GitHub Pages Project Site URL Rules | Generated by AI

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With GitHub Pages, you can create Project Sites under your personal account in addition to your User Site (username.github.io). However, the format of the URL for Project Sites is limited to specific patterns, and not all subdomain or subpath configurations are natively supported. Let’s address your question about whether you can use username.github.io/project1 or project1.username.github.io for Project Sites.

Key Points

• User Site: A single repository named username.github.io serves content at https://username.github.io.
• Project Sites: Any other repository in your personal account can be configured as a Project Site, served at https://username.github.io/repository-name (a subpath, not a subdomain).
• Subdomain Limitation: GitHub Pages does not natively support subdomains like project1.username.github.io under the github.io domain. The github.io domain is managed by GitHub, and only username.github.io (for users) or organization.github.io (for organizations) are supported as top-level subdomains. Custom subdomains like project1.username.github.io require a custom domain and DNS configuration.

Can You Use username.github.io/project1?

Yes, you can use username.github.io/project1 for a Project Site. This is the standard way GitHub Pages handles Project Sites:

• Create a repository in your personal account (e.g., username/project1).
• Enable GitHub Pages for that repository:
  • Go to the repository’s Settings tab.
  • Scroll to the Pages section.
  • Under Source, select the branch to publish (e.g., main or gh-pages) and save.
• Once configured, the site will be accessible at https://username.github.io/project1.
• You can create multiple Project Sites (e.g., username.github.io/project2, username.github.io/project3) by enabling GitHub Pages on additional repositories (username/project2, username/project3, etc.).
• Content: Add an index.html or use a static site generator like Jekyll in the publishing branch of each repository.

Can You Use project1.username.github.io?

No, GitHub Pages does not support subdomains like project1.username.github.io natively under the github.io domain. The github.io domain only allows:

• username.github.io for User Sites.
• organization.github.io for Organization Sites.
• Subpaths like username.github.io/repository-name for Project Sites.

To achieve a URL like project1.username.github.io, you would need:

1. A Custom Domain: Purchase a domain (e.g., example.com) from a registrar like Namecheap or GoDaddy.
2. DNS Configuration: Set up a CNAME record to point a subdomain (e.g., project1.example.com) to your GitHub Pages site (e.g., username.github.io or username.github.io/project1).
3. GitHub Pages Settings:
   • In the repository’s Pages settings, configure the custom domain (e.g., project1.example.com).
   • Optionally, enable “Enforce HTTPS” for security.
4. Outcome: You can map project1.example.com to the content of the project1 repository, but not project1.username.github.io, as GitHub controls the github.io domain and doesn’t allow custom subdomains under it.

Example Setup for username.github.io/project1

1. Create a repository named project1 under your account (username/project1).
2. Add content (e.g., index.html):

   git clone https://github.com/username/project1
   cd project1
   echo "Hello from Project 1" > index.html
   git add --all
   git commit -m "Initial commit"
   git push origin main
   

3. Enable GitHub Pages:
   • Go to username/project1 → Settings → Pages.
   • Set the source to main (or another branch) and save.
4. Visit https://username.github.io/project1 to see the site live (may take a few minutes to propagate).

Example for Custom Subdomain with a Custom Domain

If you want project1.example.com:

1. Own a domain (e.g., example.com).
2. In your DNS provider’s settings, add a CNAME record:
   • Name: project1
   • Value: username.github.io
3. In the project1 repository’s Pages settings, set the custom domain to project1.example.com.
4. Push content to the project1 repository, and it will be served at project1.example.com.

Limitations

• Subpaths Only for github.io: Without a custom domain, Project Sites are always served as subpaths (username.github.io/project1), not subdomains (project1.username.github.io).
• One User Site: Your username.github.io repository is reserved for your User Site. Project Sites use other repositories and appear as subpaths.
• Custom Subdomains Require Custom Domain: To get project1.something, you need to own something (e.g., example.com) and configure DNS.
• Private Repositories: Project Sites in private repositories require GitHub Pro, Team, or Enterprise. For free accounts, repositories must be public.

Summary

• Use username.github.io/project1: Yes, this is supported natively by creating a repository (username/project1) and enabling GitHub Pages. You can create multiple Project Sites this way (e.g., username.github.io/project2, etc.).
• Use project1.username.github.io: No, this is not supported under github.io. You’d need a custom domain (e.g., project1.example.com) and DNS setup to achieve a similar effect.
• Multiple Subdomains: To get multiple *.github.io subdomains, create GitHub organizations (as discussed previously) for org1.github.io, org2.github.io, etc., or use a custom domain for subdomains like project1.example.com.

If you need help setting up a specific Project Site, configuring a custom domain, or managing multiple sites, let me know!

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