I have been writing Sitecore blog posts since April 2006. The first ones were for Sitecore 4.2. Now, 13 years later, some of the old posts are still valid, while others are obsolete as the Sitecore API have changed.
But which ones will still work on a Sitecore 9 installation?
I have skipped articles on XSLT and very specific WebForms articles. Although XSLT and WebForms are still around and working, no new projects should be based on these technologies.
First the shortlist. These articles are top 10 reads:
- LinkManager – Working with URL’s in Sitecore 6
- Sitecore.Links.LinkManager and the context
- Sitecore: Setting up Security on Languages
- Multiple languages in Sitecore
- Run Sitecore scheduled task at the same time every day
- Sitecore Image Parameters
- Create and publish items in Sitecore
- Sitecore Links with LinkManager and MediaManager
- Sitecore Virtual Users – authenticate users from external systems
- Sitecore Scheduled Tasks – Run on certain server instance
This is the list of all articles not specifically written for Sitecore 9 but the code still works. There are almost 60 articles not Sitecore 9 based, but still relevant:
2006
- Sitecore 5.2: Copy from one language to another
yes, you still copy languages this way
2008
- Get Media Item file size
you can still get the size of a media in the media library this way
2009
- Creating items from branches in Sitecore
still holds water - Sitecore: Linking to Sitecore editor from an .aspx page
this is still how you open the Sitecore shell from code. - Sitecore: Assigning Security to items from code
although IdentityServer for Sitecore 9.2 is sneaking in, you can still assign security this way - LinkManager – Working with URL’s in Sitecore 6
one of my most read articles. The linkmanager have evolved slightly, but the basis still holds up - Adding a file to the Sitecore Media Library programatically
you can still add a media file this way - Using declarative security in Sitecore
security nerds will find this interesting - Sitecore.Links.LinkManager and the context
is the most read article ever - Sitecore 6 Validators
yes, validators are still validators, even today
2010
- Kicking users from Sitecore
this is slightly obsolete, but can still be used - Deleting items to recycle bin in Sitecore
still holds water - Parameters in Sitecore Pipelines
my favorite part of Sitecore, pipelines, have not changed much. - XAML (SheerUI) dialog in Sitecore 6.3.x
SheerUI is on the way out, but the Sitecore shell is still based on SheerUI, so this is still the way to go - Sitecore Large Gallery Button
yes, the button can still be created this way - Sitecore web.config include files (auto-include)
although you do no longer patch the web.config, patching Sitecore config files is still based on include files - Unlock sitecore items
still holds up - Create your own ContentEditorWarnings in Sitecore
yellow warnings are still created using the getContentEditorWarnings pipeline - Sitecore: Setting up Security on Languages
a classic post. I still use this - Mastering the Sitecore Fields collection
yes still used - Multiple languages in Sitecore
another classic that I use today - Removing dead masters from Sitecore
the Sitecore PowerShell probably have this built in nowadays
2011
- Using the Sitecore Audit Log
audit logs are still around - Adding YouTube Videos to the Sitecore Rich Text field
today we would probably just create a YouTube component, but it is still possible to add content to the Rich Text Field dynamically this way - Run Sitecore scheduled task at the same time every day
a classic and a must read - Sitecore Publish Queue
for users of the classic publishing - Sitecore Validators: Validating image width, height and aspect ratio
validators are still validators - Replacing mediaitems in Sitecore
you can still call GetMedia and SetStream on medias - Initial field values for Sitecore – Setting a default future date
the expandinitialfieldvalue pipeline is still going strong - Sitecore Image Parameters
another classic - Create and publish items in Sitecore
another one of my most read articles
2012
- Sitecore Users and C#
i still use this to see how to get users and login - Sitecore Links with LinkManager and MediaManager
a top 5 article. Links are still complicated for many new developers - Open Media Library from Sitecore Page Editor
the page editor is now called the experience editor. This does not change the basics of this trick - Edit hidden fields in Sitecore page editor
iStern must be credited for this trick that can still be used - Using Sitecore Jobs
the jobs system is still very powerful and very useful - Sitecore.Diagnostics.Assert statements
look at the Sitecore code, and see how often the Asserts are used tells you that this feature is not going away
2013
- Merge Sitecore layout details using XmlDeltas
merging layouts was a huge new feature back in 2013 - Avoid the use of Sitecore.Context.Item
with highly componentized pages, it is very likely that the context points to the wrong component - Custom rules and conditions for Sitecore personalization
the code still holds water, even if the configuration have changed - Sitecore allow email adress as user name
the use of IdentityServer in Sitecore 9.2 will probably soon change this paradigm. For now it will still work
2014
- Sitecore Job Viewer – see what Sitecore is doing in the background
sitecore took my code and built their own job viewer. To see the original, look here - Sitecore EventQueue deadlocks – how to solve them and how to avoid them
I hope that in the future this issue will go away - Measuring Sitecore performance with HighResTimer
a nifty performance measuring trick - Improve Sitecore Membership provider performance 2-20 times
IdentityServer for Sitecore 9.2 will eliminate this issue - Sitecore users custom profile properties
again, IdentityServer will eliminate this trick very soon - Unable to serialize the session state. In ‘StateServer’ and ‘SQLServer’ mode
beware when switching from SQL Server sessions. - Stream Sitecore media items to HttpResponse
you can still stream Sitecore media items this way - Sitecore.Data.ID The call is ambiguous – Sitecore.Data.ID
has not changed
2015
- Sitecore Virtual Users – authenticate users from external systems
I still use this article when creating virtual users - Sitecore 8 ServerTimeZone – my dates are all wrong
apparently developers still run into this issue - Sitecore Transfer items from one database to another
yes, GetOuterXML on an item still works
2016
- Sitecore custom cache that is cleared on publish
I still use this trick in production - Sitecore Scheduled Tasks – Run on certain server instance
still running like this in production - Sitecore Publishing – Programmatically determine if item should be published
yes of course this still works - Sitecore Event Queue – How to clean it – and why
some day my friends this issue will be solved. Some day… - Sitecore Measure Pipeline performance and profile processors
ahh pipelines, my favorite tool - Sitecore Advanced Configuration in .config files
yes config files can be read like this as today - Sitecore get host name from a different context
the concept of context is still valid
2017
From 2017, Sitecore 9 was the standard, and I started writing articles on Sitecore 9. All articles from 2017 and forward will help you in Sitecore 9 development.
Brian Pedersen's Sitecore and .NET Blog 