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How many Forms Databases do I need for a Multisite SyteLine Implementation?  The answer is simple – as few as possible. In a perfect development world, this would be one.  This question is often asked upon implementation, but the consequences of the decision are not thoroughly explained.

Recently I was asked to do a small personalization to a new customer’s Order Shipping form.  I quickly realized that not only did the customer have eight separate development forms databases, but most of the copies of their Order Shipping form had minor differences, so the development would need to be manually redone at each site.  A project that we anticipated to take about four hours, had the sudden potential of being a 16-20 hour project of tedious repetition.

Upon this realization, we had a discussion with the customer and realized that they had not understood the implication of having multiple forms databases.  Not only that, they had been trying to enforce that all 8 of their sites had the same modifications.  It was determined that a number of changes had been made by other vendors at a substantial cost to the customer in the past.  My recommendation was that we should eliminate this from happening again if possible.  With a little testing, I was able to setup a single forms database that was to be used by all sites.  This eliminated huge amounts of unnecessary overhead for future projects, including eliminating the overhead for the original Order Shipping modification.  Typically this is not the case. Once the decision has been made you have to live with it.

In addition to the costs involved in maintaining or creating modifications across multiple forms databases, upgrade costs grow for each additional forms database as well.  At each APAR, Service Pack, or major upgrade – FormSync session needs to be run for each forms database.  After FormSync is run, testing needs to be repeated for each forms database.

VEITS Group Recommendation:
Start with one forms database.  You can always add another forms database later if a business need arises that dictates this.   If a unique business need does arise that leads you to believe a second forms database may be required, consider other options.  For example – if the modification for one of your sites consists of new forms or new reports, can you manage this in other sites by simply not giving those users permission to that form/report/or button.  Another great option is to have your code check the site before continuing.   Just be sure you weigh the cost of this minor complexity against the additional cost at every future modification and every future upgrade before blindly opting to add another forms database.

This simple recommendation could save you thousands of dollars over the years. For those of you with one forms database – what other ways have you used to manage multiple business site needs with a shared forms database?  For those of you with multiple forms databases – do you agree?  How would you advise a new SyteLine customer?