1. Content Delivery Networks with Sitecore
Kamruz Jaman
April 25, 2016
#sugcon

2. Take aways
There are a number of ways to integrate Content Delivery Networks with Sitecore. Let’s review why, how and of course, let’s hack into the pipelines ;)
Some are nothing Sitecore specific, there are some 3rd party more and also there are a surprising number of settings to help us as well.
And of course, we can go custom. This is Sitecore after all!

3. About Me
Kamruz Jaman Freelance Sitecore Consultant Sitecore Technology MVP

4. Find Me
Blog: jammykam.wordpress.com Twitter Sitecore Slack

5. Why use Content Delivery Networks?
Reduce HTTP requests to CD server
Offload requests
Serve request closer to user
Reduce latency
Large files
Streaming
Browser connection limits per domain
Reduce HTTP requests to server
Reduce Load on server
Reduce Latency
Increase browser connection limits per domain – more later

6. Why?
It confuses users
Nobody wants to wait

7. Why?
Typically users from across the globe served from a single location
Ideally serve closer to user

8. Why?
Global traffic pattern that looks more like abstract art than something you can make any sense of
Limited budgets mean you can’t keep expanding servers and Sitecore licenses when traffic spikes
Need to solve the problem another way…

9. Why?
But what we really want to avoid is…

10. How? Integration with Sitecore Edge Caching DAM connector
Faux CDN with Sitecore
CDN Endpoints
Custom CDN Integration

11. Edge Caching Requests cached by Provider Acts as reverse proxy
Required assets Pulled from origin
No code required
Must change DNS to provider
Akamai / CloudFlare / Amazon CloudFront
Must set “MediaResponse.Cacheability” setting in config

12. Edge Caching

13. Edge Caching Akamai DNS All requests go to server
With EDGE caching, the provider caches certain file types by PULLING them from ORIGIN and caching locally
Different CDNs have different POP locations – Point of Presence

14. Edge Cache Performance

15. Edge Cache Performance

16. DAM Connector Third party Digital Asset Management Various available
ADAM Software
Digizuite DAM for Sitecore
PicturePark
Brightcove / Ooyala
Integration directly in Media Library
Fully featured
Workflow
Image / Video Manipulation
Brightcove / Ooyala uses Sitecore Media Framework

17. DAM Connector - PicturePark

18. DAM Connector - Digizuite

19. Faux CDN Domain sharding Increase available connection pool
Can be used with Edge Caching
Fake CDN
None of the cache benefits
Increase in simultaneous server load
Browser connection limits: Increase Parallel Connections
Chrome / Firefox / Android / Chrome Mobile = 6
IE9 = IE10 = IE11 = 13

20. Browser Connection Limits
Browser Parallel Connection limits

21. Code Sample
<site name="mysite" ... hostName=" /> <!-- or can use a wildcard to handle all sub-domains: *.domain.com --> <setting name="Media.MediaLinkServerUrl" value="//media.sugcon.eu" /> <setting name="Media.AlwaysIncludeServerUrl" value="true" />
Static assets can be served from server, Sitecore dynamic from shard
Can be used with Edge Caching to increase browser connections
Use a protocol-less URL

22. Custom Origin Support on Azure CDN Yes, Finally!!!
Azure CDN Endpoint
Custom Origin Support on Azure CDN Yes, Finally!!!
Azure CDN can now be used with any origin.
Only worked with certain services – Websites and WebRoles
Services must be in same Azure Subscription
Requests must be served from /CDN in URL
Needed to use IIS Rewrite for urls instead
Finally catching up! [

23. Azure CDN – Setup

24. Azure CDN – Setup No HTTP/2 Support yet - Azure, AWS, MAxCDN
Supported:
- Cloudflare, Akamai, KeyCDN, CDN77

25. Setting changes required
Code Sample
Setting changes required
<setting name="Media.MediaLinkServerUrl" value="//sugcon.azureedge.net" />
<setting name="Media.AlwaysIncludeServerUrl" value="true" />
<setting name="MediaResponse.Cacheability" value="public" />
MediaResponse.Cacheability -> default = Private
Only cached by browser

26. Be careful about Content Expiration
Caching Strategy
Be careful about Content Expiration
CDN may crash too aggressively
Azure CDN defaults to 7 days
Enable caching by URL parameters
Override Link Manager
Append Updated Date or Revision Guid
Possible to flush entire CDN cache via REST 
Make sure you use “new” Azure Portal  portal.azure.com
Azure features are being added more frequently
Expire content via REST API (Dec 2015)
Pull Origin recently added -

27. Code Sample
Override the media link and patch it in

28. Custom Integration Requirements: Using Azure Blob Storage
CDN Endpoint
Specific parts of Media Library
Media managed through Sitecore interface
Large files of 1-2GB approx
Media NOT stored in database
Sitecore Media Framework too complex
Advantage: Requests still served by Sitecore = Analytics

29. Code Parts Azure API – Windows Azure Storage nuget package
Hook into existing Sitecore Pipelines
uiUpload / attachFile
Custom Pipeline for integration
Allow multiple processors for distinct operations
Non-UI blocking
Sitecore Job to upload Files
Intercept media requests
Override Link Manager
Must support Content and Experience Editor

30. Code demonstration

31. Kerchow!
Service users fast when they come to your site!

32. Questions, ideas or remarks?
Thank you!
Questions, ideas or remarks?

33. Thank you!