Review of Kentico CMS – An ASP.NET Platform
The Kentico CMS has been one of the most popular options for ASP.NET developers over the last few years. Through the Microsoft Web App Gallery, it has been downloaded more than 100,000 times and in May released its latest version, Kentico 5.5. They have been noted as an innovator in the CMS market for several years, however there are still a number of people who do not know much about it. Here is a look at what Kentico really has to offer.
1. Price
The first thing that most people want to know is how much Kentico costs. There are actually 4 different download options that are currently available. The first is the Free Edition, which comes with a free lifetime license. However, there are several limitations including: only 1000 pages, only 100 site members, only 1 administrator, and only 1 editor. Additionally, support is only available through the public forum. However, it has proven valuable for people who are creating smaller sites using the ASP.NET framework.
The two other options are a Base License for $1999 and the Ultimate License is $4999, both of which come with a free 30 day trial. The biggest difference between the Base License and the Ultimate License is that the Ultimate License includes: unlimited products (compared to a 100 product limit), unlimited forums (compared to 3), unlimited blogs (compared to 5). Additionally, the Base License does not include: user contributions, message boards, groups, friends, private messaging, staging, and web analytics. There are also more customized options including the Small Business License, Social Networking Package, and E-Commerce Package.
2. Features
The release of Kentico 5.5 brought forth some new features that were added to the CMS framework. These features include: Support for VS 2010 and .NET 4.0, Facebook Connect and Open ID authentication, support for mobile website creation, template scopes, improved paging, support for Bing and Yahoo maps, easy integration with Microsoft Sharepoint Server, and automatic MetaWeblog API interfacing, which allows editors (such as Windows Live Writer) to write blog posts.
Additional standard features include: flexible content hierarchy, customizable page templates, customizable RSS feeds, WYSIWYG editor, content locking, and much more
3. Standard Modules
Kentico is a module based CMS and there are a large number of modules that are included with every license, as well as others that are only included in specific licenses. Some of the most popular modules include: newsletter, custom tables, image gallery, booking system, forums, blogs, event calendar, media library, and content rating.
4. Potential Benefits of Using Kentico
Fast Development Process
Kentico utilizes the ready to use framework on ASP.NET, which eliminates the need for additional coding and manipulation. With all of the ready-made modules, there is less need for SQL query coding and ADO.NET coding. The modules (more than 1000) will take care of this during setup, which is only a few clicks.
All-In-One Development
Kentico was designed as an all-in-one content management system, which means that it features an unrestricted architecture and extensible development framework.
Seven Days Bug Fixes
Kentico offers a unique guarantee that could be extremely helpful. Any bug that is reported to them, within the software itself, will be fixed within 7 working days by the Kentico support team. This unique promise could be an example of how committed they are to their customers.
Built In Website Analytics
The website analytics that are included with the Kentico analytics were designed to not only track your website statistics, but also individual campaigns. This detailed information is very useful as you try to optimize your website for maximum results.
5. Potential Drawbacks of Kentico
Community
Compared to some of their ASP.NET CMS competition, Kentico has a small community, which means that the forums may be less reliable. This could become a problem, especially if you are using the free license because your only support is the forums.
Price
Some people simply do not want to pay a few thousand dollars for a complex CMS solution. As with all commercial CMS options, there will always be a debate over whether or not the CMS solution carries enough value over their open source competition to merit the financial investment.
3rd Party Components
There is some debate over whether or not this matters. Kentico offers a wide variety of additional components (WebParts) that can be used, however some developers prefer additional 3rd party options. This becomes a drawback only if you are unsatisfied with the components that Kentico has created. It is also important to note that you can create your own components using the open API.
Kentico in Review
Kentico is an ASP.NET content management system that has become much more popular over the past few years. They offer both free and commercial licenses; however there are a number features that are standard across every license. Kentico seems to be a leader in the ASP.NET CMS community and should continue to deliver a product that is consistently well-received.
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