Deploy Pelican with DeployHQ Guide

Prerequisites

• A Pelican site ready for deployment
• A Git repository (GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket) containing your Pelican project
• A web hosting service or server to deploy to

Initial Setup

1. Create your Pelican site

# Install Pelican with Markdown support
python -m pip install "pelican[markdown]"

# Create project directory
mkdir -p ~/projects/yoursite
cd ~/projects/yoursite

# Initialize Pelican project
pelican-quickstart

# Create sample content
echo 'Title: My First Post
Date: 2023-01-01 10:00
Category: General

This is my first post.' > content/first-post.md

# Generate site
pelican content

2. Initialize Git repository

git init
git add .
git commit -m "Initial commit"
git remote add origin <your-repository-url>
git push -u origin main

DeployHQ Configuration

1. Create DeployHQ Account

• Visit DeployHQ
• Sign up for a new account

2. Create New Project

• Click "New Project" in DeployHQ dashboard
• Choose a name for your project
• Select your repository provider (GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket)
• Grant repository access when prompted

3. Configure Server

• Click "Servers & Groups" in project settings
• Select "Add Server"
• Choose your server type (FTP/SFTP/SSH)
• Enter server details:
  • Server name
  • Hostname
  • Username
  • Password/SSH key
  • Remote path (where files will be deployed)

4. Configure Build Pipeline

• Go to "Build Pipeline" in project settings
• Click "Add New Pipeline Command"
• Add the following commands:

# Install Python and requirements
python -m pip install "pelican[markdown]"

# Generate site
pelican content -o build

5. Configure Deployment

• Go to "Deployment Config"
• Set build directory to build/
• Configure included/excluded files:

# Include
build/**/*

# Exclude
content/**/*
*.py
*.pyc
requirements.txt

6. Set Up Automatic Deployments

• Go to "Automatic Deployments"
• Enable automatic deployments for your branch (usually main)
• Configure deployment triggers (e.g., on push)

First Deployment

1. Manual Deployment

• Go to "Deployments" in project dashboard
• Click "Deploy Now"
• Select branch to deploy
• Review changes and confirm

2. Verify Deployment

• Check deployment logs for any errors
• Visit your website to confirm successful deployment
• Verify all static files are properly served

Ongoing Usage

1. Regular Updates

# Make changes to your content
git add .
git commit -m "Update content"
git push origin main

2. Monitor Deployments

• Check DeployHQ dashboard for deployment status
• Review logs for any issues
• Configure notifications for deployment events

Troubleshooting

• Build Failures: Check build logs for Python or Pelican errors
• Missing Files: Verify build directory and inclusion rules
• Permission Issues: Check server permissions and deployment user access
• Static Files: Ensure proper configuration of static file handling

Best Practices

1. Use environment variables for sensitive information
2. Implement staging environments for testing
3. Regular backup of deployment configurations
4. Monitor deployment logs for potential issues
5. Keep Pelican and dependencies updated

This guide provides a comprehensive approach to deploying Pelican sites using DeployHQ. Adjust configurations based on your specific needs and hosting environment.