but requires a subscription.

DocAve
DocAve is a management platform for SharePoint created by a company called AvePoint. It consists of a suite of products to enable integration, document migration and data management. These products can be purchased as a suite, or individually. Free trials are also available to download from the official AvePoint website.

Quick Apps for SharePoint
This application is created by Dell and is available to download directly from their website. It is a great app for smaller businesses because it allows quick and easy customization of SharePoint, without the need for large IT departments. It is also quicker and faster than making custom code changes.

Huddle
This is the best cloud collaboration tools, designed with ease and efficiency kept in mind, with millions using it for content management and enterprise collaboration. Small, mid and big businesses can easily manage and exchange information or projects with others. It also allows to track milestones, project deadlines, view late projects, completed tasks, making collaboration effective and easy. In addition, unlike the on-premise SharePoint, it supports several mobile applications such as Android, iPad, BlackBerry and iPhone.

SharePoint is one of the most versatile business software applications available on the IT web market. Its popularity over the years has dramatically increased because of the systems flexibility and the abundance of professional apps that can be integrated into the platform with little time and effort required and supported almost all browsers and electronic gadgets.

You can hire developers from top custom sharepoint development companies in India who can help you build your projects within allocated budget and time schedules.

We provide sharepoint development services. If you would like to know more about our sharepoint site branding experts, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

SharePoint – A Precious Business Tool

One of the most successful platforms for any business enterprise in today’s time is SharePoint. It is creative by nature as it provides enhanced productivity with long lasting collaboration to business owners across varied needs. The latest versions’ launch of shareware has proved Why SharePoint is considered as precious business tool, since it is very appealing and user friendly, say experts.

Icing on the cake using this platform is that the service deliverables it brings along would be excellent as well as highly efficient. It helps with collaboration that makes businesses run smooth along with functioning ethics that are fabulous to say so. Share-point with its latest version has gained more happy users than ever before. This is because; clients now can use the platform to send large reports along with data across in a jiffy, which is so important for business needs or business expansion these days.

The wait is over
Gone are the days when other platforms took a century almost to transfer large files as well as data. The suite SharePoint now does it all in no time. The anticipation and wait is over, SharePoint now is being looked at as manna from the heavenly technological world, or should we say an answer to all large data transfer needs. The updates have excited users, and customers are exploring the major changes in the platform like never before. Unlike its predecessor, the SharePoint version launched this year has features and functions that offer the best, plus more support for options such as;

a. BI
b. Search
c. Mobile support
d. Public Website Support
e. Mobile as well as social sharing

Business wise intelligent
Companies need to be smart and for that SharePoint is used to the rescue, or else perishing in the deep business oceans would be the fate. Analysis or insights given by the latest version of SharePoint are unmatched and of high quality. Excel as well as SharePoint are tightly integrated, performance wise, say sources.

Businesses run not only through browsers on the computer but also through the phone as well, hence SharePoint allows such features which would help users use desktop apps on any smart device as well, irrespective of the size of the screen. Mobile browsing options come in;

a. Contemporary view
b. Classic view
c. Full screen (UI)

In addition to that, customers now also have efficiency with geo-location in the form of push notification services, which can be used on tablets and smart devices like never before.

Socialising made easy and plenty more reasons to be happy
There are newer features for socialising offered by the latest version of SharePoint. Newsfeed, community sites, sharing, collaborating as well as knowledge transfer and more, all of which the latest version of the platform has brought for everyone to use, and businesses are making the most using them all.

Even the search options have been optimised so well that the results are relevant and to the point, hence no more scourging around for an answer. Laymen and IT users are the happiest with such new features, especially when they can customise appearances based on the type of content than the history that was being looked for.

Another feature which has caught the eye and fancy of users with the latest version of SharePoint is the eDiscovery function; it has a range of new tools that manages discovering like never before. This in fact is wonderful for business owners; since it helps them stay protected while the centre searches across SharePoint, Lync or Exchange for content that has been preserved or exported.

Finally, with the latest version of SharePoint in place, companies now can have public facing sites or even internal intranet sites using pixel perfect schemes for branding. It used to be a complicated task achieving the same in the past, but with the latest in SharePoint and its tools, things are now done in a jiffy. One doesn’t need a lot of internal support for the same, expenses too would be the least and the designs are a wide variety to choose from, say experts.

Make your dreams come true by expanding your businesses like never before. Let the large files or data not worry you anymore! Hire developers from top SharePoint development companies after due diligence and they would help you develop SharePoint applications within allocated budget and time schedules.

We provide custom SharePoint development services. If you would like to know more about the expertise of our expert SharePoint developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Why hire experienced SharePoint consultants?

When it comes to getting quality service, it always depends upon hiring an experienced and competent SharePoint (SP) Consultant. However, if you are to know in what way does the hiring affect a business, you need to know what role does such a consultant play in a particular business. Hence let us first know who is a SharePoint Consultant. However, prior to that, it is perhaps necessary as well to know what is actually SharePoint.

It is a particular type of proprietary platform of web application prepared by Microsoft which can easily take care of the common web based needs of any business organization in the most cost effective and versatile way. This web application is integrated with the suit tools of MS Office and is extremely handy when it comes to offering users with interface similar to that of MS Office.

Now coming to SP Consultants, they are the ones who take care of various problems pertaining to a particular business. Naturally, it can well be stated at this juncture that when it comes to getting intricate business issues or problems solved or getting quality services, hiring a competent and experienced SP consultant makes all the difference. This article discusses in fairly great details why it is so important to hire an experienced consulting professional for enjoying quality services.

Content Management
An able consulting professional would come in handy for effective content management. SharePoint is a platform which comes with an effective Content Management System, social capabilities along with some really advanced search options. Such a professional would always help to make content management extremely easier, free of hassles and quick for the users. It will also help giving productivity along with information value, a shot in the arm with the help of some simple document, records, high end media, centralized platform, web content management.

Managing the Community
An experienced consultant would also help in getting the very best tools for collaboration – a fact that would enable one to share ideas, locate various information related to the business, locate people along with expertise that are needed to run a business rather seamlessly. Besides, it also becomes easier to personalize the experience of the user along with the multi lingual support and tools used for user tagging.

Managing Websites
The expertise of these consultants also helps the users in changing or modifying the contents of a page without any effort whatsoever. They also help in applying newer themes, designs and removing/adding various interaction.

So in a nutshell, the work of a SP Consultant covers the following areas:

• SharePoint Collaboration, customization as well as consulting
• Development and synchronization of various business processes, solutions and parameters
• Providing a number of application features
• Explaining SP Migration application features
• Effective creation of records through integration services
• SP Deployment Planning Services or SDPS
• Branding of SharePoint Sites
• Development of SharePoint Web as well as Portal
• Management of SP Enterprise Contents
• SP Enterprise Portals as well as Business Intelligence
• SP Installer applications
• Reporting service of SP SQL
• Testing as well as providing technical support for SharePoint

Therefore, through a process of hiring experienced consultants, companies can enjoy a lot of added advantages that come in the form of recognizing those features that helps in decreasing the developmental costs, improving the efficiency or output of the business, and the likes. SharePoint solution is perhaps the best and the most economic way of sharing documents or information.

Hence, seeking the help of an experienced consultant is definitely the best decision that can be taken by a business owner. This makes these professionals extremely adorable in the business circle. These professionals are generally paid high remuneration for the services they provide.

You can hire developers from top sharepoint development companies in India who can help you build your projects within allocated budget and time schedules.

We provide sharepoint webparts development services. If you would like to know more about our custom sharepoint development team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

5 ways to spruce up SharePoint 2013 for your intranet CMS

One of the biggest drawbacks that affect content management is the lack of proper search plug-ins. In the current scenario, businesses do not have adequate amount of time for tracking down different files. SharePoint comes to rescue in such a situation.

SharePoint intranet comes with convenient document libraries, enabling every business to categorize information in the way they want. In fact, you can have all your content easily accessible by means of different libraries within a hosted portal- a library for media, one for finance, report, sales, marketing and so on. The inconvenience of lost data will never be experienced. The intranet also comprises the latest antiviral software for ensuring preservation of online infrastructure.

As a business owner or team member, SP allows you to open up documents through the web, and also to synchronize work via document collaboration. In short, SharePoint provides a collaborative, hosted solution for content management through the intranet. Investing in SharePoint development for org-wide collaboration always pays rich dividends. Let us discuss 5 trending ways which will help you to spruce up SharePoint 2013 for your intranet CMS.

1. Creation of an intranet newsfeed with SP 2013
With the help of an intranet newsfeed, users are able to publicly and rapidly communicate with each other by sharing ideas, posting updates, asking questions along with other activities. So far as the management is concerned, it is a great means for engaging with employees personally, directly and openly. Moreover, the SharePoint newsfeed renders a micro-blogging experience similar to that derived from social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Users are able to post comments, direct particular users with the help of @targeting as well as tag the same to a particular topic utilizing #tags. Comments or users can be liked or followed.

2. Showcasing intranet blogs with SP 2013
Intranet blogs are a brilliant way to discuss on relevant topics providing authors with the capability of communicating a message as well as starting conversation and collecting feedback. Readers can have their opinions heard and addressed. Authoring and publishing tools are offered by the SharePoint blog site to authors, in the same manner as they would expect from a consumer CMS. The features include the ability of video embedding from sources such as YouTube, rich text editing, capability of content publishing directly from MS Word. It is possible to like, rate, follow or share blog posts.

3. Using SharePoint 2013 for creation of intranet survey
With the help of intranet surveys, creators are able to speedily crowd source precious information from a huge employee pool. As participants, employees can get an easy means for bottom-up feedback and hence become more engaged. The SharePoint survey app offers a template to easily as well as quickly build surveys with diverse question types (multiple choice, text fields, rating scales). On completion of the surveys, results are represented graphically with the facility of exporting to Excel. The promoted links app of SharePoint builds metro-style tiles along with a hover-over state in order to make room for additional text information. The advantage is that tiles offer increasing visual engagement as against a standard list, following the SP site’s theme.

4. Leveraging SP 2013 for surfacing intranet KPIs
With regular and convenient access to KPIs, employees can adjust their activities to accommodate the changing business demands. Enhanced visibility of performance metrics at an organizational level helps in greater employee collaboration. With the help of the Excel Web Access Web Part, data can be displayed from an Excel spreadsheet straightaway onto a SharePoint page. Granular control can be maintained by the author over the data that can be displayed from the spreadsheet and accessed. Once it surfaces on the SP page, the data can be made user-interactive.

5. Using SharePoint 2013 for creation of an intranet discussion list
Through intranet discussion lists, users can discuss specific topics with subject matter experts and their peers. It can be used for diverse purposes helping employees draw the benefits of a wide organizational network of resources and knowledge. Forum-style collaboration areas can be created with the help of SP Community Site Features. Using the discussion list, users can start discussions or ask questions. Moreover, categorization of the content can be done.

For creating an engaging and dynamic intranet CMS, SharePoint 2013 is loaded with all the requisite functionality. Great outcomes can be enjoyed by those who comprehend the changing intranet demands and leverage this new functionality.

We provide SharePoint application development services. If you would like to discuss with an expert SharePoint developer from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

The Problem with Leveraging SharePoint Records Management Services in Office365

The big question is, considering Office 365, where is Records Management fitting in? The old news is that SharePoint 2010 RM is not registering good performance within the e-discovery space. However, this is not considered a hindrance by most organizations.

It is a fact that IT is capable of pulling the objects which are essential to cater to the counsels’ expectations with respect to its own SOP or standard operating procedure, which generally incorporates a third party software. E-discovery has been performed by information technology more regularly and far longer than implementation of electronic retention by RM.

Automation is great
SharePoint 2010 RM services are capable of beautifully automating records declaration. They can be deployed successfully through mapping the records retention schedule across SharePoint 2010 RM.

The content types pertaining to the series can be holistically leveraged across site collections, followed by attachment of information policies. Then the indexing services to be run at particular intervals are recalculated.

The future hazards
Off-the-shelf SharePoint 2010 RM services are being trusted by corporate records programs. In an age where Records programs are entirely suspended or drastically squeezed, this is a quite inexpensive option for automated records declaration.

Since Office 365 lacks a related Records Center template, it is possible for the program to be vulnerable. The absence of automation can damage the program’s reputation. In case automated records declaration is leveraged in SharePoint also, the same might as well be in trouble.

What are the choices?
The necessities of the information architecture going beyond records policy amount to a textbook dilemma. Considering the case of information professionals, the design choice comes up with potentially long-term as well as negative connotations. In case an organization has automated records declaration through SP 2010 and its department of Information Technology is looking forward to embrace cloud services, it is a difficult choice. Deconstruction can be followed by manual records declaration implementation or the services of third party experts might be sought for devising something new.

Perhaps the best option in doing nothing in this particular case. First, something or the other will ultimately break. Secondly, this is a department that thinks forwardly and hence it cannot be visualized as restricting to one particular solution due to the lack of options. Thirdly, the employee turnover happens to be so high that the future administrator tends to lose all context pertaining to the architecture. Fourthly, retention schedules are subject to change and so unraveling of the Center for reconstruction in accordance with the new schedule is an enormous concern.

Manual records retention can also be considered as an option. However, it is an inferior one:

• In-Place RM exists till today within Office 365, although it has been reduced to a mere status symbol. A one or a zero, which implies that either the record exists or it does not. In fact, the option for management of the same from the back-end is not available with the Administrator. The good news is that interaction with the end users is possible. On the other hand, the bad news is that until and unless the C-level stresses on and communicates its requirement, end users would definitely have to time for annual review. Destruction does not take place.
• For devising out-of-the-box manual RM services within Office 365, the best way is the creation of a Records sub-site for each site collection. In every ways, the same folders should be used as are planned for the SP 2010 Records Center. The content types may be bypassed entirely and the same information policies may be used directly behind every folder.

Those objects which are required to be declared as records can be copied from the major site collection pages to the Records sub-site’s suitable folder. Since it is the case of a copy (wherein move is not available), the metadata changes should be noted and the peer should return to the original object for deleting it.

For initiation of a solution, the help of a third party may always be solicited. On one hand, it is being demonstrated that you need a compromise. Migration to the cloud cannot be hindered. On the other hand, you wish to make use of your cordial partnership with IT very meticulously at this point. Since Records is your project, it should not go to the backseat, being assigned with cleaning up legacy data.

On the positive side
In case you are going for RM in Office 365, the positive point is that it is convenient to edit retention periods. As discussions are held with each peer for planning of their folder structures, the maps need to be edited. It should be explained why and how folders pertaining to every site collection are a component of a bigger process-oriented schedule. Moreover, site permissions need to be unraveled for rebuilding them. After all, there is once more the opportunity to describe the mission as well as the significance of the program. As your IT department gears up for handling 2014 projects, it’s a great idea to seize the moment for RM in Office 365.

If you were to attempt a SharePoint site migration project to Office365, understanding of these choices and pros and cons would ensure a successful migration.

We provide SharePoint bespoke development services. If you would like to know more about the expertise of our SharePoint developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Top 8 Ways to Mitigate Risks in SharePoint Deployment

Deployment of the useful web application development platform of SharePoint involves certain risks. The SharePoint sites, which primarily include the SharePoint Online and the hosted SharePoint farms, have high chances of falling prey to some of the serious content security risks. Considering the fact that SP Online is highly preferred by all types of enterprises today for regulation of data, securing this data is a dire necessity. In fact, organizations are often found facing certain problems when it comes to maintaining the security of the data in SharePoint. The risks need to be mitigated without any wastage of time to ensure smooth work flow.

Here is a brief overview of the risks involved in SP deployment along with the possible ways of reducing their effects.

1. Less Awareness about SharePoint Content

The lack of awareness about SP content is a prominent risk in the deployment of this particular web application development platform. The two main ways of spreading increased awareness are implementation of the governance guidelines along with providing of content classification. The end users should be trained accordingly for performing periodic scans of content. Teams also have the option of making use of the SP metadata as well as workflows to pass the sensitive information to the secure locations.

2. Failing to Secure the Content in SP Servers, Transit and Endpoints

Securing the content in the SharePoint servers as well as endpoints is necessary. Enterprises must make it a point to implement solutions that ensure the security of the content on the SP servers as well as the backups through access control and encryption. Additionally, the teams should also go for a whole-disk encryption for endpoints and most essentially, laptops. The SSL encryption for data in transit should also be enabled by the security administrators.

3. Misconfiguration of the Access Controls and Permissions

This is yet another risk that often poses a problem in the deployment of SharePoint. The solution lies in auditing the existing SharePoint permissions and then reviewing or creating of the corporate access control policies. Following this, the SP permissions should be aligned with the corporate directory services, by which, the administrators can get an idea about the usage of inheritance as well as unmanaged item-level permissions.

4. SP Platform Security Risks

The SharePoint platforms need to be hardened by means of disabling the ports as well as services that are not essential to the functioning of the platform. Regular patching apart from whitelisting of applications also helps in reducing the risks of platform security.

5. Failing to Limit the Administrator and Service Accounts

One essential way in which the risk of failing to limit the administrator as well as service accounts can be reduced is by limiting the privileges on service accounts. Disabling the install account and not using the shared administrator accounts are other prominent ways of mitigating this particular risk.

6. SP System Architecture and Network Configuration Issues

The system architecture as well as network configuration issues related to the SharePoint can be reduced by putting a dedicated SP web front end in a DMZ and by making use of a single-function-per-server approach. Hardening of the SP, OS as well as the database as per the best practices is also highly recommended.

7. Issues Related to SP and Malware

Risks arising from SharePoint as well as Malware can be solved by implementation of the server malware solution along with a regular updating of the anti-virus definitions.

8. Difficulty in Performing Backups and Providing DR Capability

The only possible way in which this problem can be solved is by performing annual backups as well as tests and restoring them on a regular basis.

Managing the above-mentioned security risks through an application of the appropriate security controls helps in reducing the level of content security as well as compliance risks in SP to a great extent. If you were to attempt a SharePoint site migration project, understanding of these best practices would ensure a successful migration.

We provide SharePoint bespoke development services. If you would like to know more about the expertise of our SharePoint programmers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

9 Tips to Integrate DotNetNuke with SharePoint

If you need to develop an engaging as well as interesting website featuring optimum and advanced tools until date, the choice undeniably rests with DotNetNuke (DNN). With businesses facing diverse challenges in terms of content modification, DNN offering multiple solutions addressing the various technological needs of the content providers and emerging interests of the people comes to right help.

Why is DNN unique and a preferred choice?
The reason is simple; DNN offering a wide range of tools supports the rapidly changing consumer as well as technology trends thereby, enabling users to move forward without any difficulty. Being the world’s number one WCMS for Microsoft, DotNetNuke stands as the most successful and largest open-source CMS plug-in catering to the Microsoft ecosystem. This particular software is extraordinarily empowered to offer virtual help to any enterprise for approaching or facing architectural challenges from every angle. The platform also helps the nonprofit organization to save both time as well as money.

What brings SharePoint to the forefront?
SharePoint is a pioneer in providing intranet solution geared towards efficient handling of internal document management, which includes but is not restricted to sharing, editing, and uploading of reports along with contents. In simpler terms, this particular application ensures easy access of data by everybody in the business network. It streamlines the complex process of collaborating along with managing the important business documents. This particular application is actually incorporated by anybody managing content starting from business to nonprofit organizations. The SharePoint and DNN connector further ensures complete optimization of the process and has been successfully integrated by businesses across different sectors.

To ensure complete optimization of the content creation, business organizations as well as enterprises need to execute a successful integration of DNN with SharePoint.

Integrating DotNetNuke with SharePoint – Tips to Follow

Here is a quick look at the tips that you need to remember while integrating the DNN software successfully with the SharePoint application:

1. Good knowledge of SharePoint and DotNetNuke – This particular approach helps in easy as well as seamless integration of both the document management system and the software making it easy for content monitoring along with modification. It is important to have good knowledge of the software as well as the application before taking up integration.

2. Always integrate with SharePoint 2007 and 2010 – This particular objective helps you enjoy the best benefits of both the DotNetNuke along with the document management system. After all, it helps publishing fresh contents extracting it straight from the SharePoint Document library. The published documents are carefully protected by the role based security network of DNN.

3. Always publish documents that are approved for display – Undertaking this particular approach always helps you to avoid any sort of interference with the team. This helps you ensure the use of a streamlined alongside a collaborative procedure that helps in effective management of the document. Additionally, it also allows you to share the best documents that are carefully edited and ready for use.

4. Ensure consistent permission throughout the work – This particular objective if maintained right helps preventing any sort of unauthorized access thereby, ensuring a secure digital asset management. Additionally, it also helps preventing the redistribution of assets that are digital.

5. Make use of views and not folders – This helps you ensure having unlimited flexibility along with extreme level of granularity. It is also important for you to be able to combine the properties easily and this particular approach helps in successful combination. The biggest advantage rests with the fact that it helps reducing overall risk alongside human error.

6. Synchronize the deletes – Taking up this particular approaching during the process of integration also helps avoiding the errors of “file not found” during the successful execution of removal of files. This particular approach of cleaning also ensures reduction of unimportant database clogging, duplication, overall risk, and human errors.

7. Enabling of error notification is must – This specific task helps in automatic synchronization eliminating the need of active viewing or monitoring of the document in concern. This result in a smooth process that helps you to lessen the effort along with the time required for content monitoring.

8. Avoid the firewall – Always make sure that the SharePoint server can enjoy an easy access to the DOTNetNuke server. This helps in smoother as well as better content management without any modification of security policies.

9. Allow filtering of documents to be transferred – This particular approach helps the users to filter the documents easily through the integrated SharePoint filtering views. This helps the users to make use of the Create View UI and need not rely upon two different sets of filters.

Following the above-mentioned tips is sure to help you achieve a successful integration of DotNetNuke with SharePoint and ensure defining the success metrics for your organization in terms of less error, reduced publishing time, etc.

You can hire developers from top SharePoint development companies in india who can help you build apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide SharePoint portal development services. If you would like to talk to one of our certified SharePoint developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

10 Mistakes to avoid while migrating from PHP to SharePoint

In recent times, there has been a rapid rise in the use of SharePoint (SP) and a number of enterprises are considering migration from PHP to SP. While there is of course huge amount of benefits associated with staying put with Open-Source PHP, SharePoint being a Microsoft supported platform comes high on security and other benefits as well. Weighing in on the pros and cons of both, there are migrations happening both ways – while some businesses are changing from SharePoint to PHP, other are going the Microsoft way.

Custom SharePoint development ensures that your enterprise’s collaboration efforts hit the roof while redundancies in processes are eliminated. And that often attracts businesses to migrate to SharePoint. The challenge lies in ensuring that SharePoint is appropriately implemented within the environment. It is true that the document management system can be conveniently installed as well as configured. However a number of organizations tend to make certain mistakes while migrating from PHP to SharePoint.

Let us have a look at 10 mistakes which should be avoided.

1. Choosing the basic installation for SharePoint: During installation of SP many organizations are into the habit of going for the basic install option. Although the basic version can be installed with simply a few clicks of the mouse, the advanced option is always better, so far as enterprises are concerned. It is advisable to choose the advanced option if you are not interested in installing everything on a single server or want to utilize complete SQL server, either existing or new.

2. Ignoring Fault tolerance: While migrating from PHP to SharePoint, a number of enterprises commit the mistake of considering that load balancing or greatly obtainable environments are meant for performance. The truth is that most of the times, fault tolerance is a greater priority and the actual reason behind leveraging load balancing, or any other highly available solution such as RAID. The configuration of an environment with high availability is not feasible with the basic installation.

3. Inappropriate utilization of permissions and service accounts: Like a lot of other server-oriented tools, SP has to interact with the server on which it is installed as well as the services surrounding it. As a result, service accounts are required, which are in fact, special identities used for communication with crawl content, SQL server, add index information across the file system, amongst various other functions. Many organizations make the mistake of going for generic server accounts, which is not at all recommended. In place of this, distinct domain accounts are required for every primary SP service.

4. Iterating by means of SPList Items: Developers have access to SPList object and are capable of using the same either from the existing SPContext or through creation of a SPList object to gain access to a list identified through its name. Although the used code is good for local environments, it leads to performance problems in case of custom SharePoint implementations.

5. Excessive data request from content database: With the help of the SPList object, data can be conveniently accessed from the Content Database. The problem is that every time this action is taken, it leads to requesting all the list items. Using SPQuery object, the data that is really needed can be queried. SPQuery facilitates putting a limitation on the number of returned items and columns as well as raising query for particular items through utilization of Collaborative Markup Language.

6. Memory leaks through SPWeb and SPSite: For those considering migration from PHP to SharePoint, it should be remembered that SharePoint makes use of COM components for certain core features. So far as COM Objects are concerned, memory management can be an issue. SharePoint installations often do not dispose SPWeb and SPSite objects and hence the ASP.NET Worker Process ends up leaking memory. So, it is advisable to monitor the memory usage to identify memory leaks.

7. Use of Index Columns for Performance Enhancement: Index Columns can offer speedy access to SharePoint Lists but there are certain limitations. With respect to every defined index, the index value is stored by SP for each list item in a distinct table. Queries utilize the first index column while additional index columns are not utilized for speeding up database access.

8. Using SP for transactional processing of great volume: It is a good thing that SharePoint does not bound you to the content database, but you should not use it for high volumes of transactional processing. A single table stores every data element. Implementation of database indices takes place through use of a second table which is then attached with the main table. Simultaneous access to different lists becomes an issue since the data belongs to the same table.

9. Inappropriate drive space allocation: The SharePoint installation procedure puts location of custom solutions, indexes, software and logs across the primary system drive, which is most of the times, the C drive. However, in a number of organizations, the C drive is partitioned into smaller components for the OS files. Consequently, space can rapidly run out.

10. Not focusing on disaster recovery situations: While engaging in migration from PHP to SharePoint, many organizations tend to disregard the disaster recovery continuity plans. SP is more intricate than other database driven portals. Hence, the architecture should be understood and accordingly plans should be made for reconstituting the environment.

These are the mistakes that are committed most often by organizations while migration from PHP to SharePoint. Avoiding these mistakes will save time and reduce the possibility of future issues.

We provide SharePoint webparts development services. If you would like to talk to one of our certified SharePoint developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Tips for Effective Migration to SharePoint 2013

In the recent times, with Microsoft launching SharePoint 2013, a large number of businesses are considering migration to this new edition to enhance their business processes. In fact, this new version of SharePoint is anticipated to revolutionize the way in which companies are building links amongst their knowledge workers, business processes as well as business-related content worldwide. This platform includes novel features such as enhanced document management capabilities with respect to sharing and contributing content, enhanced social features along with a renewed search experience. SharePoint 2013 is speedily positioning itself as one of the much sought after technology for the introduction of crucial organizational initiatives in the areas of social collaboration, enterprise content management and web content management.

The advanced features of Sharepoint make it vital for organizations to take certain points into consideration prior to adopting this latest platform. Let us discuss some of the guidelines that should be followed in order to achieve effective migration to SharePoint 2013.

1. Take care of hardware requirements: In case of SharePoint 2013 servers, minimum of 8 GB RAM and four 64-bit cores is needed for small environments while medium environments require 16 GB RAM. For every server operating in SharePoint 2013, location within a single data center is essential.

2. Operating system requisites: The ideal operating system incorporates 64-bit edition, R2 SP1 Windows Server 2008. The 2012 Windows Server operating system can also be utilized. You must consider migration to 64-bit servers before any other upgrade or migration.

3. Decide upon the destination before starting off: Doing this gives you a clear-cut idea of where you are heading to and this allows you to go for proper channelization of the resources at hand. For example, if you are using SQL 2012, use Windows 2012 along with an Office Web Application Server.

4. Divide current customizations into categories: It is advisable to categorize the customizations into three categories. The first category constitutes items such as custom authentication provider that would stop the project. You need to have solutions for this, or else the migration would not be a success. The second category comprises items that would not put a halt to the project but are required to be completed. It is good to address them once the migration is completed. Items that need to be eliminated make up the third category.

5. Realize environmental alterations: When you are deciding to go for Windows 2012, the environmental change that takes place needs to be taken into consideration. The SMTP server role has been deprecated by Windows 2012 and depending on the information, decision needs to be taken as to whether to use a more intricate configuration or go for installation of the deprecated feature.

6. Get every migration step scripted: This task involves restructuring site hierarchy, mounting content databases.

7. Conduct dry runs: While performing dry runs, you must follow a sequential guide. Through the dry runs, it is quite convenient to identify the disk space and timing requirements.

8. Go for proper space and time planning: Once the disk space and the upgrade time required are identified depending upon the dry runs, you can take necessary action. For instance, by adjusting the SQL server memory, the time for mounting as well as upgrading SharePoint can be decreased.

9. Follow dry runs with test: The only thing that separates a live run from a dry run is that the data is not updated, hence the end result should simulate the live migration. Taking this into account, through utilization of an alternate access mapping, it can be opened up to selected end users for testing, in order to validate the overall usability and the basic functionality.

10. Set up destination environment: It is advisable to configure and prepare to the maximum extent prior to migration. Once the configuration of the environment is done, the same will ensure smoother migration.

The above mentioned tips would go a long way in helping you plan your SharePoint 2013 migration. They will definitely help you enhance the overall efficiency of your SharePoint application development team.

We provide custom SharePoint development services. If you would like to know more about the expertise of our expert SharePoint developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Steps to create a SharePoint 2013 App with Ruby on Rails

The SharePoint model is quite new to everybody and the recent launch of the 2013 version had made it even more ambiguous to developers around the world. Now, when it comes to creating an application pertaining to the software with Ruby on Rails, most developers seem to have a tough time in embracing the appropriate approach. Well, here is a guide for all Rails developers looking forward to creating an app successfully on the particular framework. However, please note that this particular guide should never be used as the best practice of Ruby on Rails development.

Well, before beginning the process, you must register a new application in Office 365. Ensure that a Site Collection has been created by making use of the Developer Site Template. This can be done from the Office 365 admin screens. Following the creation of the same, browse site collection and register the SharePoint application with Office 365 as well as Azure Access Control Services (ACS). For any sort of development purpose, the registration of the new app can be easily done through appregnew.aspx page present within Office 365. Since there is no such link available for the actual page, you need browse the URL directly.

Always remember that since the registration of the application is done through appregnew.aspx, the secret of the particular app will only be known by the ACS and you. Therefore, the series of characters that will be generated will be specifically used for decoding information coming from ACS/SharePoint. Always make sure to take note of the id of the app, as you will not be having any access of the same again.

Since the application will be only used for testing and development purposes, registering it through appregnew.aspx comes across as a wise choice. If there arises a need of making the app thoroughly and widely available or list in the official store of SharePoint, then an account must be registered at the Seller Dashboard.

1. Visual Studio

The next step of work rests with Visual Studio where an application package must be created, which would eventually be uploaded to SharePoint. To make this happen, you need to follow the following steps:

• Open Visual Studio (through ‘Run as Administrator’) for creating a new project. Go for project creation using the template ‘App for SharePoint 2013’. You will find this under the SharePoint /Office project node.
• Following this, you will be asked about the type of SharePoint app that you would like to create. Always remember to offer your app a similar name to that you have given in the appregnew.aspx and submit the URL of the Developer site collection. Ensure choosing an application type of Provider – hosted as the hosting model.
• In the last screen, leave the top option by selecting ‘Use a client secret’. Once, you click on the button OK, you will get to see the creation of 2 projects in Solution Explorer.
• It is to be noted that the first project usually implies to the SharePoint App that generates the application package. This particular app will be uploaded.
• The following step requires you to double click AppManifest.xml that consists of all the details related to the app. Upon opening the Manifest Designer, you need to remember to insert some specific values.

Always remember that the application needs to take permissions for being able to read and write data to the SharePoint site where the application is installed. This can be easily done through the permission tab. All you need to do is request just the permission that is actually needed. Always note that the more permission the app would request, the more it will run the risk of not being installed as users will be concerned about the security risk. Always remember to save and then close the AppManifest designer.

2. Ruby on Rails and Apple MacOS

To be able to work with SharePoint 2013, there stands a requirement of installing Ruby Gems to make things easier. Here is a look at the needs:

• jwt – this helps in decoding the JSON web token that emerges from the application software
• rest-client – this enables placing rest requests
• nokogiri – a library that helps querying XML that is usually returned from the SharePoint

the next step of action lies in creating a new application based on Ruby on Rails in your preferred code folder. All you need to do is type into Terminal. Rails is now ready for getting a MVC web application.

Open the gemfile and under the gem stated as ‘jquery-rails’, integrate the gems that were downloaded as pre-reqs.

• gem ‘jwt’
• gem ‘rest-client’
• gem ‘nokogiri’

This particular step is quite similar to the task of adding new reference in Visual Studio assembly.

3. Https Configuration

You must have noticed that while registering the application in appregnew.aspx, a Redirect URL is set that is https://localhost:3001. The app will be making use of the OAuth for being able to authorize the user and the application. Remember, that the for ensuring OAuth specification, both ends of communication must be https. After all, you would definitely not want any poor interception of unencrypted tokens to be transmitted over the Internet and have an access to the Office 365 or SharePoint site. Rails usually make use of WEBric, which is developed in web server. This is quite similar to the IISExpress of the Visual Studio.

To get the SharePoint 2013 mobile development right, you would have to follow the steps above. Then hopefully, you will be able to successfully create a SharePoint app with Ruby on Rails.

We provide SharePoint portal development services. If you would like to know more about the expertise of our expert SharePoint developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.