Experimental project

This is a sandbox project, which contains experimental code for developer use only.

Distribution Installer provides the option to install any of multiple Drupal distributions.

This is an installation profile and needs to be put in /profiles in order to work.

Using Distribution Installer

  • Download Drupal core.
  • Download Distribution Installer and add it to the /profiles directory.
  • Make the /profiles directory writable by the web server.
  • Install the site as usual, selecting which distribution to install when the relevant screen is presented.
  • Ensure the /profiles directory is no longer writable by the web server.

How it works

At install time, Distribution Installer presents a screen showing multiple Drupal distributions available for install. When one is selected, its packaged files are downloaded and extracted to the 'profiles' directory. Then the install process is passed over to that distribution.

Which distributions are included?

Currently, the following distributions are included:

Drupal 7 version

Drupal 8 version

  • OpenChurch (included for demonstration purposes, as one of the first working Drupal 8 distributions).

Inclusion criteria

To be included in Distribution Installer, a distribution must meet the following criteria:

  • Drupal core is neither patched nor forked. This requirement is necessary because only the install profile and its subdirectories are added to the install.
  • The distribution has a stable release in its current Drupal 7 or Drupal 8 recommended branch.
  • The distribution is well maintained. For example, there is a track record of promptly releasing new versions as needed to address security issues.
  • There is at least some minimal level of adoption--ideally, at least 50 sites as shown through drupal.org statistics.
  • The distribution maintainers are committed to updating the relevant file in Distribution Installer whenever a new stable release of their distro is available.

To suggest a distribution, please open a feature request issue on the project.

Similar projects

  • Configuration Installer for Drupal 8 is an installation profile that takes over the Drupal installer and allows sites to be created from existing configuration.

Related core issue: #2114713: Enable installation of distribution (install profile) at install time and provide curated list of available distros.

Supporting organizations: 
Chocolate Lily
Drutopia

Project information