How Drupal Works: An Architect's Overview
Under the HoodTechnical details: Study servers, Drupal core, module building, and more.
Over the past decade, Drupal has grown from a hobbyist's side project to a world-class CMS framework. For those just joining the party, though, finding information about its design, architecture, and development philosophy can be difficult. Most information exists in API-specific silos, while birds-eye-view introductions focus on site builders rather than developers and architects.
This session will provide a high-level overview of Drupal's major architectural components, common development patterns, and key subsystems. More importantly, it will explain how these pieces fit together, what the current points of pain are, and where change is likely to happen in the future. In addition, we'll look at how "The Way Things Are" came to be, covering important events in Drupal's architectural history.
Whether you're an architect overseeing a Drupal project, a developer coming to the Drupal world after working with other frameworks, or an existing Drupal developer looking to get the big picture, this session will help put you on the right track.
Experience: Intermediate, Advanced, Expert
Industry: education, entertainment, library, marketing, media, non-profit
Industry: education, entertainment, library, marketing, media, non-profit
Submitted by JCL324 on February 17, 2010 - 9:48am.
I was just asking the other day if there were any books on this very topic! I understand many of the "parts" but want the 10,000 foot view. I'd really like to understand too the Drupal bootstrap process, what all happens when you hit the main URL and before you actually see the home page displayed.
Submitted by skyredwang on March 1, 2010 - 12:20pm.
OMG, this is a must-attend session.
Submitted by dasjo on April 28, 2010 - 11:51pm.
For me, this would be great. I've been working with Drupal for a few years, but I learn as I go. Getting a high level perspective after being in the trenches for so long, would be helpful.