Launch examples, every page #

Map every page type, fill the menus, check the pages and the caches, keep a baseline.

1. Give the home page its layout: A Location mapping to the site root node: on Fit & Healthy, Landing Page / Home on Location 89 at priority 210.
2. Give every article the article layout: A Subtree mapping with a Class condition: Full / Article on Subtree 89 for ng_article, ng_blog_post, ng_news at priority 130.
3. Give one page its own layout: A Location (or Path) mapping with a high priority beats the class mapping for one page.
4. A plain layout for the legal pages: Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy are articles but use Full / Article (Plain): a mapping with two Location targets and the article class condition at priority 150.
5. A layout for every other page: Default Layout catches the rest: a Path prefix "/" mapping at priority 10, and [ResolverSettings] DefaultLayout as the fallback.
6. Check that every layout links the header and footer: Before launch, each page layout's header and footer zones must link to Header / Footer; exp:layouts list shows it.
7. Fill the header menu for launch: Write the final MainMenuID[] list in one edit (administration) or a clear plus adds (console).
8. Fill both footer lines for launch: FooterMenuID[] for the first line, Menu items in the Footer links folder for the second.
9. Set the social media links: The footer's social icons come from the fields facebook, twitter, instagram and linkedin of the site info object; each icon shows only when its field has content.
10. Fill the prefooter for launch: Pick the launch articles of the shared Prefooter in the Layouts editor; it shows on articles and recipes.
11. Check every page type by its markup: Layouts and templates leave markers in the HTML (zone sections, ngl-block classes, menu item IDs) that a script can check before launch.
12. Clear the caches once before launch: After the last template and settings changes, one Template & content clear, then a warm-up of the main pages.
13. Take a baseline export at launch: Export every layout, shared layout and mapping on launch day, to compare and restore later.
14. Make sure no draft is left open: Unpublished drafts are invisible to visitors but confuse the next editor; list them before launch.
15. Check that pages come from the page cache: The response header X-Exp-Cache tells HIT, MISS or MISS (purged); check the main pages after launch.
16. The header menu of a second language: A German siteaccess (bold_ger, starter_ger on this installation) has its own menu.ini; write its list in its own scope.
17. A different layout for one language: A mapping with a Siteaccess condition gives the German version of a page type its own layout.
18. The contact page: Contact (node 185, class Contact form) is a form page; give it a layout with a map and text around the form.
19. Launch the blog list page: A landing page with a dynamic List of NG Blog posts, mapped by Location; the posts use the article layout already.
20. The Layouts part of a launch checklist: Mappings, links, drafts, shared layouts, export: the five checks of the Layouts side before go-live.
21. The template part of a launch checklist: Extension order, overrides, styles, menus, caches: the checks of the template side before go-live.
22. Keep test pages out of the launch: Test layouts and pages built during the project: unmap or delete them before go-live.
23. A last-minute header menu change on launch day: The quickest safe path: exp:ini add with --dry-run first, then the cache clear; about two commands.
24. Launch on Exponential Velocity: On Velocity, settings changes need exp:velocity restart (as exp:ini says); plan it into the launch steps.
25. Hand the site over to the editors: Show editors the three places they work: the content tree, the Layouts editor and the footer links folder.
26. Launch the section landing pages: Fitness, Healthy eating, Running, Video and Showcase each have a Location mapping to their own landing page layout.
27. Old addresses after a relaunch: URL aliases and wildcards are content settings, not layouts; keep old addresses working when pages move.
28. Add an analytics tag at launch: The theme has a Google Tag Manager include (parts/google_tag_manager_code_script.tpl and _noscript.tpl); measurement code belongs in templates, not in HTML snippet blocks.
29. Measure the launch pages: Time the main pages cached and uncached, as on the test copy, and keep the numbers.
30. Preview a layout before it goes live: Layouts > Layouts and Shared layouts have Preview for each layout; the editor's middle area previews the draft.
31. Prepare a mapping and switch it on at launch: Create the launch mapping with Enabled off, then tick Enabled at go-live.
32. Launch a second site on the same installation: Bold Agency and Starter run beside Fit & Healthy here: their own root nodes, siteaccesses, menus and layouts, with mappings by subtree and siteaccess.
33. Tell editors what changed at launch: List what moved from templates to Layouts (or back), so editors know where to change things after go-live.

Related pages #

• Life-cycle examples
• Two ways to build
• Free documentation: this page is free to copy, translate and improve under the GNU FDL 1.3.