Writing code is one thing, but getting it live on a public server is another. This document explains some high-level details of our server environments and how we deploy our websites.
Development, staging, and production
Most Mozilla websites are split into three environments:
Development (AKA Dev) usually runs off of the latest code that has been committed for a project by updating regularly throughout the day. Dev is useful for testing new features and getting feedback.
The standard pattern for dev server URLs is
Staging (AKA stage) is intended to be similar to production and is used for testing the deployment process itself. Stage is usually deployed before deploying to production, and is sometimes used by QA for testing purposes as well.
The standard pattern for stage server URLs is
Production (AKA prod) is the live instance of the site. It is the environment that users see when they visit your site. Admin interfaces and other sensitive areas of a site are generally locked down in this environment.
The standard pattern for production server URLs is