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Sync to local server

Sync to local server publishes a Maglr project to your own FTP or SFTP server, straight from the page overview in the dashboard. Maglr sets up the connection to your server and links it to one of your domains. Every project you publish on that domain is synchronized to your server each time you publish it live.


The sync is available for Enterprise organizations. For server requirements and technical details, see Enterprise local sync solution. For a one-time copy of a single project, use the ZIP export instead.


Publishing a project to your own server


When you publish a synced project live, Maglr first publishes it on the Maglr platform and then synchronizes the files to your server. Once the connection is set up, publishing needs no FTP software or technical steps.


To publish a project to your own server:


  1. Open the project and go to the page overview.
  2. Click Publish in the top-right corner of the page overview.
  3. (Optional) Under Temporary preview, click Create preview to check the project first. The preview is served from Maglr's preview domain, not from your server.
  4. If the project is not active yet, click the Project inactive switch so it reads "Project active". Until then, the menu shows "Activate project to publish live".
  5. Under "Synchronize to live server", click Publish live.
  6. Wait while the menu shows "Preparing project for remote server" and "Synchronizing pages to remote server". The first sync takes the longest, because all files are transferred.


Image: publishing and sync project to external server directly from dashboard


Image: publishing the project directly to an external server


To publish changes later, edit the project in Maglr, click Publish and then Publish live again.


Updates and URLs on your own server


Each synced project gets its own folder on your server, named after its Project URL. Its pages sit inside that folder.


  • Updates: when you publish a synced project again, only new and changed files are uploaded. Files that are no longer part of the project, such as a removed page, are deleted from your server.
  • Changing the Project URL: if you change the Project URL in the project settings, the project's folder on your server is renamed to match the next time you publish the project live. The sync doesn't forward links that use the old Project URL, so those links stop working.
  • Changing page URLs: if you change a page's URL, visitors and search engines that use the old URL are forwarded to the new one with a permanent (301) redirect after you publish the project live again.


The sync always creates pages without .html in their URLs and writes the redirects into .htaccess (Apache) and web.config (IIS) files. Your server must support URL rewrites, or the pages and redirects don't work. See Enterprise local sync solution for the requirements.


Removing a project from your server


To remove a synced project from your own server, set it inactive in Maglr:


  1. Open the project and go to the page overview.
  2. Click Publish in the top-right corner of the page overview.
  3. Click the Project active switch so it reads "Project inactive".
  4. Click Set inactive.


Setting a synced project inactive deletes its folder, with all its files, from your own server. Deleting the project in Maglr does the same.


Limitations of synced projects


Some Maglr features work differently, or not at all, for projects synced to your own server:


  • Overview page: a synced project is published on its own. An overview page listing multiple projects is not included on your server.
  • Embed codes: an embed code always loads the project from Maglr, not from your own server.
  • Passwords and login links: the Security tab in the project settings is not available for synced projects, so you can't secure a synced project with a password or an automatic login link.
  • Share single page: the Share single page option is not available for synced projects.
  • Search: search within a synced project works, but each search query is sent to the Maglr platform.
  • Contact form: the contact menu in the navigation can be enabled on a synced project, but its e-mails are sent through the Maglr platform.
  • Editing: the files on your server can't be edited there. To change a synced project, edit it in Maglr and publish it again.


Frequently asked questions


Can I publish a project on Maglr only, without syncing it to my server?


Not on a synced domain. Every project published live on a domain that is linked to your own server is synchronized to that server. There is no per-project option to publish to Maglr only.


What happens to the files on my server if I set a project inactive?


Setting a synced project inactive deletes its folder, with all its files, from your own server. Deleting the project in Maglr does the same. To put it back, set the project active and publish it live again.


Which types of server can I connect?


The sync works with FTP and SFTP servers only. A direct connection to Amazon S3 is not supported. The server must also support URL rewrites. Maglr sets up the connection; you can't add a server yourself in the dashboard.

Updated on: 20/10/2026