A Dropway site is a folder of static files served at a live, access-controlled URL. This walkthrough takes you from nothing to a shared link. You can do every step in the dashboard, from your terminal with the CLI, or from an AI client through the Dropway MCP server. We will show the dashboard and CLI paths side by side.
1. Sign in
Create a free account, or sign in if you already have one. Everything below works on the free tier, and you can self-host the whole stack if you would rather run it yourself.
Using the CLI? Authenticate once. A browser tab opens, you approve access, and the CLI stores a token locally so later commands just work.
dropway login2. Create a site
A site is identified by a slug, which becomes part of its URL (for example my-docs.dropwaycontent.com). In the dashboard, click New site and pick a slug.
From the CLI you do not need a separate step: passing --new creates the site as part of your first deploy. Install the CLI first if you have not already:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/danielpang/dropway/main/install.sh | sh3. Deploy your folder
Point Dropway at any directory of static files: your build output, an exported report, a prototype, a docs site. In the dashboard, drag and drop the folder onto the site’s Deploy card. Only changed files upload, and the site is live the moment it finishes.
From the terminal, one command creates the site (if needed) and ships it. --send publishes it live; drop it to stage a version without going public yet.
dropway deploy ./dist --new --site my-docs --sendEach deploy prints a version id. Deploys are immutable, so you can roll back to any earlier version id at any time.
4. Choose who can see it
This is the part that makes Dropway different from dropping files in a public bucket. Every site has a sharing tier, set from the site’s access settings:
- Public: anyone with the link.
- Password: anyone with the link and the password.
- Allowlist: only the specific email addresses you list.
- Org-only: only members of your organization.
You can change the tier any time without redeploying, and the change takes effect immediately.