SkylineGlobe Server (SGS) can be deployed in both Windows and Linux environments, with different configuration methods depending on the platform and deployment style.
- Windows Deployment: Run SGS manually or as a Windows service using the prepackaged Windows distribution. This bundle includes the SkylineGlobeServer.exe binary and requires installation of the .NET Core Hosting Bundle. This method provides flexible deployment options for on-premise environments without relying on containers. More about: Deploying SGS for Windows >
- Container Deployment (Linux): Deploy SGS as a Linux container using either Docker or Kubernetes. More about: Dockers Deployment > and Kubernetes Deployment >
Deployment Parameters
Key parameters, such as the floating license server URL and database type, can be defined to customize how SGS is deployed and behaves. The way these parameters are set depends on the deployment type:
- Windows: appsettings.json in the root application folder. Create this file by copying the appsettings.sample.jsonc file provided by Skyline and renaming it to appsettings.json.
- Docker: environment section in the Docker Compose YAML
- Kubernetes: env: section in the Deployment YAML
More about: SGS Deployment Settings >
HTTPS Requirements
SkylineGlobe Server (SGS) should be deployed with HTTPS to ensure secure communication and browser compatibility - for TerraExplorer Fusion (TEF), which requires HTTPS for advanced browser features like SharedArrayBuffer. For local development, SGS may run over http://127.0.0.1, but production environments must use HTTPS. More about: Security Configuration Options for SkylineGlobe Server Deployment >
Upgrading SGS to 8.5
Database Upgrade
During the update, SGS 8.5 automatically updates its databases. To successfully upgrade the encrypted passwords, the deployment must run for the first time under the same SGS Application Pool user used by SGS 8.2. Follow these steps:
- Determine the SGS Application Pool under which the existing SGS 8.2 application is running:
- In IIS Manager, go to Sites, select your website and then select the SGS application. From the Actions panel, click Basic Settings. The Application Pool name displayed is the SGS application pool name.
- In IIS Manager, go to Application Pools, select the pool name from step 1 above.
- Then, from the Actions panel, open Advanced Settings. Check the Identity field to see which user the application pool runs under.
- Back up the existing database:
- Locate the catalog.db file (e.g., C:\SkylineGlobeServerConfiguration\catalog.db) and make a copy of it. It is optional to also back up statistics.db and messages.db.
- Generate a database token if one has not already been created.
- Deploy 8.5 as a Windows Service:
- Download the SGS 8.5.0 application files from here.
- Make sure the user set in the NSSM Service Editor is the same user as in step 1 above. More about: Deployment on Windows >
- Configure SGS 8.5 to use the same database connection that was previously defined. In earlier versions, this connection was configured in web.config. In SGS 8.5, it is configured in appsettings.json. More about: SGS Deployment Settings >
- Start SGS 8.5: When SGS 8.5 starts, the database schema is upgraded automatically. Once this upgrade occurs, the database cannot be rolled back for use with older versions of SGS. Now, the databases can be used for SGS 8.5 Windows deployments with any user, or in Linux (Container or K8s) deployments.
URL Compatibility for Existing Projects
In SkylineGlobe Server 8.5, the default URL path no longer includes /sg. E.g., https://<HostName>/sg/<SiteName> is now https://<HostName>/<SiteName>.
To ensure backward compatibility with projects created in earlier versions that may still reference URLs that include /sg, set the OldVirtualPath parameter to "/sg". This allows the server to transparently handle requests that include the legacy path by ignoring it. More about: SGS Deployment Settings >
Configuration File Upgrade
Starting with SGS 8.5, the SG Services Configuration file is now located in the SharedConfigurations directory on all platforms. To continue using your existing configuration from SGS 8.2, copy the SG Services Configuration file from the SGS 8.2 root directory to the SharedConfigurations directory in SGS 8.5. If this step is not performed, SGS 8.5 uses the new default-valued SGServices.json file created automatically in the SharedConfigurations folder, and any previously customized configuration is ignored.
Cache Folder Changes
In SGS 8.5, the cache folder has been moved to the shared configuration directory. To continue using existing cached data, the contents of the previous cache location must be copied to the new cache folder. If this step is not performed, cached content will be regenerated as needed.