Academy of Model Aeronautics Takes Flight in Drupal 8

The goals of the project were to ensure that the content issues were addressed, enable users to find information quickly and easily, and masterfully integrate with netFORUM. To that end, we created a strategy and embarked on the Drupal 8 project.

Front-end Design

The custom templates and paragraphs module allowed for maximum “client-controlled” flexibility in page layouts and content to allow AMA staff to re-use block areas and customize content across the website without creating inconsistencies. We used Page Manager and Panels to create a clean and inviting design that allows users to easily find clubs and events, watch videos, read news, donate, join the organization, and have much more interaction with AMA.

Back-end Development

Given the depth and complexity of the website features, we utilized a number of custom and contributed modules to create the capabilities AMA required to best serve their members and potential members. For the search functionality, we used Search API Solr Search + Views to create the club/flying site finder and event calendar capabilities using netFORUM data to display details and maps which allow users to filter/search/sort by many variables. Geo search was implemented so that users are able to filter results by distance or around certain locations to get the most customized results possible. We created many multi-step custom forms for joining, renewing, donating, applying for a sanctioned event, managing club rosters, and more using the Drupal 8 Form API which is a consistent and efficient way to produce and process forms in a module. The site also pulls in various RSS feeds for videos and news using Feeds, Feeds Tamper, and Feeds Ex modules.

Integration/Migration

There were many features that relied on legacy content and data needing to be migrated from the previous site, which was a Microsoft ASP.NET-based custom CMS, so we used the Migrate module API which is part of the Drupal 8 core. Roles and permissions are based on deep integration with netFORUM which pulls membership information, and special designations allow access to content and features in a very sophisticated and detailed way. As well, users can perform various membership- and club-related tasks based on their history with AMA. This custom designed and developed solution assigns roles to users when they log into Drupal based on their current membership and designations and is updated near real-time. New Target developed, among others, a D8 version of the netFORUM Authentication module which was Drupal 7-only to help facilitate the SSO between Drupal and netFORUM so that users have a seamless experience joining a club, managing a club roster as an officer, getting an event sanctioned and insured, and renewing their membership.

For the netFORUM integration, we used the netFORUM xWeb API extensively. The integration depended on fully syncing the netFORUM data with Drupal in near real-time, so if an object is updated in netFORUM, we also pull that update into Drupal for use in the various features. Since there are over 2,000,000 records that need to be synced, the solution had to be implemented to gracefully accommodate timeouts or failures in the website, so, we used Queue API to serve AMAs users’ needs best. Users can manage all of their profile information from Drupal, and if they make changes to their personal information, the changes are pushed back to netFORUM in real-time. Also, users are able to start a purchase process for memberships and subscriptions for themselves or other users from Drupal and continue the checkout and payment process on eWeb. The system is highly interactive and integrated with netFORUM, to say the least.