Upgrading an existing installation of Studio

Info: The information in this article only applies to the on-premise version of Studio, not to the cloud version.

This article describes the required steps for upgrading an existing Studio installation to a new version of Studio.

Before you start

Before upgrading, please read the Release Notes for any important changes or upgrade instructions. Verify this for all versions that were released after the version that you have currently installed.

Performing a minor upgrade of Studio

This involves the following steps:

1. Downloading the new files
2. Reviewing required and optional steps (before upgrading)
3. Upgrading Studio
4. Upgrading the Studio plug-in for Studio Server
5. (Optional) Upgrading the Desktop Application
6. (Optional) Creating Component Sets and assign them to Digital article templates
7. Reviewing optional steps (after upgrading)
8. Testing the installation

1. Downloading the new files

Download the new version of Studio and the Studio Server plug-in from the Software Release page (either the latest version or an intermediate version made available in an announcement).

2. Reviewing required and optional steps (before upgrading)

Depending on the version of Studio that you are upgrading from or to, some additional steps may be need to be performed.

Review the following information and implement when necessary.

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3. Upgrading Studio

Step 1. For reference purposes, access the configuration settings of your current Studio installation. Do this by opening the following file and copying the content to a temporary text file:

• <Studio Server path>/contentstation/config.js

Step 2. Remove Studio by removing the folder named 'contentstation' from the root of your Studio Server installation.

Step 3. Unzip the downloaded version of Studio and place the extracted folder named 'contentstation' in the root of your Studio Server installation.

Step 4. Open the following file and update the settings with the settings from the reference file created earlier:

• <Studio Server path>/contentstation/config.js

Caution: Do this by comparing the files to find the differences. You must not just copy your old configuration settings over the new ones as important modifications may have been made.

Step 5. Save the file.

4. Upgrading the Studio plug-in for Studio Server

Tip: To ease the upgrading process of the Studio plug-in, store all modified configuration settings in the config_overrule.php file of Studio Server instead of in the config.php file of the plug-in itself. This way, only the plug-in needs to be replaced without having to update its configuration file.

Step 1. (Optional, only when the settings are not stored in the config_overrule.php file) For reference purposes, access the configuration settings of your current Studio plug-in installation. Do this by opening the following file and copying the content to a temporary text file:

• <Studio Server path>/config/plugins/ContentStation/config.php

Step 2. Remove the currently installed Studio Server plug-in by removing the folder named 'ContentStation' from the following folder of your Studio Server installation:

• config/plugins

Step 3. Unzip the downloaded version of the Studio Server plug-in and place the extracted folder named 'ContentStation' in the config/plugins folder of your Studio Server installation.

Step 4. (Optional, only when the settings are not stored in the config_overrule.php file) Open the following file, update the settings with the settings from the reference file created earlier.

• <Studio Server path>/config/plugins/ContentStation/config.php

Caution: Do this by comparing the files to find the differences. You must not just copy your old configuration settings over the new ones as important modifications may have been made.

Step 5. Log in to Studio Server, access the Server plug-ins page and verify that the plug-in named 'Studio' is enabled (as indicated by a green icon). When a red icon is shown, click it to enable the plug-in.

5. (Optional) Upgrading the Desktop app

The Desktop application is used for setting up the communication between Studio and other applications and for controlling some of the features of the Desktop app itself.

When the Desktop app is already installed and a new version of the Desktop app is made available, the Desktop app can be updated with that new version.

Depending on how the Desktop app is configured, this update is installed automatically or needs to be done manually.

For more information, see Using the Desktop app of Studio.

Note: In Studio 11.90, the Desktop app has been renamed from 'Content Station Desktop app' to 'Studio Desktop app'. When upgrading from Studio 11.89 or lower with a copy of the Content Station Desktop app installed, uninstall / remove the Content Station Desktop app.

6. (Optional) Create Component Sets and assign them to Digital article templates

Component Sets control which components a user can make use of in the article, how these components look and how they work.

Component Sets are made available for a Digital article by assigning them to the template on which a Digital article is based when it is created.

Create as many Component Sets as needed and assign them to the Digital article template in which the set of components need to be available.

Note: When a Digital article is based on a template which does not have a Component Set assigned, the user is asked to choose one when the article is opened. Note that users may not be familiar (enough) with Component Sets to make a correct choice, so it is advised to add a Component Set to each Digital article template.

7. Reviewing optional steps (after upgrading)

Depending on the version of Studio that you are upgrading from or to and the features that you want to make use of, some additional steps may have to be manually performed after Studio has been installed.

Review the below information and implement where applicable.

Upgrading to Studio 11.100 or higher

• Using images in SVG format in a Digital article. Images in SVG format can be added to a Digital article as an image or as part of a slideshow. To make this work, the SVG format needs to be added to the file type mapping in the server on which Studio is run. For more information, see Configuration steps for using SVG images in Digital articles in Studio.

Upgrading to Studio 11.105 or higher

• Disabling user behavior tracking. WoodWing anonymously tracks user behavior within the application to get an insight into the features of the application that are used and how they are used. Analyzing this information makes it possible for WoodWing to improve the usability and performance of the application. Since Studio 11.105, tracking user behavior is also done through the integration of Mixpanel. The integration of Amplitude used in previous versions is still present but is marked as deprecated and is planned to be removed in a future version.

Tracking analytics via Mixpanel is enabled by default. Should the recording of analytics be disabled (for example because tracking is not allowed in your country for legal reasons), this can be done by disabling the 'Enable analytics' option in the Management Console via Features > General.

For more information, see User behavior tracking in Studio.

• Managing the Apps menu via the Management Console. Studio 11.105 has added the option to manage Apps that appear in the Apps menu via the Management Console. These include the default Apps such as the Publication Overview, Issue Manager, and Trash Can. The previous configuration via the config.js file is still available, but managing the configuration via the Management Console is quicker and more user friendly.

Should you have added custom applications to the Apps menu in the version of  Studio that you are upgrading from, consider managing them now via the Management Console. Use the settings from the config.js file of the previous installation of Studio to re-configure them. For details, see Adding Custom Applications to Studio.

Note that once managing the Apps menu is done through the Management Console, any configuration settings in the config.js file are ignored.

Upgrading to Studio 11.110 or higher

• Enabling the Digital editor through configuration. Since Studio 11.110, it is no longer required to enable the Digital editor by setting the 'CS_DIGITAL_EDITOR_ENABLED' option in the config_overrule.php file of Studio Server to true.

The Digital editor is automatically available for users who log in to Studio 11.110 or higher by using a Multichannel license (required for the use of the Digital editor).

If the 'CS_DIGITAL_EDITOR_ENABLED' option was configured in the config_overrule.php file, the option can now be removed.

Updating the Studio Chrome extension

• The Studio Chrome extension has been updated with support for the Google Chrome Web store manifest version 3. The Studio Desktop application is used for setting up the communication between Studio and other applications and for controlling some of the features of the Desktop app itself. Using the Desktop app and its features requires Google Chrome with the Desktop application extension installed.

The Google Chrome Web Store previously marked all extensions built with Manifest V2 to be deprecated or updated by end of the 2024. If a user navigated to the Chrome Web Store for extensions, they may have noticed a message stating “This extension may soon no longer be supported. Remove or replace it with similar extensions from the Chrome Web Store”.

The new release of the Studio Chrome extension, available since 22 November 2024, fully supports Manifest V3.

This impacts all Studio users who currently rely on the Studio Chrome extension to launch content in their native applications. This update has been sent to the Chrome store front. All users currently working with the Chrome extension should automatically receive the extension update. To double check that your extension is up to date, do the following;

Step 1. Navigate to your Chrome Extensions / Manage Extensions.

Step 2. Select Studio Desktop App Chrome Extension / Details.

Step 3. Check that the version number states Version 1.1.x.

Step 4. If your version number is below version 1.0 build 39, upgrade the extension.

Users who are reliant on Microsoft Edge extensions and allow Chrome extensions should also upgrade to the new Studio Chrome extension.

Note: Our browser extension is backwards compatible with the last 18 months of Studio Desktop app and Studio web client versions. If you are using an older version of the Studio Desktop app or Studio Web client, your functionality should continue to work, however we cannot guarantee that all scenarios have been tested. We encourage you to regularly upgrade your software to stay within the maintenance window.

Upgrading to Studio 11.211 or higher

• The Technology Preview version of the AI Assistant for the Digital editor has been replaced. A new version of the AI Assistant for the Digital editor has been released which fully replaces the Technology Preview version. In its first release, fewer options are available compared to the Technology Preview version. Over time, additional features are planned to be added.

The Technology Preview version made use of a reference article representing tone and style, as well as an Excel sheet for storing custom prompts. Although these are not used in the current version of the AI Assistant, this functionality is planned to be added at a later stage (subject to change). We advise therefore to keep hold of these files for when this functionality becomes available.

Upgrading to Studio 11.225 or higher

• Using the Copyfit prompt in the AI Assistant of the Print editor. A new prompt named Copyfit has been added to the Edit group, aimed for use in the AI Assistant of the Print editor. It is used for resolving overset text in Print articles that have been placed on a layout.

For customers who are already making use of the AI Assistant, this prompt is disabled and need to be enabled first in the AI Custom prompts builder of the Studio Management Console.

Upgrading to Studio 11.230 or higher

• AI Layout Automation: Support for breakout stories has been added. When automatically placing articles on a layout using the AI Layout Automation, breakout stories are supported. A breakout story is a small story embedded in another article with which it is very closely related.

To make this feature work, the following is required:

1. The AI Layout Automation Studio Server plug-in version 2.7.0 which is shipped with Studio 11.230, or any higher version of the plug-in. For installation instructions, see Setting up and configuring the AI Layout Automation feature in Studio.
2. Element labels created in InDesign. At a minimum label 'breakout', and optionally 'breakout-head' and 'breakout-intro'. Custom names can also be used for these labels.
3. The breakout element labels should be applied to the corresponding article components in the breakout story.
4. When a custom name is used for the breakout, breakout-head, and breakout-intro components, they should be mapped to the default breakout, head, and intro Element labels on the Element labels page in the AILA Management Console.
5. Dedicated Article Shapes containing breakout stories should be tagged, extracted, and uploaded.
6. Any Article Shapes containing breakout stories that were already uploaded need to be replaced; else they will indicate a breakout length of zero. Re-upload the Article Shapes and in the dialog that appears, choose 'Delete all current Article Shapes for the selected Brand and upload a new set to that Brand'.

Upgrading to Studio 11.231 or higher

• AI Layout Automation: Improvements have been made to the process of resolving overset or underset text by automatically adjusting frames. When using the Layout Automation feature to automatically place articles on a layout, some copyfit issues may still exist. One way of resolving this is by automatically resizing the frames on the layout in InDesign by using the Fit Article with AI (Responsive - quickest) option of the Layout Automation feature.

Various improvements have been made to this process which are included in the AI Layout Automation Studio Server plug-in version 2.8 which is shipped with Studio 11.231. For installation instructions, see Setting up and configuring the AI Layout Automation feature in Studio.

The Studio Server plug-in automatically updates the plug-in in InDesign on systems on which it is already installed when the user logs in to Studio Server in InDesign. InDesign then needs to be restarted to make use of the changes.

8. Testing the installation

Step 1. Access the Health Check page in Studio Server.

Step 1a. In the Maintenance menu or on the Home page, click Advanced. A page showing links to advanced Studio Server options appears.

Step 1b. Click Health Check. The Health Check page appears.

Step 2. Click Clear All to deselect all selected tests.

Step 3. Select the following tests:

• InDesign Server / CS Editor
• Studio

Step 4. Click Test.

The test results are displayed next to the test and should display OK.

Note: If the test fails, an error is displayed together with instructions for how to solve it. Follow the instructions to fix the issue and then run the test once more.

Step 5. Access Studio by entering the following URL in a Web browser:

<Studio Server URL>/contentstation

Example: http://127.0.0.1/StudioServer/contentstation

Step 6. Test the installation by performing tasks that are part of the daily workflow such as creating an article, checking-out a layout or image, and so on.

Step 7. (Optional, only when you are seeing unexpected results) Clear the Web browser cache, close the tab in which Studio is run and access it again.

Revisions

• 11 November 2026: Updated section 6 'Reviewing optional steps (after upgrading)' with steps for Studio 11.231.
• 29 October 2026: Updated section 6 'Reviewing optional steps (after upgrading)' with steps for Studio 11.230.
• 19 August 2026: Updated section 6 'Reviewing optional steps (after upgrading)' with steps for Studio 11.225.