Optimizely (Episerver) CMS
Episerver and Optimizely: Versions and Add-ons
Episerver was first launched in 1997 by Elektropost Stockholm AB. Since then, a lot has changed, and today Episerver is known as Optimizely.
DevCore has been a Gold Partner since 2014 and has worked with Episerver since version 5. We help businesses of all sizes with support, maintenance, upgrades, migrations, integrations, and further development for all versions of the Optimizely platform.
Below, you'll find a selection of both modern and legacy features, as well as available add-ons for different CMS versions of Episerver and Optimizely.
Need help with Optimizely or Episerver CMS?
We specialize in all versions—offering continuous support, maintenance, migration, upgrades, system integration, and further development.
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Embrace Next-Generation Web Technology with Optimizely CMS 12
Optimizely CMS 12, the latest iteration of the platform, offers numerous advantages. Built on ASP.NET Core, it ushers in the next generation of web technology, optimizing the handling of substantial data and traffic more efficiently. This enhancement leads to improved performance, faster page load times, and an enriched user experience, culminating in higher customer satisfaction.
Simplified for Editors and Admins – Streamlined for Developers
Optimizely CMS 12 introduces a significantly improved graphical interface for editors and a revamped admin interface, alongside various backend enhancements for developers. With this new version, hosting your website is no longer confined to Windows environments; ASP.NET Core's platform independence allows deployment across multiple platforms, including Linux and macOS. Explore more about its features and previous versions below.
Episerver Add-Ons
Episerver Commerce
Episerver Commerce is a robust solution for building comprehensive e-commerce platforms. It offers an intuitive interface for efficient inventory management and includes built-in support for personalized recommendations, such as bestsellers and new arrivals. This means developers can implement these features without starting from scratch.
Episerver Find
Episerver Find is a powerful search solution that enhances content discoverability across various content types, including pages, blocks, files, videos, images, product catalogs, and community content. It provides full-text search capabilities, supports property-based searches, and offers features like instant search and access-based result filtering. The system also allows for event-driven indexing and the inclusion of content from external systems, ensuring comprehensive and efficient search functionality.
Episerver Mail
Episerver Mail enables the creation and distribution of emails directly from page types within the CMS. Its user-friendly interface allows for easy editing of recipient lists and provides detailed statistics on email engagement, such as open rates and link clicks.
Episerver CMO
Episerver CMO offers tools to set up various measurement points on your website, allowing you to analyze visitor behavior effectively. It's particularly beneficial for campaign pages, enabling A/B testing to determine which page versions most effectively guide visitors to desired actions.
ImageVault
ImageVault is a robust image management tool that simplifies the organization and editing of visual assets. Users can create multiple "vaults" to categorize images and have the capability to resize and crop images directly within the platform, eliminating the need for external programs or multiple image versions.
Episerver Community and Relate
Episerver Community offers a suite of features designed to make your website more interactive and engaging for visitors. With Community, you can easily implement functionalities such as competitions, blogs, forums, personal user pages, and image galleries. In later versions of Episerver CMS, these features are integrated into Episerver Relate, which also includes Episerver Mail, providing a comprehensive solution for community-driven websites.
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Version Numbers Evolve More Frequently with Continuous Delivery
With the adoption of continuous delivery in Episerver, version numbers have begun to change more frequently. The transition from CMS 8 to CMS 9, for instance, is considerably smaller compared to the leap from CMS 6 to CMS 7.
In Episerver CMS 8, the "Projects" feature was introduced, enabling editors to create and manage extensive content—such as a campaign page with subpages—and preview it as if it were published. Once satisfied, they can publish all content simultaneously.
Episerver CMS 9 unveiled Episerver Forms, offering a completely new approach to form management, addressing longstanding requests for improvements over the previous XForms functionality.
Episerver CMS 7.5
Released in the winter of 2013, Episerver CMS 7.5 marked a significant shift in release management. Transitioning from batch releases of major changes, Episerver adopted a continuous delivery approach, enabling more frequent updates to meet the market's expectations for a modern CMS.
A notable enhancement in this version was the complete overhaul of the file system, streamlining file management for both developers and editors.
Additionally, starting with CMS 7.5, hosting pages on Microsoft Azure became feasible. This advancement eliminated the need for server-side installations of Episerver code, a requirement in previous versions where the admin interface resided on the C drive.
Features from Episerver CMS 7.5 Onwards
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Revamped File Manager: A completely new file manager that simplifies workflows for both editors and developers.
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Projects: Introduced in Episerver CMS 8, this feature allows editors to create and preview extensive content, such as campaign pages with subpages, before publishing everything live simultaneously.
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Episerver Forms: Launched with Episerver CMS 9, offering a new approach to form management, addressing previous limitations of XForms.
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Enhanced Editing Mode: Faster and more intuitive editing experience.
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Custom Property Types: Simplifies the creation of custom property types beyond the built-in options, such as PropertyList.
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No Server-Side Installation Required: Eliminates the need for installing EPiServer code on the server.
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Microsoft Azure Hosting Support: Enables hosting on Microsoft Azure platforms.
Episerver CMS 7
Released in October 2012, Episerver CMS 7 introduced a significant overhaul of the user interface. Recognizing that the average user accessed the system approximately once every two weeks, Episerver redesigned the editor interface to be more intuitive. This ensures that even infrequent users can easily understand and remember how to perform tasks. The enhanced On-Page Editing view allows editors to work directly on the page, providing immediate visual feedback.
Additionally, Episerver introduced "Blocks," a major advancement from the previous "Composer." This feature enables the creation of dynamic pages without the need to develop multiple similar page types, streamlining content management.
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Features of Episerver CMS 7
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Add-On Store: Easily download new updates and modules to extend functionality.
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Revamped Interface: Supports drag-and-drop for files and pages, auto-saving drafts, and more.
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Blocks: Facilitates the creation of reusable content components for dynamic page assembly.
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ASP.NET MVC Support: Enables building pages using the MVC framework.
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Responsive Design Support: Allows pages to render differently based on the visitor's device, whether mobile or desktop.
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Code-Based Content Types: Developers can define page types and blocks through code, eliminating the need for manual creation via the admin interface, thus saving time.
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Improved Linking in Edit Mode: Simplifies the process of sharing specific pages with colleagues or developers by providing direct links to the exact content being edited.
Episerver CMS 6
Released in March 2010, Episerver CMS 6 gained popularity among numerous companies and municipalities. This modern CMS offered a wide array of features and robust support for web editors. Notably, Episerver introduced On-Page Editing, allowing editors to modify content directly on the page—a feature that has since become standard. However, its initial implementation required significant developer effort to function optimally.
Additionally, Episerver introduced content personalization, enabling editors to easily configure content display based on factors like geolocation. The new "Dashboard" view, accessible via the OnlineCenter, allowed users to add various gadgets for an enhanced overview of the site. For instance, a gadget could list all pages that had been modified but not yet published.
Features in Episerver CMS 6
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Content Personalization: Editors can tailor content display based on user-specific factors, such as geolocation.
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On-Page Editing: Allows direct editing of content on the page, streamlining the editorial process.
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Dashboard with OnlineCenter: Provides a customizable interface with gadgets for improved site management and oversight.
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Cross-Browser Support: Extended compatibility beyond Internet Explorer to include other browsers.
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New HTML Editor (TinyMCE): Replaced older editors with TinyMCE, offering enhanced functionality and user experience.
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Auto-Save for Editor Changes: Automatically saves changes made by editors, reducing the risk of data loss.
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Enhanced Developer Flexibility: Developers gained greater freedom to create custom functions within the editing interface.
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GEO Positioning Support: Incorporated geolocation features to enhance content relevance based on user location.
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Live Monitor: Enabled real-time tracking of visitor movements on the site, providing valuable insights into user behavior.
Episerver CMS 5
Released in 2007, Episerver CMS 5 is built on Microsoft's .NET 3.0 platform. At its inception, it was a straightforward and user-friendly content management system (CMS). However, it lacked many features present in modern CMS platforms.
Episerver CMS 5 was widely adopted by various organizations. Over time, many have upgraded to newer versions, partly because the editor interface in CMS 5 doesn't support modern web browsers.
Features in Episerver CMS 5
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Composer: The predecessor to the current "Blocks" feature, allowing for modular content creation.
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Friendly URLs: Introduced user-friendly URLs for better readability and SEO.
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.NET 3.0 Foundation: Built on the .NET 3.0 framework, enhancing development capabilities.
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Enhanced XForms: Significant improvements from CMS 4, providing developers with greater control over form appearance and data handling.
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Updated Web Controls: Web controls used for page rendering received substantial updates compared to CMS 4.
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Improved Security: The CMS was relocated outside the web root directory, offering enhanced security benefits.
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New Report Center: Provided reports on published pages, broken links, and more.
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Content Channels: Facilitated easier integration with other systems, such as SharePoint.
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Image Editor: Allowed editors to resize and crop images directly within the CMS.