# Draft-then-publish workflow

**Status:** Planned (after unified-editing-mode)

## Problem

Current editing workflow uses explicit save — changes are either saved (immediately live) or lost on navigation. This creates:

1. **Data loss anxiety** — navigate away accidentally, lose all work
2. **`beforeunload` warnings** — browser-native dialogs with no custom options
3. **No experimentation** — can't safely try changes without affecting live site

## Solution

Implement a draft-then-publish model with **site-level publishing** and **version history**:

1. **Site starts unpublished** — New sites are in draft mode until first publish
2. **Auto-save drafts** — All edits auto-save, no risk of lost work
3. **Visitors see published only** — No accidental exposure of drafts
4. **Version history** — Each publish creates a snapshot, enabling rollback
5. **URLs are versioned** — URL slugs are part of version data (ties into dynamic URL customisation)

## Design principles

1. **Site-level lifecycle** — Site has a `first_published_at` timestamp; until then, visitors see "coming soon"
2. **Drafts are per-user** — each admin sees their own pending changes
3. **Visitors always see published** — no accidental exposure of drafts
4. **Auto-save constantly** — no risk of lost work
5. **Clear visual distinction** — obvious when viewing draft vs published
6. **Single publish action** — one button publishes all pending changes
7. **Version snapshots** — each publish creates a version record for rollback
8. **Atomic rollback** — rolling back restores content AND URL (redirect chain updates automatically)

## Scope

Three types of editable content:

| Type | Storage | Draft approach |
|------|---------|----------------|
| Page blocks | `pages.blocks` (JSON) | `draft_blocks` column |
| Theme settings | `settings.theme_settings` (JSON) | `draft_theme_settings` key |
| Shop settings | `settings` table (various keys) | `draft_*` keys or `settings_drafts` table |

## Data model

### Site-level publishing

```elixir
# Add to settings or dedicated sites table
# Option 1: Settings key
%{"site_first_published_at" => nil}  # nil = unpublished, datetime = published

# Option 2: Dedicated sites table (if multi-tenant later)
create table(:sites, primary_key: false) do
  add :id, :binary_id, primary_key: true
  add :first_published_at, :utc_datetime_usec  # nil until first publish
  timestamps(type: :utc_datetime_usec)
end
```

### Page versions (recommended approach)

Rather than draft columns, use a proper version table. Each publish creates a version snapshot.

```elixir
create table(:page_versions, primary_key: false) do
  add :id, :binary_id, primary_key: true
  add :page_id, references(:pages, type: :binary_id, on_delete: :delete_all), null: false
  add :version_number, :integer, null: false
  add :blocks, :map, null: false
  add :url_slug, :string  # URL is part of version data
  add :meta_title, :string
  add :meta_description, :string
  add :published_at, :utc_datetime_usec
  add :published_by_id, references(:users, type: :binary_id, on_delete: :nilify_all)
  timestamps(type: :utc_datetime_usec)
end

create index(:page_versions, [:page_id, :version_number])
create unique_index(:page_versions, [:page_id, :version_number])
```

```elixir
# Pages table changes
alter table(:pages) do
  add :published_version_id, references(:page_versions, type: :binary_id, on_delete: :nilify_all)
  add :draft_blocks, :map
  add :draft_url_slug, :string
  add :draft_user_id, references(:users, type: :binary_id, on_delete: :nilify_all)
  add :draft_updated_at, :utc_datetime_usec
end
```

**How it works:**
- `pages.draft_*` fields hold current work-in-progress
- On publish: create new `page_versions` record, update `pages.published_version_id`
- On rollback: set `published_version_id` to older version, update redirect chain
- Visitors always see the version pointed to by `published_version_id`

### URL versioning and redirects

When a page version has a different URL than the current published version:
1. The redirect system tracks URL history
2. All old URLs redirect to current canonical URL
3. On rollback, old URL becomes canonical again, redirect chain updates

```elixir
# Example: Page starts at /about, renamed to /about-us, then rolled back

# Version 1: url_slug = "about"      <- created
# Version 2: url_slug = "about-us"   <- published, redirect /about → /about-us created
# Rollback to v1: redirect /about-us → /about created (or /about redirect deleted)
```

This ties directly into the [dynamic URL customisation plan](dynamic-url-customisation.md).

## Implementation

### Phase 0: Site-level publishing

| Task | Est | Notes |
|------|-----|-------|
| Add `site_first_published_at` setting | 15m | nil until first publish |
| Update coming soon page to check this setting | 30m | Show until site is published |
| Add "Publish site" button to admin dashboard | 30m | First-time publish action |
| Hide "Publish site" after first publish | 15m | One-time action |

### Phase 1: Page versions and drafts

| Task | Est | Notes |
|------|-----|-------|
| Create page_versions table | 30m | Migration with version data |
| Add draft columns and published_version_id to pages | 30m | Migration |
| Create PageVersions context module | 1.5h | `create_version/2`, `rollback_to/2`, `list_versions/1` |
| Update Pages context with draft functions | 1h | `save_draft/2`, `publish_draft/1`, `discard_draft/1`, `has_draft?/1` |
| Modify PageEditorHook to auto-save drafts | 1h | Debounced save on every change |
| Add "Publish" and "Discard" buttons to editor | 1h | Replace current "Save" |
| Show draft indicator when viewing page with unpublished changes | 1h | Banner or badge |
| Remove `beforeunload` warning (no longer needed) | 15m | Drafts persist |

### Phase 2: Theme drafts

| Task | Est | Notes |
|------|-----|-------|
| Add draft_theme_settings to settings | 30m | New key |
| Update Settings context with theme draft functions | 1h | Similar to pages |
| Modify theme editor to auto-save drafts | 1h | |
| Theme preview shows draft, shop shows published | 1h | Conditional CSS injection |
| Add publish/discard to theme editor | 30m | |

### Phase 3: Settings drafts

| Task | Est | Notes |
|------|-----|-------|
| Decide which settings are draftable | 30m | Not all need drafts (e.g. API keys) |
| Add draft handling to Settings context | 1.5h | |
| Update settings editor to use drafts | 1h | |
| Unified "Publish all" option | 1h | Publish page + theme + settings together |

### Phase 4: Version history and rollback

| Task | Est | Notes |
|------|-----|-------|
| Version history panel in editor | 1.5h | List of published versions with timestamps |
| Rollback action with confirmation | 1h | "Revert to version 3?" |
| URL redirect chain update on rollback | 1h | Update redirects to point to restored URL |
| Version comparison view (stretch) | 2h | Side-by-side diff |

### Phase 5: Polish

| Task | Est | Notes |
|------|-----|-------|
| Draft age indicator ("Last saved 5 mins ago") | 30m | |
| Draft conflict handling (stale draft warning) | 1h | Edge case: published changed since draft created |
| Version pruning (keep last N versions) | 1h | Prevent unbounded growth |

## UX flow

### First-time site publish

1. New shop completes setup wizard
2. Site is in "coming soon" mode — visitors see placeholder
3. Admin edits pages, theme, settings (all auto-saved as drafts)
4. Admin clicks "Publish site" on dashboard
5. Site goes live — `first_published_at` set, all current drafts become version 1

### Editing a page

1. Admin navigates to page, clicks "Edit"
2. Editor panel opens, showing current published state
3. Admin makes changes — **auto-saved as draft every few seconds**
4. Admin can navigate away freely — draft persists
5. Admin returns later — draft loaded automatically
6. "Publish" button commits draft → new version
7. "Discard" button deletes draft, reverts to current published version

### Rolling back a page

1. Admin opens version history in editor
2. Sees list: "Version 3 (current) — 2 hours ago", "Version 2 — yesterday", etc.
3. Clicks "Revert to version 2"
4. Confirmation: "This will restore version 2 content and URL. Continue?"
5. On confirm: `published_version_id` updated, redirect chain adjusted
6. Current draft (if any) is NOT affected — can discard or keep editing

### Visual indicators

```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ⚠️ You have unpublished changes (last saved 2 mins ago) │
│                                [Publish] [Discard]      │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```

When admin views a page with a draft:
- Banner at top of editor panel
- "Unpublished" badge next to page title
- Different background tint in editor (subtle)

### Visitors see published only

The `render_page/1` function checks:
1. If admin is viewing AND has draft → show draft
2. Otherwise → show published `blocks`

```elixir
defp get_blocks_for_render(page, current_user) do
  if current_user && page.draft_user_id == current_user.id && page.draft_blocks do
    page.draft_blocks
  else
    page.blocks
  end
end
```

## Migration path

1. Deploy with draft support disabled (feature flag)
2. Run migration to add draft columns
3. Enable draft mode
4. Existing pages continue working (no draft = show published)
5. New edits create drafts

## Future considerations

- **Multi-user drafts** — currently single draft per page, could extend to per-user drafts
- **Draft preview link** — shareable URL that shows draft to non-admins (for review)
- **Scheduled publishing** — "Publish at 9am tomorrow"
- **Theme/settings versioning** — extend version history to theme and shop settings
- **Bulk rollback** — "Revert entire site to yesterday" across all pages

## Dependencies

- Unified editing mode (phases 1-7) must be complete first
- This work builds on the editor panel UI established there

## Related Plans

- [dynamic-url-customisation.md](dynamic-url-customisation.md) — URLs are versioned data; these plans integrate cleanly
- Can be implemented in either order, but implementing together gives the cleanest result

## Estimates

| Phase | Est |
|-------|-----|
| Phase 0: Site-level publishing | 1.5h |
| Phase 1: Page versions and drafts | 7h |
| Phase 2: Theme drafts | 4h |
| Phase 3: Settings drafts | 4h |
| Phase 4: Version history and rollback | 5.5h |
| Phase 5: Polish | 2.5h |
| **Total** | **24.5h** |

## References

- [Squarespace draft model](https://support.squarespace.com/hc/en-us/articles/205815578-Saving-and-publishing-site-changes)
- [Shopify theme versions](https://shopify.dev/docs/themes/architecture#theme-versions)
- [WordPress autosave](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/post/autosave/)