Drupal 8 Features vs Configuration Management

With the introduction of configuration management in Drupal 8, we are left to wonder what to do about the Features module. Many developers have used this module for years, do we still need Features in Drupal 8? Let the debate begin!

Drupal Features provides a more streamlined means for Ad-hoc enabling/disabling, useful with multi-site or install profiles. It also gives you stronger organization, and most importantly, code portability between different projects.

Configuration management in Drupal 8 allows you to sync configuration across environments without a dependency on Features. We’ll talk about the differences between using config-only approach versus using Features to organize your configuration. We will demo each approach so that you can decide for yourself which workflow you will prefer.

Finally, we’ll give you some real world examples from Drupal 8 sites we’ve built and discuss what we’ve learned from those experiences.

Watch this short video to get a preview of our session.

Review the changes to the Features module in Drupal 8

• Give an overview of how configuration management works in Drupal 8
• Give a demo example of how to push changes from local to another environment using only Drupal 8 ‘sync’.
• Give a demo example of how to push changes from local to another environment using Drupal 8 features
• Talk in-depth about the use Pros and cons of using D8 config only vs Features to sync environments.
• Discuss real-world examples using both D8 Features & D8 config

Jay Callicott is a Director of Development for Mediacurrent and an enthusiastic Drupal developer for over 10 years. He is also the maintainer of the popular OpenChurch Drupal distribution.

Jay is an avid supporter and contributor to Drupal open source projects. Jay writes blogs on Drupal and has spoken at several Drupal events including a session on Marketing Automation at Drupalcon, Austin in 2014 and a Features-related session at NYC Camp in 2015.

Derek Reese is a self-directed full-stack developer experienced with enterprise software and pipeline development and has been working with Drupal since Drupal 5. Derek has experience speaking at both Drupal Camps and to private audiences. He’s helped present everything from new technology pipelines to film pitches.

Ryan Gibson sees himself as an adventurer and tinkerer and got his start in Drupal building small sites for businesses and nonprofits. He attended DrupalCon Denver and realized the open source community was truly unique. He is a co-host for the Mediacurrent Dropcast podcast, discussing and sharing the latest in Drupal tech and community news. He currently works as a developer at Mediacurrent.