Pages, publishing later, versions and password pages
Add pages and set who can open each one: everyone, only with the link, with a password, or members only. Publish now or at a set time. Every publish is kept as a numbered version you can bring back, and a secret test link shows your changes before they go live.
PLANSEvery plan
The problem it solves
- A change meant for Monday's launch goes live on Friday because someone pressed Save.
- A bad edit reaches the live site and nobody knows what it looked like yesterday.
- A price list for dealers or a page for parents ends up in Google for everyone to see.
- The client wants to see the new page before it goes live, so screenshots go back and forth on WhatsApp.
How it works
- In the editor's Pages tab, press + Add and type a name, or + Add a ready-made page from any design. Drag pages to set their order; the menu follows.
- Open a page's settings: name in the menu, show in the menu, address, title and description in Google, and Who can open it.
- Before publishing, run Check and look at the page at phone width. Press Test link to send a secret address of the draft to a colleague or client.
- A Website Manager presses Publish (or Publish changes). The site goes live, and the state says Live; any later change shows Changes not live until the next publish.
- To publish at a set time, use Publish later in the Site tab. To go back, open Published versions and press Bring back, then publish again.
Everything it does
Pages
- Add a page by name, or a ready-made page (About, Services, Prices and more) from any design
- Page settings: Name in the menu, Show in the menu, Address, Title in Google, Description in Google, Who can open it
- Addresses use small letters, digits and hyphens; two pages cannot share one; system addresses are kept
- The home page has an empty address, cannot be deleted and is always open to everyone
- Delete page asks first; it cannot be undone, but a published version can be brought back
Who can open a page
- Everyone
- Only with the link: left out of the menu, the sitemap, the site search and search engines
- With a password: at least 4 letters, typed once; the visitor's browser stays let in for 30 days
- Members only (Growth, with members): signed-in members, or only some memberships
- Password and members-only pages are also left out of the sitemap, the site search and the AI assistant pages
- Page passwords are kept only as a scrambled code, so nobody can read them back
Publishing
- Publish sends the pages and pictures to SmartMy's website server; visitors see only that published copy
- States: Not Published, Live, and Live, Changes Not Published
- Blog posts, collection items and products go with the next publish
- Publish later: a date and time; a job checks every 5 minutes and publishes when it is due; Cancel clears it
- If a timed publish fails, the time stays and the reason is posted on the site's record
- Unpublish (back office) takes the site off the internet; visitors see Coming soon
Versions and the test link
- Every publish is kept as a version with its number, date and who published it; no limit on how many are kept
- Bring back (editor) or Restore (back office) puts a version into the draft; publish to make it live
- Test link: a new secret address showing the saved draft, marked Test version, not live yet and hidden from search engines
- Making a new test link replaces the previous one
- The test link opens every page of the draft, including password and members-only pages
Who uses it
Website EditorAdds and orders pages, sets page settings, runs Check and makes test links; cannot publish.
Website ManagerPublishes now or later, unpublishes and brings back earlier versions.
Client or colleagueOpens the test link to look at the draft before it goes live.
Where you use it
- Web: the editor's Pages tab, top bar (Check, Test link, Publish) and Site tab (Publish later, Published versions)
- Web: Websites > Sites > the site: Publish, Unpublish and the Published Versions tab
- Not on a phone: the editor runs on a computer; the test link opens on any phone
What you control
Settings
- Who can open it: Everyone to start with
- Show in the menu: on for new pages
- Publish later: empty until you set a time
- Who may publish: Website Managers only
Works with
SmartMy Website membersMembers-only pages need members, which come with Growth.
Questions
Can I prepare changes and make them live at midnight?
Yes. A manager sets Publish later to the date and time. A job checks every five minutes, so the changes go live within five minutes of that time.We published a mistake. How do we go back?
Open Published versions, press Bring back on the last good one, then Publish changes. Each version shows its date and who published it.Is a password page safe for private documents?
It keeps the page itself from casual visitors and search engines. Files and pictures on it are not locked on their own, so do not use it for confidential papers.Can a client see the new page before it is live?
Yes. Press Test link and send the address. It shows the saved draft, including hidden and password pages, and search engines are told not to list it.Can an editor publish?
No. Only a Website Manager can publish, unpublish, set Publish later or bring back a version.Related features
BUILDING THE SITEDrag-and-drop editor: type on the page itselfYou change your website on the page as visitors will see it. Click a heading and type, drag sections into order, and pick layouts from live pictures with your own words. Everything saves by itself, and nothing goes live until a manager publishes.SELLING AND MEMBERSMembers: sign-in by email code and members-only pagesVisitors sign in on your website with a 6-digit code sent to their email, with no password to remember. You keep pages for signed-in members only, or for the members of one membership.BUILDING THE SITEComing-soon and page-not-found pages, and redirectsWrite your own page-not-found message, with a search box and a way home. Send old addresses to new ones so links keep working after a rename or a move. A site that is not published, or was taken off the internet, shows a Coming soon page.BUILDING THE SITESearch engine set-up done for youEvery page gets a title, a description, a share picture and the structured details Google reads. Empty ones are written from your own words. A sitemap, redirects and a Search and AI check come with it.BUILDING THE SITEPage check for speed and accessibilityOne button in the editor checks the open page for what makes it hard to use or slow. It scores the page out of 100 and says how to fix each point.ACROSS SMARTMY WEBSITEWebsite Editor and Manager rolesTwo roles split the work on your website. Editors change pages, words, pictures and the design, and look after entries, bookings and members. Managers also publish, set up the shop and its payments, and own the domains.
See your business on a real design.
Tell us what you do and what the site needs to do: bring enquiries, take bookings, show your work or sell. We will start your site from the closest design with you.