Sitecore is a mature multi-tenant DXP, which allows hosting multiple websites in a single instance. In fact one of my past clients ran over 200 websites in a single Sitecore environment! While it sounds impressive, it takes careful planning and governance to allow multiple websites coexist in the same instance. Although Sitecore provides the capability, it is up to the tech teams to make sure things run smoothly.

The following challenges usually arise in the shared environment:

1. A technical issue on a single website affecting other websites
2. Sitecore configuration fails to fit all hosted websites
3. A high-traffic website is affecting performance of other websites by consuming all allocated resources (spikes in traffic may also present similar issues)
4. Poor communication between teams may lead to conflicts and delays in releases
5. Lack of common standards makes the environment more expensive to maintain

This section aims to help mitigating these risks. Every company will have a different set of what I like to call the “Good Neighbor Rules” for all teams sharing a single Sitecore instance to follow that is tailored towards their specific circumstances. This section will cover a set of practices, a check list, if you wish to consider including in your list of rules, as well as separate posts about strategies around organizing governance, communication, security, mitigating power and autonomy struggles of teams sharing a single Sitecore instance.

Table of Contents

1. Good Neighbor Rules – set of foundational rules for happy living in a shared Sitecore environment
2. Governance in Sitecore Projects – considerations for creating governance over a shared Sitecore instances
3. Who Owns a Shared Sitecore Instance (coming soon) – considerations for managing levels of control and team autonomy in a shared Sitecore environment