Unit 9 · Ship it and keep it alive
Preview URL vs production: what customers see
A preview is a copy of your site at a different address. It can be right while production is still wrong. Check the domain customers actually type.
The mix-up
What people often think
“The preview link shows what customers see.”
What the tutor says
A preview is a copy at a different address. Check the domain customers actually type.
How it works
Read the deploy output, not the message around it. If it says error, the new version never went out, and blaming a cache will waste time: there is nothing new to cache.
Redeploying “to make sure” changes things while you are still trying to see them. Look first, then act.
Close cousins of this mix-up
The tutor watches for these in the same lesson.
“Redeploying is a safe way to make sure.”
A redeploy changes things while you are still trying to see them. Look first, then act.
“If a teammate says it is live, the output must agree.”
Read the output, not the message around it. "Error" means the new version never went out.
“Old content always means a cache.”
Caches are one cause. Here the build failed, so there is nothing new to cache. Check the deploy status first.
Practise it with a tutor watching
Deploy, then verify
Ship a change and prove it is live on the real URL before anyone says "done".
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