Previews, rollbacks and custom domains

What is the difference between production and preview deployments?

• Production: created when you push to the production branch (by default, the repository's default branch). Once the build finishes, the default address project-id.parallax.kr and your connected custom domains serve this deployment.
• Preview: created when you push to any other branch. The address project-id--branch-name.parallax.kr serves the latest deployment of that branch.

When you open a pull request, a Parallax Cloud status check is added to the commit and the preview address is posted as a comment on the pull request. If you do not need preview deployments, turn off Preview deployments in Settings. You can change the production branch in the Git section of Settings.

Can I deploy manually?

Yes. On your project's Deployments tab, click Deploy and choose a branch to build its latest commit. If you turned off Automatic deploys in Settings, this is the only way deployments are made.

How do I go back to an earlier deployment?

In the deployment list, open the menu of the deployment you want to go back to and click Roll back to this deployment. Rollbacks take effect instantly. The build output of every deployment is kept as is, so nothing is rebuilt; we only switch which deployment the production address and your custom domains point to.

Even after a rollback, a new push to the production branch becomes production as soon as its build finishes. Revert the problem commit before pushing again.

Can I promote a preview deployment straight to production?

Yes. Any deployment that has finished building (Ready) can go to production right away with Promote to production in its menu. Promotion does not rebuild either.

Keep in mind that a preview deployment ships the output that was built with your preview environment variables. If your production and preview values differ, merge into the production branch and deploy fresh instead of promoting.

How is redeploying different from rolling back?

Redeploy creates a new deployment by rebuilding the same commit with your current settings and environment variables. It is handy for applying changed environment variables. If you redeploy a production deployment, that new deployment becomes production once its build finishes. A rollback switches instantly to an existing deployment without rebuilding.

How do I stop a deployment in progress?

A queued or building deployment can be stopped with Cancel deployment in its menu. Your current production is not affected. Deployments that have already finished cannot be canceled.

Can I connect my own domain?

Yes. On your project's Domains screen, click Add a domain and enter the domain (for example www.example.com). The DNS records to add are then shown on screen.

1. At your domain provider (its DNS settings), add the records exactly as shown. Usually there are two: a TXT record for the ownership check and a CNAME record for traffic.
2. Click Verify on the Domains screen.
3. When the status turns Active, you are done. SSL certificates are issued and renewed automatically.

DNS changes can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours to spread. If the status is Awaiting DNS or Verifying, click Verify again a little later.

Many providers do not allow a CNAME on a root domain such as example.com. If your provider supports CNAME flattening (ALIAS, ANAME), use that instead.

Are there domains I cannot connect?

• Domains Parallax uses, such as addresses under parallax.kr, cannot be used as custom domains.
• A domain already connected to another project or to a Parallax site cannot be added. Disconnect it there first.
• The number of domains per project depends on your plan (Free 1, Pro 10, Ultra and above 50).

Can each domain show a different branch, or redirect?

Yes. In the domain settings you can choose one of the following.

• Serve a deployment: by default the domain shows the current production deployment. Choose a Git branch to show the latest ready deployment of that branch instead (for example, the staging branch on staging.example.com).
• Redirect: sends requests for this domain to another host with a 308 redirect, keeping the path. The target can only be another domain connected to the same project or the project's default address. For example, add both example.com and www.example.com, then redirect example.com to www.example.com. In that case both domains count toward your domain limit.

What happens when I remove a domain?

Only its connection to Parallax Cloud is removed. Please delete the DNS records at your domain provider yourself.

If you need help

Open a support request, choose Parallax Cloud as the service, and include the project name and the ID or address of the affected deployment. For domain issues, include the domain name and the domain status shown on screen. Never send your domain provider password or access tokens.