Sandboxed Solutions and SharePoint 2010
One of the most interesting new feature of SharePoint 2010 is something called Sandboxed Solutions.
Think of it this way. In 2007 we have solution packages, WSP files that are packaged up with all kinds of goodness (Master Pages, InfoPath Forms, Web Parts, Custom Actions, etc.). Whenever we want to deploy these, we need to hunt down our IT guy and hand him over the package to run on the server and deploy, using the farm account. Only then can we activate the feature on our site or site collection. And then there’s the hassle of retracting, redeploying, etc. for upgrades.
In 2010 the game has changed. You can still upload WSP files on the server to the solution store but there’s a new kid in town called Sandboxed Solutions. From a development perspective, they’re pretty much the same as building a solution today. You can create web part, write event receivers, create InfoPath forms, etc. You’re allowed a subset of the full SharePoint API (what’s allowed is documented in the SDK). Some of the major restrictions to Sandboxed Solutions are accessing the web.config file or farm file system (the 12 hive), central administration, and going outside the site collection. Sandboxed Solutions are uploaded to a single site collection (although there’s nothing stopping you from uploading it to multiple site collections) and basically can access any data within that site collection, if you want to.
The main advantage of Sandbox Solutions is two-fold. For the developer, he just needs to be a site collection admin (rather than a farm admin) so it’s simple to give him or her their own site collection and let them go to town. For the SharePoint admin, you can monitor a sandbox solution, throttle memory and CPU usage, and even shut down solutions that have gone rogue without taking down the entire farm.
Here’s a few Sandboxed Solutions that have hit the interwebs to show you some cool things you can do with this new feature of SharePoint 2010.
Currently I use Jan Tielens SmartTools jQuery to blast a copy of jQuery onto every page in my site collection. It works great because it’s just a site collection feature and doesn’t require me to muck with whatever Master Page I’m using at the time. It even shows up on application pages in the _layouts folder because it uses the AdditionalPageHead DelegateControl. Problem is this isn’t an option in 2010 as a Sandboxed Solutions (DelegateControls are not permitted in the Sandbox) but Daniel McPherson came up with a pretty slick solution over at zevenseas that does just this. Check it out here.
Another Sandboxed Solution from Mr. McPherson gives us a “go” service for SharePoint. Basically you create pathways (keywords that lead to a fully qualified URL) and mange it through a simple SharePoint list. Whenever a user goes to the link site with that keyword (http://yoursite/go.aspx?LinkId=HelpDesk) they’ll be whisked away to whatever site the pathway is configured for. This is great for important sites that might move around as a result of needing to restructure your site collection or servers that bounce around or whatever reason you might have. Users can always rely on the original link to be valid. The community version (free) of the Link Conductor only supports 15 pathways but it’s enough to get started to see if this is worth it to you. Check it out here.
For SharePoint 2007, Scot Hillier put together an excellent collection of solutions to help get things done. You can still see his 2007 collection here. Now he’s putting together the same thing but for Sandboxed Solutions! So far there are only a few in the collection so it’ll grow. Definately a CodePlex project to keep an eye on. Check out the Sandboxed Solutions collection here.
This is one of my favorite projects, not just because it’s an Agile planning tool but it’s built in SharePoint and… a Sandboxed Solution! Andrew Woodward and company have put together a very slick solution that allows you to have a Mingle like interface in SharePoint, driven by a simple SharePoint backlog list. It’s very cool and you must try this out, even if you’re not into Agile planning and tracking tools. Check out 21SCRUM here.
Search AutoComplete for SharePoint 2010 Lists
There are a few “autocomplete” solutions for SharePoint 2007 but here comes another one, and a Sandboxed Solution. Very slick and quick and easy to get up and running in your environment. Oh yeah, also free as in beer. Check it out here.
All in all, a very powerful feature. As always, with great power comes great responsibility so sit down and think long and hard before you allow or disallow this type of practice in your environment. With any development methodology you should inform your developers of what the boundaries are, help them getting going with their solutions, and make it a win-win scenario for everyone. Maybe sandboxed solutions are not for you, but give them consideration and maybe they’ll be a new tool in your SharePoint toolbelt!
BTW, just to be fair Doug Ware wrote up an alternate piece to Sandboxed Solutions basically saying they had a lot of restrictions (which they do). You can check out his excellent article here over at End User SharePoint and judge for yourself if you want to use them.
Resources
- Developing, Deploying, and Monitoring Sandboxed Solutions in SharePoint 2010
- SharePoint 2010 Sandbox solutions: Architecture and Restrictions
- Introducing Sandboxed Solutions (15 minute video by Andrew Connell)
Got more Sandboxed Solutions you want to add? Post them in the comments below!