Combined use of templating techniques within a single CM instance?

Question

A client has a CM - CD environment set up and running several sites using the classic Compound Template model

We're exploring the possibility of introducing a set of 64 sites into the existing CM instance within the same CD infrastructure but using the DD4T project. These sites normally exist in a completely unrelated Tridion setup.

From what I can assume without seeing the environment that is being used this is relatively trivial and can be done without affecting any of the existing websites that are using the traditional publishing model just by the use of the right default TBBs and appropriate targets + the appropriate CD infrastructure changes?

Answer 1

Creating two separate Blueprint chains in a single CM instance is not uncommon and certainly not a problem. So from that perspective, yes you should be absolutely fine to do this.

Also DD4T won't give you any issues there, it is perfectly fine for DD4T to live right next to another Publishing Model in a single Publication. So in a separate Blueprint chain will be no problem either.

I would suggest to add these new Publications under your Empty Parent Publication. Lessons learned from the past indicate that at some point in the future it might be desired to join those two Blueprint chains together, and making sure they both have a common parent allows for that.

Answer 2

This should not be a problem.

DD4T is itself a small set of Compound Templates, publishing XML to the Broker DB. Then on the Delivery side, there is a custom library in your MVC application to retrieve content.

Depending on your requirements you can use them together or branch at the design layer.