Enabling editor branching with Projects

Last modified: September 21st, 2023

Projects allow you to group multiple sites from the same repository together. You can set a main branch, which editors use to branch off their own sites, and merge them back in at a later date.

Adding a new Project#

To create a project:

  1. Have at least one site in your Organization connected to a Git repository
  2. Go to the Projects section
  3. Click the Create Project button
  4. Enter a name for your Project and click Create Project
Screenshot of Projects interface with no projects set up
Screenshot of Project creation interface

Set the main branch

After creating your project, you will need to connect it to one of your sites. This site must be connected to a Git repository.

To connect the repository:

  1. Navigate to the Project Settings tab
  2. Under Files, select your repository from the Git Repository dropdown
  3. In Main Branch, enter the name of the branch you would like to connect. It's a good idea to make this your main branch (e.g. main)
  4. At the bottom of the page, click Update Project

Any site with the same Git repository as the Project is attached and visible in the Project / Sites section.

Screenshot of Project Settings interface

Branching#

Branching enables you and your team to create isolated versions of a site to make changes on. Changes made on a branched site do not affect the main site until explicitly published.

Branched sites are preconfigured with the same settings as the main site when created, and have a publishing workflow set up to use when changes are ready to go live. By default, branched sites are deleted automatically after being published.

To create a branched site:

  1. Open your project and navigate to the Sites tab
  2. Click the Create Site button
  3. Enter a name for your site
  4. Use an existing branch, or click the Create New tab and enter a branch name. You should only use an existing branch if it was branched from the main branch.
  5. Click Create Site in the top right of the page

Creating a branched site in CloudCannon also creates a branch on your connected Git repository.

Screenshot of creating a new branched site
Screenshot of a project with multiple sites connected

Other project settings#

In the Project Settings tab there are a number of settings you can configure.

Project Name — Shows in the Projects screen, and next to the site name in the site navigation breadcrumb.

External URL — Shows in the Projects screen, and in the overview panel on the left of the Project interface. You may want to set this if your site is not hosted on CloudCannon. Changing this link will not alter your domain or hosting settings in any way.

Description — Shows in the overview panel on the left of the Project interface.

Project Links — Add handy links for you and your editors. Read more about Project Links.

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