Three websites. One upgrade to TYPO3 12.
The websites of Heller Tools, Keil and the Tool Competence Group run on one shared TYPO3 installation. We upgraded this installation step by step from TYPO3 8.7 to TYPO3 12, adapting the product imports to the new version along the way. We have provided technical support for the three websites since August 2024.
A shared basis for different websites.
Heller Tools, Keil and the Tool Competence Group each have their own website with its own content and look. The Heller Tools website is available in several languages, some of them under separate country domains.
When we took over support, the installation was still running on TYPO3 8.7. The product sections are based on custom extensions, and the product data is brought in via imports. There was no up-to-date test system and no defined publishing process. Before the upgrade, we clarified with the previous agency how imports, extensions and forms fit together and what was no longer needed.
For support, the shared TYPO3 installation means that changes to shared extensions or templates have to be checked against every website affected.
Prepare once, check each website.
This is how we approached the upgrade to TYPO3 12, and it is how we handle later changes too. Preparation and testing take place separately from the live websites first.
Review the setup and dependencies
We document the extensions, imports and custom adaptations in use and check which websites are affected. Before the upgrade, we clarified open questions about the existing setup with the previous agency.
Prepare changes
We carried out the upgrade version by version in a local development environment, from TYPO3 8.7 through the intermediate versions to TYPO3 12, running the database migrations each time. Along the way, we converted the product extension's plugins to the TYPO3 12 structure. Later updates are also implemented there first.
Check affected websites
We check the impact on each website, including the affected features and views such as product views, product advisor and search.
Publish and re-check
After approval, the changes are published. We then check the affected features on the live websites.
Products and categories at a glance.
Import product data, keep product features working.
The Heller Tools product data comes in several languages from a PIM system run by another service provider. The Keil products come from a different source. Both are brought into the shared product structure via separate imports. The filter criteria for the product advisor and the assignment of products to catalogue pages are imported as well.
As part of the upgrade, we adapted both imports to TYPO3 12. They do not run automatically: we start them on request when new data is available. When making changes, we also check the product pages, product advisor and search, because what matters is that the existing features keep working as intended.
Shared technical maintenance, independent websites.
Updates to the shared TYPO3 installation and shared extensions can be applied centrally.
The individual websites keep their own domains, content and design. How much work a change involves depends on which components and websites are affected.
The project in numbers.
How we help with similar projects.
Supporting several TYPO3 websites together?
Do you run several websites and want to coordinate their technical support? We look at which foundations they share and what each website needs, and plan maintenance, testing and further development accordingly.
