> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.mintlify.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Publish changes

> Publish changes from the editor to your live site. Branches and protection rules determine what happens when you publish.

Your changes save automatically as you edit, but they only reach your live site when you publish them. What happens when you publish depends on which branch you work on and whether that branch requires pull requests.

<Note>
  If you don't see a branch selector or a **Publish** button, your deployment has [auto publish](#auto-publish) turned on and your edits go live automatically.
</Note>

## Pending changes

The editor tracks the following as pending changes:

* Content edits in pages
* New or deleted pages
* Navigation structure changes
* Media uploads
* Configuration updates

If there are no pending changes, the editor disables the publish and save actions.

## What happens when you publish

| Branch type                                                                                                                                              | Branch protection      | Available actions                                 |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- |
| <Tooltip tip="The branch that publishes to your live site, typically 'main'." headline="Deployment branch">Deployment branch</Tooltip>                   | None                   | **Publish** directly to your live site            |
| Deployment branch                                                                                                                                        | Pull requests required | **Create branch** to move changes to a new branch |
| <Tooltip tip="An isolated branch where you work on updates before merging to your deployment branch." headline="Feature branch">Feature branch</Tooltip> | None                   | **Save in branch**, **Create pull request**       |
| Feature branch                                                                                                                                           | Pull requests required | **Save in branch**, **Create pull request**       |

* **Publish**: Commits and deploys your changes to your live site immediately.
* **Save in branch**: Commits your changes to the feature branch without merging to your deployment branch.
* **Create branch**: Moves your pending changes to a new feature branch when you're on a protected deployment branch.
* **Create pull request**: Opens a pull request targeting your deployment branch.

Only one publish can happen at a time per branch. If a teammate publishes to the same branch, wait for their publish to complete before trying again.

<Note>
  Your live site updates after Mintlify builds and deploys your changes. This typically takes 30 seconds to a few minutes. Check the deployment status on your [dashboard](https://app.mintlify.com).
</Note>

## When to use a branch

Edit directly on your deployment branch if you do not use a Git-based workflow. Create a branch if each change goes through review before it reaches your live site.

To create a branch, click the branch name in the editor toolbar, select **Create new branch**, enter a name, then click **Create branch**.

<Note>
  Creating or switching branches while you have unpublished changes prompts you to bring those changes with you or leave them behind. Changes you leave behind stay on the original branch.
</Note>

## Resolve conflicts

Conflicts occur when your branch and the deployment branch have incompatible changes to the same files. For example, when you and a teammate edit the same lines or move a file to different locations.

When someone pushes to your repository from outside the editor, the editor applies non-overlapping changes automatically. If a remote change and your edit affect the same part of a page, the editor highlights the conflict.

The editor displays a warning when conflicts block publishing. Follow the prompts to choose which version of each conflicting section to keep.

## Commit signing

Sign commits with your GitHub account by authorizing it in your [account settings](https://app.mintlify.com/settings/account). Without authorization, the Mintlify GitHub App signs commits made in the editor.

## Auto publish

If your deployment has [auto publish](/docs/editor/settings#main-branch-autocommits) turned on, the editor commits to your deployment branch shortly after you stop typing. The branch selector and **Publish** button are hidden. There is no pending state and no review step.

Edits on feature branches created from the editor commit automatically either way, but they never publish unless you merge them into your deployment branch.


## Related topics

- [Roles](/docs/dashboard/roles.md)
- [Assistant](/docs/assistant/index.md)
- [Concepts](/docs/reference/concepts.md)