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Enabling Netlify CMS 😎

Netlify CMS is a simple user interface that lets you add, edit, and preview your markdown files via a browser-based editor. It is very useful for beginners or anybody who wants an easy interface for managing content.

Step 1: Enable Netlify CMS in your configuration

Edit your site configuration in _data/sites.json and set enableNetlifyCMS to true

{
  ...
  "enableNetlifyCMS": true 👈 set this to true!
  ...
}

Once enabled, you will see a small gear icon in the lower right corner of your site that you can use to access your CMS once it is configured.

Step 2: Enable Netlify identity

  • From your Netlify dashboard, enabled Identity via Site settings > Identity > Enable Identity
  • Once enabled, click on Identity > Services and then Enable Git Gateway

Step 3: Enable Netlify External providers

  • Now go to Identity > Registration > External providers and then Add provider
  • Enable Github and/or Google (typically both)
  • This will enable both yourself and any collaborators to login directly using existing accounts

Step 4: Set your Netlify site to invite only

Unless you want to open access (not advised), you will want to set your CMS to invite only. Go to Site settings > Registration > Registration preferences and click “Edit settings” to change to invite only

Step 5: Login and edit content

You should now be able to login into your Netlify CMS by clicking the gear link in the footer, or by visting https://yoursite.netlify.app/admin

Did you know? In my experience, when you login via Netlify Identity it will confirm your login but will also show the login button again as if you did not just authenticate. Click it again and you should see your CMS. Sometimes Netlify identity is a little wonky to set up but once in place works fine.

Step 6: Invite other users

You can invite other users to your CMS by visting Identity > Invite users from the top navigation bar