#Sitecore Hackathon 2026 : 24 Hours of Adventures

March 9, 2026 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

I think I lost track of how many hackathons I have participated in. Each one is different win or lose. This year’s was no exception. Although I was doing this solo I had AI helping me when needed for the first time. It was great to get the additional help. No AI is not replacing developers. However as developers though we need to embrace it as an another tool.

The following were this year’s categories.

1. Best Marketplace App for Sitecore AI – Build something publishable. Not just a demo.

2. Applied AI Within the Sitecore Execution Pipeline – Demonstrate how AI can be embedded within Sitecore execution flows to improve quality, governance, personalization, or performance.

3. Best Tool Supporting Sitecore Development (Not Built on Sitecore)

I chose 1. Because for quite a while I had an idea of a great marketplace app. It would be similar to something I did in the content hub, but with the flexibility of a marketplace app I could do more. To premise this I think it is important for SEO considerations for websites, but more importantly is accessibility. I recently did training for accessibility. It was very eye opening and I learned a lot of things I did not consider before. So my goal was to make something useful for strategists, marketers and content editors. Here is kind of how it went. Comic strip created by AI.

Hour by Hour

Here is a good breakdown of the hours spent. I think I am finally caught up with sleep although daylight savings time did not help.

1-4 Make sure access rights is working in the repository and get the marketplace starter kit. Merge the code needed into my repository.

5-8 Got things working, but not sure if it is good enough. I think the SEO suggestions should also include accessibility checking and suggestions.

9-10 Worked with AI to help me structure my code better. While doing this it knew what I was doing somehow and offered me suggestions to add the app to help with what I wanted to accomplish.

11-14 Looking good and got things working. I really like how it turned out.

15-24 Off and on getting documentation right and making sure I didn’t miss anything. Made a few last minute changes to the documentation and code.

What I Discovered

No matter the plan and the idea you have there is always something you will encounter that might derail them. I have used OpenAI before in React components, but not in a marketplace app. I had to learn how to incorporate it so it would work within the marketplace. It also had to be much cleaner. No POC, it needed to work.
Ok got things working, but let’s face it you need something that stands out. I wrote down all the stuff I wanted to add. Being solo has its drawbacks because you don’t have a human to bounce ideas off of. So I decided to use AI to bounce some questions off of. It was like having a virtual partner. I wasn’t so lonely anymore. 🙂
Structuring your code is important. I am coming from an MVC background so there is some differences in my opinion on how you should structure the code. Similar to going from one car to another. They are both cars, but two different cars.
AI can help you document and format your code. This is definitely something that helps make sure things are clean and documented. Always double check comments are correct though.
The single most important thing is know your audience. Not every app is for you. I had to think how someone who would be using this would want to use this. It needed to be helpful and really add some value.

The Big Reveal

So here is the big reveal. Screenshot and video below. I chose to do a panel app that appears in the page editor. Using AI SEO suggestions were generated along with accessibility issues.

So it was a great relief getting something handed in on time. I don’t know what the results will be, but I feel like lessons learned is the most important win you can have. I got know something I plan to use more in the future. AI is here. A great tool when you need help.

Rethinking #Sitecore Content Hub: Dissecting an External React Component

February 27, 2026 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

In my previous blog I talked about how to get started with external components. One of my goals when utilizing them was to be able to take data from an asset and use that in a component. The possibilities you can do are endless. I am going to dive into an example of a working component that will receive a value from CH and display it.

Let’s start with the following. In this example we will see files with the .tsx extension.They are typescript files that contain JSX syntax.

Starting with the clientExample.tsx you will see the following code. See comments in the code for a breakdown of what the syntax does.

//Helper Libraries
import { entityLoadConfigurationFromOptions } from "@/lib/data/dataHelpers";
import type { IModuleProps } from "@/lib/types";
import { useEffect, useMemo, useState } from "react";

//Sets the property and value that will be received. In this case you can send any property value as long as it is a string.
export type ClientExampleConfig = {
  propertyName: string;
};

export default ({ createClient, config, options }: IModuleProps<ClientExampleConfig>) => {
  const [propertyValue, setPropertyValue] = useState<string>();

//The createClient is provided by the Content Hub to communicate with the component.
  const client = useMemo(createClient, [createClient]);

//This code will only load the configured property. Important not to load everything for better performance.
  const loadConfiguration = useMemo(() => entityLoadConfigurationFromOptions({ properties: [config.propertyName] }), [config.propertyName]);

//Fetches the entity. When the entity changes the model loads. Gets the property value and stores it in state.
  useEffect(() => {
    (async () => {
      if (!client || !loadConfiguration || !options.entityId) setPropertyValue(undefined);
      else {
        const entity = await client.entities.getAsync(options.entityId, loadConfiguration);
        setPropertyValue(entity?.getPropertyValue(config.propertyName) as string);
      }
    })();
  }, [client, options.entityId]);

//This displays the property value. This part should look somewhat familiar as it uses HTML.
  return (
    <dl>
      <dt>{config.propertyName}</dt>
      <dd>{propertyValue ? propertyValue : <em>Not set</em>}</dd>
    </dl>
  );
};

Tying this together with the index.tsx you will see the following code. See comments in the code for a breakdown of what the syntax does.

//Uses a helper library to create
import createModule from "@/lib/createModule"; 
//Imports the React component and adds the configuration type it expects.
import ClientExample, { ClientExampleConfig } from "./clientExample"; 

//These lines bring it all together to create the module.
export default createModule<ClientExampleConfig>(
props => <ClientExample {...props} />
 );

As I would suggest to everyone Storybook is a powerful tool that I highly recommend to test components. Let’s take a look at clientExample.stories.tsx.

//Defines component story and variations.
import type { Meta, StoryObj } from "@storybook/react";
//Defines the configuration.
import ClientExample, { ClientExampleConfig } from "./clientExample";
//Helpers that simulate Content Hub behavior.
import { CreateMockEntity, CreateMockModuleProps, CreateMockQueryResponse, MockApiHandler, MockBaseUrl, MockEntityId, MockRoutes } from "@/lib/mockData";

//MSW = Mock Service Worker
//Intercepts HTTP calls in the browser and replace it with a mocked responses.
import { http, HttpResponse } from "msw";

//These can be set to whatever values you want to test.
const mockedPropertyName = "title";
const mockedPropertyValue = "Hello World!";

//Registers the story and supplies the default props.
const meta = {
  title: "Modules/Client Example",
  component: ClientExample,
  args: {
    ...CreateMockModuleProps<ClientExampleConfig>({ propertyName: mockedPropertyName }),
    options: {
      entityId: MockEntityId,
    },
  },
  tags: ["autodocs"],
} satisfies Meta<typeof ClientExample>;

export default meta;
type Story = StoryObj<typeof meta>;

//Defines the story
export const Default: Story = {
  parameters: {
    msw: {
      handlers: [
        MockApiHandler,
        http.post(MockRoutes.entities_by_query.href, () => {
          const entity = CreateMockEntity({ [mockedPropertyName]: mockedPropertyValue });
          return HttpResponse.json(CreateMockQueryResponse([entity]));
        }),
      ],
    },
  },
  args: {},
};

As stated in my previous blog the title and any asset property can be passed into a React component as you see below.

For this however we will run a quick test in Storybook from the command line in the project (npm run storybook;). You can see the results below:

Wrapping Up

I always like to give people the basics when it comes to getting started. I hope this answers some of your questions on the structure of a React component and how it is used with Sitecore’s Content Hub. Let me know if you have any questions. You can also refer back to my previous blog. Now boldly go and create some new external React components!

Sitecore Content Hub React External Components

Getting Started Enhancing the #Sitecore Content Hub with External React Components

January 30, 2026January 29, 2026 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / 1 Comment

One of the things I like about the Content Hub is there is so many ways to customize it. Last year I wanted to be able to call an API and display data on assets. It was suggested to use React Components. It has been over a year of using them and doing some really cool things with them. I have presented what I learned at several meetups. With this blog I want to show how you can get started using them.

Why Use Them?

With all the customization you can do the with the content hub why would external components be needed? The answer is simple. So you can extend the functionality of the content hub and utilize external resources in doing so. The possibilities are endless as you can create some really cool things with React components. In this blog I will go over external component creation at a higher level. In future blogs I will showcase more detailed code.

Storybook

As I started the React components journey I learned how to implement and use Storybook. I believe this is a critical tool as it allows you test React components without actually integrating with the systems you are using them with. In the screenshot below you can see a list of components I used Storybook to test and what an example screenshot looks like.

Basic Structure

I will keep this simple and show you how a simple React component would work. Keep in mind this is part of a starter kit I used and had a lot of things setup already. I simply had to create the component. I will link to the starter kit in this blog post.

Let’s start with the structure. In this case we will have three different files.

The index.tsx file is what brings this together. You will use this import libraries and call the tsx file which typically contains the output.

As you see below this tsx file simply exports HTML. You can do many things in this file such as call an API and import data. The data then can be used in an HTML document you return.

The stories.ts file is use to run with storybook. You can use it to not only call the react component, but you can pass parameters as well.

When this is run in Storybook you will see the following output.

In the links (Example Repositories and Starter Kits) section in this blog to get you started you can navigate to the documentation on how to create bundles. You will need these in order for the Content Hub to run your code. It is basically a compiled JS file with all of your code and libraries needed.

Hosting vs Uploading Bundle

In order for content hub to use your React component you will need to make a bundle. There are instructions in the starter kit to do this that I will link to in this blog. After you do create the bundle you can choose to upload it as an asset to content hub or host it in your own website.

For hosting the bundle you can have the content hub host it by uploading it as a portal asset. You can find the link to Portal assets under the settings.

You can upload your bundle with different versions as needed.

Under pages I will usually add the bundle there.

When clicking on an external component such as SimpleReact you will see the following.

From asset will allow you to link to the page assets in the content hub. Using the From path will allow you to link to a website hosted bundle.

I will talk about this more in a future blog. In the object section you can pass properties from the content hub to your React component. This is very powerful as it allows you to interact with the asset.

I will get into the more advanced external components later, but here are some simple ones on the asset pages rendering.

Example Repositories and Starter Kits

Below you will find different links to get started making your now React external components for the content hub. I will dive into more detail of some of the more complex ones I created in future blogs.

Here is a video of me presenting what is in this blog at the Columbus Sitecore user group.

Wrapping Up

This blog should help you get started. I will dive into more details in future blogs. Let me know in the meantime if you have any questions.

#Sitecore Symposium 2025 Day 3

November 6, 2025 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

I realize the Symposium is over and I am little behind. I need a little recovery time after the party at Universal so had to wait until I was home to do this one. It didn’t help the Wi-Fi was really bad at the hotel so not all my photos were synced yet across my Apple devices. I will have a Symposium recap with what is coming out in the near future. For now here is Day 3 in photos.

The presentation on .NET Core in DXP was a great surprise and looking forward it. Many clients are just not ready for SaaS.

Great presentation on customizing a Marketplace app with a traditional XM marketplace module.

Now for one of my favorite parts. The Hackerspace! This was so fun and I am excited to show my team.

Scored some cool swag.

Ended the day at Universal Studios.

There is probably something else I am forgetting, but I will remember later.

#Sitecore Symposium 2025 Day 2

November 4, 2025November 5, 2025 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

Let’s just start with SitecoreAI. The announcement for SitecoreAI was a big one. Bringing all the products together is a great idea that I think will make things much easier for everyone. I can’t wait to see it in action. So here is day 2 in pictures with some captions.

Starting with big announcement.

I will admit I never heard of Savannah Bananas. Now I am a fan. One of the best presentations I have ever heard. I like what he said about “listening carefully and responding creatively”.

Learned that you can do ASP.NET Core for XM Cloud. Maybe a choice in the future.

Wellspan’s Journey with their Sitecore partner was really impressive. A great learning experience.

Random pictures.

#Sitecore Symposium 2025 Day 1

November 3, 2025 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

First day of the Sitecore Symposium. The MVP summit and partner connect took place. I attended the MVP summit and had a fun time as always. I am excited about the new announcements. I can’t tell you what the announcements are just yet. Believe me when I say you will be excited about what is to come when you hear them too. So here are some pictures from the first day.

Tamas has been a staple of the MVPs. He will be missed, but looking forward to seeing him in a future Symposium.

It’s the Robs! Just getting started with the pics since there are so many Robs in the Sitecore community.

Seaworld did not disappoint.

I can’t wait for day 2.

#Sitecore Symposium 2025 – Highlights of what I am Excited About #sitecoresym

October 28, 2025November 28, 2025 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

Always excited about this time of year, because the symposium brings a lot of new announcements and energy. As someone who has attended several symposiums, here is my list of what I am excited about.

To kick things off I plan on attending the general announcements.
- Next is Now – Eric Stine the CEO of will be discussing the current state of the market. Hearing from the CEO always starts on a positive note.
- CMO Michelle Boockoff-Bajdek will set the week of what to look ahead to.
AI – This of course it is hot topic and there will be many presentations to attend for it. My advice is find the one you are interested in, but also try something out of your comfort zone. Here are some of the ones I am looking at.
- Sitecore’s AI roadmap: How agentic frameworks will transform digital experience – Mo Cherif
- Unleashing AI innovation: the latest features in Sitecore Stream for Platform DXP – Marcus Heath and Ivan Brygar
- How Sitecore’s AI features can supercharge the five stages of the content lifecycle –
  Robert McGovern
- Zero-click killed the SEO star: Optimizing content for an AI-first audience with GEO – Brandon Bruno
Networking – Always good to see the people that you interact throughout the year in person. It is also an opportunity to make some new connections. I am excited to get to attend the parks with the MVP and Sitecore community.
Looking at the agenda, I like to attend non-technical presentations that I feel are beneficial to RBA and our clients. Here are some of the presentations I plan on attending.
- Designing inclusive experiences for everyone: Build a better journey map on Sitecore -Kelsey Lindell and Megan Mueller Jensen
- Creating the copilots your marketing will actually thank you for – Vasiliy Fomichev and Martin Miles.
New knowledge for developers. – As a developer we never stop learning. I am excited to attend presentations that will help me grow as a developer. Using the knowledge I gain I can show to my colleagues and bring new ideas to my clients. Here are just some of the technical presentations I am looking forward to.
- Ready, set, launch: Running ASP.NET Core XM Cloud sites in production – Rob Earlam
- Cutting Sitecore development time by up to 80% with AI – Rajitha Khandavalli and Kevin Suarez
- Rethinking data modeling in the new content platform – Andrew Liu and Liz Nelson
- Migrating an XM/XP module to XM Cloud Marketplace – Erica Stockwell-Alpert
- You’ve been asking, and we’ve been listening: .NET is coming to platform XM/XP – Vignesh Vishwanath and Maxim Sidorenko
Sitecore Run – Okay I needed to put this one out there as I hope to run with others. I love running and Sitecore maybe equally so I love it when the worlds collide.
The meeting of the Robs. So we have a ton of Robs in the Sitecore world. I hope we can take a photo together. So if you are a Rob and are reading this let’s plan a date time.

#Sitecore Content Hub – Detecting AI Generated Images

August 29, 2025August 28, 2025 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / 1 Comment

The content hub recently got a new update to detect AI generated content. When uploading or updating an asset C2PA metadata will be detected. You can find more information on that here.

I wanted to test this feature out so going to start with simple AI created images. I used three different AI image generators. ChatGP, Google Gemini and Bing Image Creator. I asked them to “create me an image of a blue dodge challenger jumping over the Willis tower.” In the chart below you will see the image that was created. Below the image is the new Content Hub properties that were generated for each image. You will notice the additional tags highlighted. For some reason didn’t see the same fields in Gemini although I did see the credit line for Google AI.

Challenger Jumping over the Willis Tower

As you see above new fields are at the end of the properties section.

One of the things I enabled was the Gen AI section on the asset detail. This was enabled from the Tabs/System section of the Asset Details.

The section will show something like the following for the AI generated image on an Asset.

In my opinion by identifying AI images you can make the choice to use them or not. Some companies have polices restricting the use of them. You can find more on this new Content Hub feature here.

Feeling like a Kid in a Candy Store with #Sitecore Stream for 10.4 DXP

June 24, 2025 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

One of the things announce during Symposium that Sitecore Stream would be available for all platforms. I got to first use it in the Content Hub, but I was finally able to try it on DXP. I found it is available on the demo portal so I quickly deployed a new site. So here is the features I found and some fun tests I was able to do.

Single Line Text

All fields will work similar so I will start with a Single Line Text. In an AI enabled component you will see Sitecore Stream symbol. Clicking on it will bring up an AI enabled search.

The following will appear. I am going to ask “Can you make a title about something supernatural?”. Then click the Generate button. This is what we get.

If I select a Brand and generate again this is what I get.

Now I am going to use the Variants to generate option and choose number 3 to use.

Now we have a title to work with to make things really pop.

Rich Text Editor

The RTE field works exactly the same way as Single Line Text field, but will give a longer text version.

Let’s test this a little more though. I am going to have it create a bulleted list with and image of something supernatural. Now I am really impressed.

How about if we ask for something in a different language? Sitecore Stream can do that too.

Experience Editor

Works in Experience Editor too in case you were wondering.

Configuration

I didn’t have authorization because this is a demo site, but in the Desktop there is a Stream section added that you can configure Sitecore Stream.

Future enhancements?

This is a great start and hope things continue to be added. One thing I liked to see is an image generator for customers not in the Content Hub.

#Sitecore Chicagoland Meetup – Shure was a Great Time!

June 16, 2025 / sitecorerunner (@reilleyweb) / Leave a comment

Just finished up the Sitecore Chicagoland Meetup and what a great time it was. Many attended and it was one of the best turnouts I have seen in any meetup. Lots of partners and clients attended.

The meetup started with a tour of Shure Incorporated. I don’t know too much about mics and broadcasting. However I learned quite a lot of the history of Shure and I got to see some really cool things. Maybe I should replace my Yeti microphone?

The first speaker was Craig Burkhart from Ecolab. I always like to hear Craig speak. He has a lot to share about his recent and current journey with personalization and using AI. They are using a great tech stack including the Content Hub (one of my favorites). Some of the highlights:

Personalized content based on visitor’s profile.
Creation of language specific content and measuring how well it is interpreted.
Breaking out the way their content is created and delivered.

Next up was Luke Pace from Perficient. He did a great presentation on using Headless, Next.js and Vercel for XM Cloud.It was great to hear the challenges and obstacles he was able to overcome and deliver a great product. Highlights include the following: