# Improve docs on enabling app development

**URL:** <https://discourse.openondemand.org/t/improve-docs-on-enabling-app-development/322>\
**Category:** Feature Requests and Roadmap Discussion\
**Tags:** doc-request\
**Created:** [April 25, 2019, 5:34pm UTC](https://discourse.openondemand.org/t/improve-docs-on-enabling-app-development/322 "2019-04-25T17:34:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![mcuma](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/discourse.openondemand.org/mcuma/32/171_2.png) [@mcuma](https://discourse.openondemand.org/u/mcuma)\
**Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 5:34pm UTC](https://discourse.openondemand.org/t/improve-docs-on-enabling-app-development/322/1 "2019-04-25T17:34:32Z")

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We are resurrecting our OOD installation and I had trouble enabling the app development. Trying to follow [https://osc.github.io/ood-documentation/master/app-development/enabling-development-mode.html](https://osc.github.io/ood-documentation/master/app-development/enabling-development-mode.html), I have to admit that I found that document confusing and had to re-read it many times before finally getting it to work. So, I have a few suggestions on that.

- Itemize the three steps needed to enable the app development as subsections, and detail what needs to be done and what the options are under each subsection (e.g. for the app paths, either the 1.3 or 1.4 way).

- especially for the paths, make another sub-itemization separately for the 1.3 and 1.4 behavior, so one does not confuse the 1.3 behavior with the 1.4.

- Then have a separate subsection wrapped around the description of Table 7 = the global enablement of the apps development

- it is not clear if one needs to set OOD\_DEV\_APPS\_ROOT (and where this variable goes - presumably in the /etc/ood/config/apps/dashboard/env) AND also modify the nginx\_stage.yml appropriately). This needs some clarification too.

- it is not clear OOD\_DEV\_SSH\_HOST needs to be set if I set up the apps on the same OOD server itself. It sounds like in that case OOD\_DEV\_SSH\_HOST is not needed, but, then it should be listed as an “optional” step.

So, bottom line, I recommend itemize and reshuffle the document by first having 2 sub-sections of the necessary steps (the paths to the app\_root), and then discuss the optional steps (OOD\_DEV\_SSH\_HOST and the global app development enabling with OOD\_APP\_DEVELOPMENT).

Thanks,  
MC

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**Author:** ![efranz](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/discourse.openondemand.org/efranz/32/27_2.png) [@efranz](https://discourse.openondemand.org/u/efranz)\
**Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 7:03pm UTC](https://discourse.openondemand.org/t/improve-docs-on-enabling-app-development/322/2 "2019-04-25T19:03:51Z")

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Thank you for the feedback, will update the documentation. Already [an issue on GitHub](https://github.com/OSC/ood-documentation/issues/156) to track the work.

Is there any background to the reason why you shut down your OOD installation?

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**Author:** ![mcuma](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/discourse.openondemand.org/mcuma/32/171_2.png) [@mcuma](https://discourse.openondemand.org/u/mcuma)\
**Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 7:28pm UTC](https://discourse.openondemand.org/t/improve-docs-on-enabling-app-development/322/3 "2019-04-25T19:28:46Z")

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Thanks Eric. Wrt. the shutdown, you may recall our OOD broke with auto OS update in early January, we could not authenticate (used LDAP) and could not figure out what’s wrong.

We decided to start from the scratch, but it took some time to allocate resources to it. We ended up setting up an OOD-devel machine, put the Keycloak on, and then put Keycloak on our original (user-facing) OOD server, which has fixed the issues on that machine too.

In the meanwhile we have also rolled out a shorter walltime test partition which is ideal for the OOD interactive apps so I hope we’ll get more people using those.

The plan now is to do only occasional updates (both OS and OOD) on the user-facing server (lesson learned) and test updates and new features on the ood-test server.

Thanks,  
MC

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**Author:** ![efranz](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/discourse.openondemand.org/efranz/32/27_2.png) [@efranz](https://discourse.openondemand.org/u/efranz)\
**Post date:** [July 3, 2019, 5:33pm UTC](https://discourse.openondemand.org/t/improve-docs-on-enabling-app-development/322/4 "2019-07-03T17:33:48Z")

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@mcuma does [https://osc.github.io/ood-documentation/release-1.6/app-development/enabling-development-mode.html](https://osc.github.io/ood-documentation/release-1.6/app-development/enabling-development-mode.html) address your concerns?

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**Author:** ![westburg.2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/0ea827/32.png) [@westburg.2](https://discourse.openondemand.org/u/westburg.2)\
**Post date:** [May 26, 2022, 4:11pm UTC](https://discourse.openondemand.org/t/improve-docs-on-enabling-app-development/322/5 "2022-05-26T16:11:43Z")

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Closed on May 26, 2022, 4:11pm UTC