Are you interested in creating a website using Jekyll, but feeling overwhelmed by the setup process? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Many people find the prospect of setting up a local Jekyll environment daunting, and may be put off by the technical aspects involved. The good news is that there’s a way to create and publish a Jekyll website without the need for local setup. In this guide, we’ll show you how.
Step 1: Choosing a Jekyll Hosting Platform
The first step to creating a Jekyll website without local setup is to choose a hosting platform. Some popular hosting platforms for Jekyll websites include GitHub Pages, Netlify, and Vercel, among others. Each platform has its own advantages and disadvantages, so it’s important to choose the one that best fits your needs.
If you’re new to Jekyll, we recommend starting with GitHub Pages. It’s easy to set up, and offers free hosting for personal websites. If you’re looking for more advanced features, such as continuous deployment or serverless functions, Netlify and Vercel are great options to consider.
Step 2: Creating a Jekyll Website from a Template
Once you’ve chosen a hosting platform, the next step is to create a Jekyll website from a template. Jekyll templates are pre-built website structures that you can use as a starting point for your own website. They can save you a lot of time and effort, and help ensure that your website has a clean and consistent structure.
There are many Jekyll templates available online, both free and paid. Some popular templates include Minimal Mistakes, Hyde, and Lanyon, among others. You can find these templates by searching online or by browsing the Jekyll themes directory.
Step 3: Customizing the Jekyll Website
After you’ve created a Jekyll website from a template, it’s time to customize it. This is where you can really make your website your own, by changing the content, layout, and styling to fit your needs.
Jekyll uses a specific file structure, which can be a bit daunting at first. However, once you get the hang of it, it’s actually quite intuitive. The main files you’ll be working with are the config.yml file (where you can change the site’s settings), the _layouts folder (where you can change the site’s layout), and the _posts folder (where you can add your own content). You can also modify other pages available in the home directory like home, contact us and privacy policy.
Step 4: Publishing the Jekyll Website
Once you’ve customized your Jekyll website to your liking, it’s time to publish it. This is where the hosting platform you chose in Step 1 comes in handy. Most hosting platforms offer a simple way to publish Jekyll websites, usually by connecting your site to a Git repository or by using a drag-and-drop interface.
Since, we did not do any local setup, we can only publish through the Git repository. For Github, click on the settings tab at the top. On the sidebar, find and click the pages link in the “Code and Automation” section.
In the “Code and automation” section of the sidebar, click Pages.
For the “Source”, choose deploy from branch. Select “branch” main or master depending on the options available. If you refresh the page, you will get a link to your website. Wait a few minutes(1 to 5 minutes). If you click on the link, you will be able to see your website.
Step 5: Troubleshooting
Sometimes, when you publish your websites, your host may fail to deploy your website. You need to figure out why the website failed to get publish. On Github Pages, check the Actions tab on your Project’s repository. On Netlify, Vercel and Cloudflare pages, you can check the deploy logs. You will see a warning of why the deployed failed. Copy the error and search online, you will get solutions to your problem.
Conclusion
And that’s it! You’ve now created and published a Jekyll website without the need for local setup. While there may be some technical aspects involved, creating a Jekyll website is easier than you might think, and can be a great way to create a fast and lightweight website that’s easy to maintain. We hope this guide has been helpful, and wish you the best of luck with your Jekyll website!
