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Clone mode
Clone mode connects your repository and hosting so articles, SEO fixes and new pages are applied and deployed for you. See access needed, workflow and limits.
What Clone mode does#
In Clone mode we connect to your website's repository and your hosting, so PilotDeck can handle everything after you approve a draft. Articles are added to your site's code, technical fixes are applied, new pages are created, and the result is deployed to your live domain. The card reads Clone and fully manage and is marked Recommended: "We host a copy of your site. Fixes, new pages and publishing all happen for you."
Articles, fixes and pages
Approved articles are published, technical fixes are applied and new pages are created, all in your site's code.
Review before anything goes live
Drafts wait for your approval by default. Nothing is pushed to your repository until you approve.
Automatic deployment
Once the change is in your repository, it is built and deployed to your domain with the same setup you use today.
Access we need#
Clone mode needs two kinds of access. We set both up with you during onboarding, and you stay in control of both.
| Access | What we need | Why we need it |
|---|---|---|
| Repository access | Maintainer-level access to your site's repository on GitHub, GitLab or an equivalent platform. We can give you an account to invite, so you do not need to share any of your own logins. | We connect your website's repository to our site automation. It can then apply technical fixes, publish articles and make other updates directly in your site's code. |
| Domain and hosting access | Access to your domain or hosting provider, such as Cloudflare, Hostinger, Netlify, Vercel or another provider. It must let us manage the configuration needed to deploy, following the same setup you use now. | Once updated code is pushed to the repository, deployment is automated so the change reaches your configured domain and hosting. Without it, the code would change but your live site would not. |
Repositories. GitLab projects can be imported directly. For GitHub and other hosts we connect with the repository address and the access you grant. We confirm the exact method with you during onboarding.
Hosting. Our deployment connectors currently cover Cloudflare Pages, Cloudflare Workers and your own server over SSH. If you use Hostinger, Netlify, Vercel or another host, tell us when you request the connection and we confirm that your setup is supported before we start.
Before you start#
| You need | Details |
|---|---|
| The right to grant access | You must be able to invite a maintainer to the repository and to give us deployment access with your host. |
| A site we can build and deploy | A website in a Git repository with a build step. A site with an existing blog or articles collection works best, because new articles mirror it. |
| A PilotDeck login that can change the publish mode | If your role cannot, the button explains why. |
Overview#
- 1Choose Clone and confirm on Settings > PublishingYou
- 2Click Request a connection to start onboardingYou
- 3Invite our account to your repository and give us access to your hostingYou
- 4We import the site, install it, record how it is built and check onboardingPilotDeck
- 5PilotDeck writes drafts and sends them to reviewPilotDeck
- 6You approve a draft, or scheduled publishing releases itYou
- 7We add the article to your site, commit, push, build and deployPilotDeck
- 8The article is live on your domainVerify
Open Settings > Publishing, click Activate clone mode and confirm. Until your site is connected, the card shows We think you need to onboard your site to our platform first.
Click Request a connection. This opens a request titled "Clone my site request" for our team. You can choose Do it later and come back. Anywhere a fix or publish button needs the connection, PilotDeck shows Connect your site instead of the button.
Our team tells you which accounts to invite. Add our account to your repository with maintainer-level access, and give us access to your domain or hosting provider as described in Access we need.
We import your repository, install its dependencies and record how the site is built. Publishing is refused until the site is imported and onboarding has passed, so nothing runs against a half-set-up site. When it is done, the card reads Already connected. PilotDeck can clone and manage this site.
What Clone mode does for you#
| Capability | How it works |
|---|---|
| Publish articles | After approval we add the article as a new entry that follows your existing blog format. The article text is kept as written. Markdown your site cannot render is converted, and FAQs move into a structured field when your site stores them that way. |
| Images and authors | Images in the article are uploaded and linked. The cover image is added through your site's own image process. Author details are added when an author is set. A body image that cannot be uploaded is skipped, but a missing cover image stops the publish. |
| Technical SEO fixes | Fixes found by the site health check are applied in your code. You approve pages first, then click Send. Each fix shows its progress, such as Fixing now and The fix has been saved to your site. |
| New pages | Pages that the plan calls for are created in your site's code instead of being left for you to build. |
| Deployment | After the change is pushed, your site is built and deployed with your configured method. Deployment can run after each approval, in batches, or on a schedule. |
| Republishing | Publishing the same article again updates its entry in place instead of adding a duplicate. |
Deployment details#
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Deployment method | Cloudflare Pages, Cloudflare Workers, or your own server over SSH. |
| Build script | The command that builds your site. It defaults to build. |
| Trigger | Deploy on approval, once enough changes are waiting, or on a schedule. |
| Limits | Optional caps on how many changes are published each day and each week. |
The article pill in PilotDeck shows Deploying while it runs, and Deploy failed with a retry if it does not complete. Our team can pause publishing for a site if you ask.
Benefits#
- Least work for you. After setup you review and approve, and the rest happens.
- Review before live. Drafts wait for your approval by default, so nothing reaches your site unreviewed. Scheduled auto-publish is optional.
- Automatic technical fixes. Issues found by the health check are fixed in your code, not left on a to-do list.
- New pages created for you. No waiting for a developer to build them.
- Automated deployment. Approved changes go from your repository to your domain without a manual release.
- A clear history. Changes are ordinary commits in your repository, so you can review or revert them.
- Safe retries. A failed publish can be retried, and republishing updates in place.
Limitations#
- Setup is assisted. Connecting a site is handled with our team, and it takes time.
- Changes go straight to your default branch. There are no feature branches or pull requests today, and a successful push is a normal commit.
- Approved articles go live. After approval the article is published. The draft stage lives in PilotDeck, not in your repository.
- It depends on your site. Articles mirror an existing blog or articles collection. A site without one stops for review until it is set up.
- Some changes need our team. If an article is stopped for review a second time, it does not deploy until our team resolves it.
- Switching away takes time. Once connected, leaving Clone mode is handled by your PilotDeck contact and can take a few working days.
Frequently asked questions#
Why do you need maintainer access?
Maintainer-level access lets us commit and push changes to your site's code. That is what allows fixes, new pages and articles to be applied for you.
Why do you need access to my hosting?
Pushing code does not change your live site by itself. Hosting access lets us deploy the update to your configured domain, the same way you do now.
Can I revoke access?
Yes. Remove our account from the repository or revoke the hosting access at any time. Automatic publishing then stops.
I use Netlify, Vercel or Hostinger. Can you deploy there?
Tell us when you request the connection. We confirm that your setup is supported before we start.
An article says Deploy failed.
Use the retry on the article. A retry runs the whole publish again and updates the entry in place. If it keeps failing, contact support with the article's name.
I want to stop using Clone mode.
Click Contact admin on Settings > Publishing. We handle the switch and revoke the access we were given.