---
title: Workers Builds
description: How each app builds and deploys on push with Cloudflare Workers Builds, with Preview URLs for every branch and no GitHub Actions.
---

Each deployable app is connected to Cloudflare Workers Builds on its own, so a push to `main` deploys production and a push to any other branch deploys a Worker Preview named after the branch.

| Setting | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Root directory | the app folder, such as `apps/web-wordpress` |
| Watch paths | the app folder, `packages/*`, `pnpm-lock.yaml` and `pnpm-workspace.yaml`, so a change to another app does not rebuild this one |
| Build command | the workspace's frozen install check and lint, then typecheck and tests for the app and the packages it depends on (`pnpm --filter "<app>..."`), so a failing check stops the deploy |
| Production deploy | `pnpm run deploy`, on `main` |
| Preview deploy | `pnpm run deploy --preview`, on every other branch |
| Build variables | `NODE_VERSION` from `.nvmrc`, `PNPM_VERSION` from the root `packageManager`, `SKIP_DEPENDENCY_INSTALL=1` |

`SKIP_DEPENDENCY_INSTALL` is set because an app folder has no lockfile of its own; the build command installs from the workspace root instead. It runs less than the full `pnpm verify`, which also runs the WordPress installs' PHP checks, because the build image has no PHP. Run `pnpm verify` yourself before opening a pull request.

The Payload app builds production only by default. Its branch Previews share the production database bindings, so they stay off until a site sets `WORKER_PREVIEWS=true` and puts every Preview hostname behind Access.

## Connect an app

Each app's `pnpm run builds:configure` creates this configuration through the Workers Builds API. It reads the Worker name from `cloudflare.config.ts` and the Node and pnpm versions from the repo, so the only inputs are ids.

1. Once for the repo, install the Cloudflare GitHub app on it from the dashboard. This is the only dashboard step.
2. Deploy once from your machine, so the Worker exists: `pnpm run deploy`.
3. Find the build token with `cf builds tokens list`, and the GitHub owner and repo ids.
4. Run `BUILD_TOKEN_UUID=… GITHUB_OWNER_ID=… GITHUB_REPO_ID=… pnpm run builds:configure`.
5. Push a branch and check that its Preview comes up, then merge and check production.

To keep a Worker's request logs, set `WORKER_LOGPUSH=true` before running `builds:configure`, so builds pass it on. See [Logging](/references/logging).

Preview URLs are public by default. Put them behind Cloudflare Access along with the CMS.

The full write-up, including what the first run taught, is in [Workers Builds and preview URLs](/research/workers-builds).