README

Project template for building Drupal CMS tailored for Acquia hosting. This project follows the official Drupal CMS releases and includes Acquia-specific additions and integrations.

Example workflow using Acquia CLI

1. Create project

   composer create-project acquia/drupal-cms-project
   

2. Initialize repo and commit

   cd drupal-cms-project && git init && git add -A && git commit -m "initial build"
   

3. Build artifact and push to cloud

   /usr/local/bin/acli push:artifact --destination-git-urls=<YOUR_ACQUIA_GIT_REPO_URL> --destination-git-branch=dist --quiet
   

4. Checkout the new branch on cloud

   /usr/local/bin/acli app:task-wait "$(/usr/local/bin/acli api:environments:code-switch <YOUR_AH_SITEGROUP>.dev dist)"
   

5. Drop database on cloud if you have previously installed a site and want to see the Drupal CMS installer

   /usr/local/bin/acli remote:drush @<YOUR_AH_SITEGROUP>.dev sql:drop
   

6. Visit your site!

Branches

This repo ships with two branches: main and dist.

main

The main branch is used for development. When you're ready to deploy a feature or update, you will build an artifact from the main branch using ACLI.

Develop and deploy a feature

1. Create a feature branch from main

   $ git checkout -b <FEATURE_BRANCH_NAME> main
   

2. Do your work on the feature branch. Once it's reviewed and ready, merge it back into main.
3. Create a deployment artifact from main.

   $ acli push:artifact --destination-git-urls="<YOUR_ACQUIA_GIT_URL>" --destination-git-branch=<DEPLOYMENT_ARTIFACT_BRANCH_NAME>
   

dist

The dist branch is a prebuilt deployment artifact. You can use it to get an application up and running quickly without building an artifact. You must generate a unique salt hash in the dist branch before using it. You can use the Drupal Recommended Settings provided Drush command to do this: drush drupal:hash-salt:init. This artifact uses the latest PHP version available on Acquia, currently 8.5. The prebuilt dist branch is generally NOT recommended for normal workflows.

Example dist branch workflow

1. Clone the repo.

   $ git clone git@github.com:acquia/drupal-cms-project.git
   

2. Check out the dist branch.

   $ git checkout dist
   

3. Remove the GitHub remote.

   $ git remote remove origin
   

4. Generate a unique hash salt and add it to Git.

   $ vendor/bin/drush drupal:hash-salt:init
   $ git add -A
   $ git commit -m "Unique hash salt"
   

5. Add your Acquia Git URL as a remote and push the dist branch to it.

   $ git remote add acquia <YOUR_ACQUIA_GIT_REPO_URL>
   $ git push acquia dist
   

6. Checkout the dist branch on cloud.

   $ acli app:task-wait "$(/usr/local/bin/acli api:environments:code-switch <YOUR_ACQUIA_HOSTING_SITE_GROUP>.<HOSTING_ENVIRONMENT> dist)"
   

7. Install from the prebuilt artifact's configuration on cloud.

   $ acli remote:drush @<YOUR_ACQUIA_HOSTING_SITE_GROUP>.<HOSTING_ENVIRONMENT> -- site:install --existing-config --yes
   

8. Import the default content provided by Drupal CMS starter.

   $ acli remote:drush @<YOUR_ACQUIA_HOSTING_SITE_GROUP>.<HOSTING_ENVIRONMENT> -- content:import ../recipes/drupal_cms_starter/content --yes
   

License

Copyright (C) 2026 Acquia, Inc.

This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License version 2 as published by the Free Software Foundation.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.