Concepts
How publishing works
Drafts and published versions, approval, schedules, and how quickly the website shows a change.
Explanation1 min read
Two versions of every page
Every page has a draft, which is what you edit, and a published version, which is what the website shows. Saving changes only the draft. Publishing copies the draft into the published version and keeps the old one in the version history, so you can go back.
Draft
What you edit; saves by itself
Review
When the type needs approval
Published
A new version in the history
Delivery API
Cached up to 60 seconds
Website
Webhooks refresh it at once
Approval
A content type can require approval. Then a page can only be published once a review of that exact version is approved, by someone who did not make the changes. Editing after approval means sending it again. Changes drafted by an AI agent always need approval, and so do changes to components that ask for Brand sign-off.
Timing
- Publish now: the website shows it within about a minute, because answers are cached for up to 60 seconds. Websites that use publish webhooks refresh straight away.
- Schedule: the CMS publishes at the set time, every minute checking what is due.
- Releases: several pages go live at the same moment.
What the website receives
Websites read content from the delivery API. Images arrive with their size and alt text, links to pages carry the page's current address, and approved claims arrive with their current wording. Banners and popups arrive only while they are live, so an expired one never flashes on screen.
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