We have been managing several Shopware 5 shops for several years and have been using automatic deployments there for quite some time. We have only benefited from it and would like to share our experiences on this matter.

Advantage: easy deployment

Thanks to automation, it is now much easier to carry out the deployment. All colleagues can perform the deployment. A brief introduction is sufficient, as we have reduced the entire process to a single command. It is now also no longer possible for files or steps to be forgotten, making the deployments much cleaner now.

Time saving advantage

Manually copying files and ensuring that all deployment steps have been completed has always taken some time. We were able to greatly reduce this. We now have significantly more time to review the new changes in the frontend and backend.

Backup advantage

With each deployment, the current system is saved as a backup. The new system is rebuilt in a new folder on the server from the repositories, and after successful installation, only the links are adjusted.

Rollback advantage

If, contrary to expectations, something goes wrong during a deployment, a rollback can easily be performed using the previous backup. Only one command needs to be executed, and the folder with the previous system takes over again.

Advantage of Staging Environment

By making small adjustments to the deployment script, it was very easy to set up a staging system in a subfolder of the shops. This has the advantage that the plugin licenses also apply there and the same server can be used. This way, new features can be realistically tested.

Setting up challenge

The initial setup and development of the deployment script can be a small challenge depending on the number of plugins and the size of the shop. No plugin or theme should be forgotten, and the correct version numbers must be maintained. Some shops may also need to be switched to composer installation before the first deployment.

If you have any questions about this or if you want to use automatic deployment yourself and need support, Feel free to write to us.Could you please provide the text that you would like me to translate into English?