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Set up test system

Here I describe a way of setting up a test system for OSIRIS on the same server as the production system. This is particularly useful for testing new functions without affecting the production system.

Prerequisites

  • A server with OSIRIS installed
  • Access to the server console

Steps

Here are the steps to set up a test system for OSIRIS.

1. cloning the productive system

Firstly, you need to create a copy of the production system. This can be done by simply copying the directories and files.

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cp -r /path/to/production /path/to/production/test

2. copy database (optional)

If the database for the test system should initially have the same data as the production system, you can create a backup of the database and import it into a new test database. This is optional, but recommended in order to carry out realistic tests.

The path to the backup and, if necessary, the name of the database must be adjusted here:

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mongodump --db osiris --out /path/to/backup
mongorestore --db osiris_test /path/to/backup/osiris

This could look like this, for example, if you want to save the backup in your home directory:

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mongodump --db osiris --out ~/backup
mongorestore --db osiris_test ~/backup/osiris

3. Customise .htaccess files

Firstly, you must ensure that the new test folder is omitted from the Apache rewrite. Otherwise OSIRIS will not load your test page correctly and will only display a 404 error.

Open the .htaccess file in the root directory of the productive system:

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nano /path/to/production/.htaccess

Here you must adapt the RewriteRule directive to exclude the test system. Add a new line that excludes the test folder (only |test is new):

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RewriteRule ^(css|img|js|uploads|settings.json|manifest.json|test)($|/) - [L]

Next, we need to make sure that the test system is working correctly. To do this, we need to customise the .htaccess file in the test directory. Open the .htaccess file in the test directory:

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nano /path/to/production/test/.htaccess

Change the RewriteBase directive to point to the test system.

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RewriteBase /test

4. customise configuration

You must also adjust the path to the test system in the configuration file. Open the configuration file of the test system:

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nano /path/to/production/test/CONFIG.php

Here you must adjust the ROOTPATH constant so that it points to the test system:

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define('ROOTPATH', '/test');

Don't forget to also adjust the DB_NAME constant so that it refers to the test database:

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define('DB_NAME', 'osiris_test');

I also recommend setting the constant LIVE to false on the test system. This causes a note to appear directly under the logo at the top indicating that this is the test system. This helps to avoid confusion.

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define('LIVE', false);

5. test the test system

You should now be able to access the test system by calling up the URL of your server followed by /test:

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http://<your-osiris-server>/test

If everything is set up correctly, you should see the test version of OSIRIS working independently of your production system. You can test this by adding a new activity and checking that it only appears in the test system and not in the production system.

Safety instructions

As the test system runs on the same server as the production system, they share the so-called session. This means that you can log in to the production system and then remain logged in to the test system and vice versa. This can be practical, especially to speed up the testing process, but it can also lead to confusion if you are not careful.

If you don't want all users of the production system to have access to the test system, you can modify the .htaccess file in the test directory to require a password for access. Here is a simple example of how you can do this:

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AuthType Basic
AuthName "Restricted Area"
AuthUserFile /path/to/.htpasswd
Require valid-user

You must then create an .htpasswd file containing the user names and passwords. You can do this with the htpasswd command:

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htpasswd -c /path/to/.htpasswd username
You will then be prompted to set a password for the user. If you want to add multiple users, you can omit the -c parameter so as not to overwrite the file:

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htpasswd /path/to/.htpasswd anotheruser