NOTE: this article refers to a process to be used on sites that have already migrated to the New WMS.
If your site has not yet migrated see the Index of documentation for the McGill Web Management System.
OVERVIEW
Target audience: Site Administrators, Site Managers
You can create a staging site if you need to make extensive structural changes to a Web Management System (WMS) website, such as major menu reorganization.
A staging site is a snapshot or a copy of a live site at a particular point in time that allows you to make changes without disrupting the live site.
In this article:
Requesting a staging website
To request a staging site, complete the WMS staging site request form.
Accessing your staging website
- Go to your staging site. The URL will be https://staging.mcgill.ca/sitename, where "staging" replaces the "www" and "sitename" is the name of your site.
- Sign in using your McGill username and password. Site permissions will be the same as on the live site.
- Confirm you are on staging:
- The site will look like your live site
- Toolbars at the top will be blue (instead of black/grey)
NOTE: VPN required when off campus
A VPN connection is required when accessing your staging site when off campus. For setup instructions, see Virtual Private Network (VPN).
Making your staging site live
When your staging site is ready:
- Complete the Make WMS site live request form.
- Once approved, the staging site will replace the existing live site.
FAQs
Can I change my live site while working on my staging site?
It is strongly recommended not to update or change your live site after creating your staging site. The staging site is a copy of the live site at a specific moment in time. To avoid losing changes when the staging site goes live, every change must be made on both the live and staging sites. This means you will have two sites to maintain in parallel until your staging site goes live. We recommended to keep this transition period as short as possible.
If changes are required, they must be made in both environments to avoid losing them.
Will all links within my website still work?
You must use relative links and not absolute links when pointing to pages located within your site. Follow the instructions on linking to a page or article on the same site.
Warning: If you use absolute links in staging, the links will change from “www.mcgill.ca/sitename/page1” to “staging.mcgill.ca/sitename/page1." When your site goes live, these links will be broken because the URL will not revert to “www.”
What happens if my URLs change?
See Redirects in the WMS for more information.
Can I get help with restructuring my site?
Yes. Visit the Web Services website to learn more or request a consultation.
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES