Environments

Forge now supports three distinct environments per site - Production, Staging, and Development. This powerful feature allows you to independently configure and deploy your code to different environments according to your specific needs, with different environment variables, Git branches (if using autosync), and configurations - perfect for managing the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC).

Overview

Each environment in Forge is completely isolated, giving you the flexibility to:

Test new features in Development before moving to Staging
Validate changes in Staging before deploying to Production
Use different environment variables for each environment
Deploy from different Git branches (when using autosync)
Maintain separate configurations for each stage of your development process

Environment Types

Production

Your live, customer-facing environment. This is where your final, tested, and approved code runs. Production environments should be stable and reliable, with careful deployment practices.

Live customer-facing environment
Requires careful testing before deployment
Should use production-grade configurations
Typically deployed from main/master branch

Staging

A pre-production environment that mirrors your production setup. Use this environment to test changes before they go live, ensuring everything works as expected in a production-like environment.

Pre-production testing environment
Mirrors production configuration
Used for final testing before production deployment
Can be deployed from feature branches or main branch

Development

Your development and testing environment. This is where you can freely experiment with new features, test changes, and iterate quickly without affecting production or staging environments.

Development and testing environment
Safe space for experimentation
Can be deployed from any branch
Ideal for feature development and testing

Accessing Environments

To access and switch between environments:

Navigate to your site in the Forge Dashboard
Look for the environment dropdown in the top bar of the Site Detail view
Click on the dropdown to see the three environment options: Production, Staging, and Development
Select the environment you want to work with

Note: Each environment maintains its own deployment history, environment variables, and configurations. Changes made in one environment do not affect the others.

Environment Configuration

Environment Variables

Each environment can have its own set of environment variables:

Production: Production API keys, database URLs, and other production-specific configurations
Staging: Staging API keys and configurations that mirror production
Development: Development API keys, local database URLs, and development-specific settings

Git Branch Configuration

When using autosync with Git repositories, you can configure different branches for each environment:

Production: Typically deploys from main or master branch
Staging: Can deploy from staging branch or main branch
Development: Can deploy from any branch, including feature branches

Best Practices

Deployment Workflow

Recommended workflow for using environments:

Develop new features in the Development environment
Test thoroughly in Development
Deploy to Staging for pre-production testing
Validate everything works in Staging
Deploy to Production when ready

Environment Variables Management

Keep your environment variables organized:

Use descriptive names for environment variables
Document the purpose of each variable
Never commit sensitive information to version control
Use different values for each environment as needed

Branch Strategy

Consider implementing a branching strategy:

main/master: Production-ready code
staging: Code ready for staging testing
feature branches: Individual features being developed

Environment-Specific Features

Deployment History

Each environment maintains its own deployment history, allowing you to:

Track changes specific to each environment
Rollback to previous versions if needed
Monitor deployment frequency and success rates

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