Hi,

I am new to module development within DNN and am trying to amend the source of a module i have purchased.  I purchased the enterprise license of this particular module which gives me the source code.  What i don't understand is how to go about amending it.  I have downloaded the DNN Starter Kit and created a website in Visual Studio as per the article on the DNN website.  Does anyone know how to integrate the module source code into the my website project so that i can extend its functionality.  Any suggestions or pointers to related articles would be very much appreciated.

Thanks

Dave Clayton

Fist, you really DON'T need the starter kit.  Simply use the Install version to create a working website.  You'll then be able to open it with Visual Web Developer or the Express Version.  I'd recommend that you use that as the basis for your development.

Next, fire up the website (you don't even need to do this with VWD either), and install the module.  If your source version arrived as an installable private assembly, all of the source code should have been put in the right place.

If the source is separate, you'll have to put the various components into the correct directories by hand.

Then you should be able to open the website within VWD and go from there.

Before you get started, though, I think that it's a really good idea to get familiar first with DotNetNuke modules and module development.  Michael Washington's adefwebserver.com site is a really good one.  There are also some good notes from Mitchel Sellers (www.mitchelsellers.com) on developing modules as Web Application Projects (WAP).  I'd recommend that you check out his site, too.  And, I hope that you have a copy of the DotNetNuke Module Developer's Guide, available from DotNetNuke.com.

Finally, a nice introduction to modifying an existing module is available right here:

How to improve a DotNetNuke module (The Blog module)

Hi Joe,

Thanks for your prompt reply.  Those links look interesting and i will give those a read through before i start my development.  I have had a little exposure to DNN module development but only minor so your help is much appreciated.

Thanks

Dave Clayton

If you have some experience with web and/or asp.net development, this stuff should come fairly easily. There's a bit of a learning curve, particularly with the providers, etc., but you'll eventually get the hang of it.

I also forgot to mention the "DotNetNuke Professional 4" book by Shaun Walker, et. al. That almost indispensible for all of the background. Though most of the details are available online at dotnetnuke.com, I still find comfort in paging through books on occasion.

I should pick it up no problem.  I have got the book you mentioned but it didn't seem to answer questions on existing module development.  Only if you are starting from scratch.  Thanks again.

I have the same question as yours. We just purchased a source code of a DNN module and want to extend its functionality. Would you like to share your experience?

Thanks,

Start with a copy of Mitchel Sellers' book.

Next check out Chris Hammond's video tutorials (The "Task Manager" series is really good.) at DotNetNuke.com.

In particular, pay attention to the sequence where Chris installs a module and then installs the source version over it. Use the module and source version you've purchased to replace that.

I would next spend some time with the module and learn how to debug, set breakpoints, etc.

You should do this, of course, in a local development environment. Hopefully, the module's source will include the ability to package up everything to install on your live site.