Setup the project

After you install Sitefinity CMS, create your project, and activate your license, you must open it in a browser to set it up.

The Project Startup wizard appears in a web browser.

1. In Set Database radio buttons group, choose one of the following:
   • Microsoft SQL Server Express
     The Instance input field appears, where you can enter a different instance of the SQL Server Express.
     Sitefinity CMS creates a database file in the App_Data folder of the new project.

     NOTE: If you do not have an SQL Server Express installed on your computer, you can download it from Microsoft's SQL Server Downloads page.

   • Microsoft SQL Server
     You must have Microsoft SQL Server installed and the appropriate database security credentials.
     For more information, contact your system administrator.

     NOTE: If you want to install your project to Microsoft Azure, select Microsoft SQL Server to work locally. Later, you will migrate the local database to Azure SQL. For more information, see Deploy projects to Azure App Services.

   • Oracle
     Select this option if you are installing your project on Oracle database. For more information, see Use Oracle or Oracle XE database.
   • MySQL
     You must have created a database and the have the appropriate database credentials.
     For more information about the supported MySQl versions, see System requirements
     By default, MySQL installs with 100 connections. We recommend that you do not decrease this number.

     IMPORTANT: If you want to use MySQL, you can have multilingual scenarios only in split tables mode. Fore more information, see Administration: Persist multilingual fields in separate tables for each language.

     NOTE: If your website is going to use non-Latin characters, you must verify that the MySQL Server option default-character-set is set to utf8. You can do this during the installation process or, on a later stage, by editing the my.ini file, which, by default, is located in C:\Program Files\MySQL\MySQL Server VERSION\.

     IMPORTANT: If you want Sitefinity CMS to manage the database, the account you are using must have a minimum set of permissions to:
     

     • Create and modify the database schema
     • Create and modify the database components (tables and view)
     • Perform all CRUD operations

     If you selected Microsoft SQL Server or MySQL, you must have the following permissions:

     • If you want Sitefinity CMS to create the SQL database, than the account you are using to connect to your SQL server must have create database permissions.
       For Microsoft SQL Server the application pool identity should be assigned as db_owner for the Membership and DB schema as it should perform all CRUD operations, including "create" and "drop" (creating/deleting using Sitefinity CMS backend GUI custom fields, custom modules or upgrading). For MySQL the user must have CREATE DDL Right.
     • If you want to connect to an already existing database, the user that you are using to authenticate on the SQL server must have permissions to read and write to tables and to alter the database schema.
       For Microsoft SQL Server the user must be assigned to db_datareader, db_datawriter, and db_ddladmin database roles and for MySQL the user must have Object Rights – Select, Insert, Update, Delete and DDL Rights – Alter, Index.
     If you selected Oracle database, your account must have the respective roles or permissions that enable Sitefinity CMS to complete the actions, listed above.
2. Click Continue button.
3. On Register Administrator step, enter the name and the email of the project’s administrator and choose a password.
   This is the first user created, who has unrestricted rights for the project.

   NOTE: Sitefinity CMS passwords must be at least 7 characters long and is recommended to contain at least one number and one special character, for example, admin@3.

4. Click I’m done button.
   The Login screen appears.
5. Enter the email and the password, which you have chosen in Step 4 and click Login.
   For more information, see Login.