Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1 Overview and Installation

Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1 Overview

Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1 is brand new e-commerce product from Sitecore, not an upgrade of a previous Sitecore e-commerce server. The Commerce product involves many different components and it is helpful to understand these before delving into the installation process. The below diagram shows the different components involved in Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1:

Commerce Providers:

Sitecore Commerce (Sitecore Commerce Engine) — newly written .NET Core application that provides for orders and promotions commerce components. Sitecore has taken the old Commerce Server and started rewriting it component by component.This is integrated in the Business Tools for customer and Order Manager and Pricing and Promotions Manager.

Commerce Server: Commerce provider that Sitecore provided as commerce offering prior to this new Commerce offering. This is integrated for the product catalog/inventory component and is supporting the merchandising manager piece. This will be phased out once this product catalog/inventory component is rewritten.

Connects Layer:

Sitecore Commerce Connect: The commerce abstraction layer from Sitecore that abstracts commerce components and allows for connecting with multiple commerce systems. This layer also provides for engagement functionality / personalization / triggering goals / reporting on the engagement.

Sitecore Commerce Engine Connect: This is the connector layer between Sitecore Commerce Connect and Sitecore Commerce Engine

Sitecore Commerce Server Connect: This is the connector layer between Sitecore Commerce Connect and Sitecore Commerce Server (legacy Commerce Server)

Business Tools:

Customers and Orders Manager:

This is newly introduced and integrates with the new Sitecore Commerce Engine.

Pricing and Promotions Manager:

This is newly introduced and integrates with new Sitecore Commerce Engine.

Merchandising Manager:

This is currently driven using Commerce Server Catalog. This will be rewritten and Commerce Server will be phased out.

Storefront:

Reference Storefront

This is new storefront that is integrating with the new Siteore Commerce Engine for shopping cart, promotions, and orders.

Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1_1.0.20 .zip Package overview and installation

The downloaded package contains the following:

• Database — This folder consists of databases for Commerce Server.

• Modules — This folder folder consists of Sitecore packages for Commerce Connect and images for “Adventure Works” and “Habitat” catalogs to be installed using Sitecore Installation Wizard.

• Packages — This folder consists of the various components mentioned in "Overview" above, to be installed using Sitecore updateinstallationwizard

• CommerceServer-11.4.148.exe — This is the legacy Commerce Server that provides for Catalog and Inventory features in the Merchandising Manager.

• Sitecore. Commerce. SDK. 1.0.2301 .zip — new .NET Core based Commerce Authoring (Commerce Engine API) site that provides for REST API for Sitecore Commerce Engine features

Installation Process

The installation process is as follows:

1. Review the Server2012_ FeaturesRequired .txt to make sure the needed components are present on your machine

2. Setup of needed Windows Accounts

3. Set up Sitecore XP 8.2

4. Set up Commerce Server

   1. Install Commerce Server using the CommerceServer-11.4.148.exe in the Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1_1.0.20 .zip

   2. Set up CSServices in IIS for housing Commerce Server services

5. Install the Sitecore packages from the “Modules” folder in Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1_1.0.20 .zip

   1. Sitecore Commerce Connect

   2. Images zip for habitat

   3. Images zip for adventure works

6. Install the Sitecore Update packages in the following order from the “Packages” folder in Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1_1.0.20 .zip
   

   1. Connects Layer

      • Sitecore Commerce Server Connect. 10.0.xx. update

      • Sitecore. Commerce. Engine. Connect. 1.0.xxxx. update

   2. Business Tools

      • Sitecore Commerce Business Tools Shared. 1.0.xx. update

      • Sitecore Commerce Merchandising Manager.1 0.0.xxx. update

      • Sitecore Commerce Customer and Order Manager. 1.0.xx. update

      • Sitecore Commerce Pricing and Promotions Manager. 1.0.xx. update

   3. Storefront

      • Sitecore. Reference. Storefront. Common. 10.0.xxx. update

      • Sitecore. Reference. Storefront. Powered.by. Sitecore Commerce. 10.0.xxx. update

7. Commerce Server site (Powershell scripts to initialize CommerceServer site)

   1. Set up commerce server site

   2. Set up the Commerce Server services in the CSServices

8. Commerce Authoring Service (New Sitecore Commerce Engine .NET Core App)

   1. Build and Deploy Commerce Authoring Service

   2. Create Braintree account for payments

   3. Check the default settings for any changes

   4. Bootstrap Habitat and Adventure Works Environments

9. Merge the config files for CommerceServer. config

See detailed installation instructions

Common Installation Issues and Resolution

• If you receive 401.1 unauthorized when you try to access the Commerce Server hosted services, then create Multi-string value BackConnectionHostnames at the regedit key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa\MSV1_0 and put the hostname of the Commerce Server site as the value.

• if you run into authorization issue with catalog service, run azman.msc, open authorization store and provide the CSServices\CSSolutionStorefrontSite_CatalogWebService\CatalogAuthorizationStore.xml as the store. Right-click the CatalogandInventorySytem/Role Assignments/Administrator role and select "Assign users and groups" and then “from windows and active directory” to add the user account setup for Commerce server.
  
  

• If you run into the following catalog not found error: “Entity Adventure Works Catalog|AW535-11| was not found” — This can be resolved by manually importing the Adventure Works catalog that is in the $SitecoreInstance\Website\SitecoreCommerce\Data\Catalog\Catalog.xml.

• If you run into Missing Habitat catalog — follow similar process as mentioned for "Adventure Catalog" issue, and Import the CommerceAuthoring\wwwroot\data\Catalogs\ Habitat_Master.xml catalog file.

The Installation process involves a lot of steps and is currently complicated as we are installing the new commerce engine and the legacy Commerce Server. Hopefully once the remaining catalog and inventory components are moved out of Commerce Server, the process may be streamlined to be better experience. I hope that this post helps in understanding the components and successful installation of new Sitecore Commerce 8.2.1.

If you have any questions regarding Sitecore Commerce and your commerce options for a Sitecore CMS, contact us.