Projects Without Custom Code

Not every Odoo project needs a developer. If you only plan to use standard Odoo apps, configured from inside Odoo, you can create a project without a Git repository. Nothing to connect, nothing to push: Skysize deploys standard Odoo and you install the apps you need from the Apps menu.

You can add a repository later, at any time, without recreating the project.

Creating a project without a repository

1. From the Projects page, click New Project and enter a project name.
2. When asked "Will this project use custom code?", choose No, standard Odoo is enough.
3. Pick the Odoo version and edition, then the region where the instance should run.
4. Review and click Create project.

Skysize creates the project with a single production environment named main and starts the first deployment right away. When it shows running, click Login to open your Odoo instance and install your apps.

note

The first deployment creates a brand-new database with only the base Odoo module installed. Everything else (Sales, Inventory, Accounting, Website…) is installed from inside Odoo, exactly like on a fresh Odoo installation.

What is different without a repository

	With a repository	Without a repository
Custom modules and themes	Deployed from your Git branches	Not available until a repository is attached
Production environment	The Git branch you promote	A single environment named main
Staging environments	One per Git branch you set to Staging	Created from the Branches tab with New staging
Development environments	One per Git branch you set to Development	Not available (they only exist to test code changes)
Deploy on push	Yes	No pushes, nothing to deploy; updates happen from inside Odoo
Backups, custom domains, access management, monitoring	✅	✅

Everything that is not about code works exactly the same: backups, custom domains, team access, the monitoring tab, and the AI agent connection.

Staging environments

You do not need Git to test a change safely. A staging environment is a copy of your production database where you can try a new app, an import, or a configuration change before doing it for real.

1. Open the project's Branches tab.
2. Under Staging, click + New staging.
3. Give it a name (for example staging or test-accounting) and click Create.

Skysize creates the environment and starts its first build, which clones your production database. Once it is running, log in and test. To refresh it from production again later, click Rebuild on the staging environment.

info

Staging environments require a paid or trial plan; the number you can create depends on your subscription. Free Sandbox projects do not have staging. See Branch Types for how staging environments behave.

Adding a repository later

The day you need a custom module, a theme, or a developer, attach a repository. Your production database is kept as it is; from then on the project behaves like any other Git-backed project.

1. Open the project's Settings tab and go to the Repository section.
2. Click Add a repository.
3. Choose your Git provider (GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket). If it is not connected yet, click Connect, approve the access on the provider's page, and you are brought back to the project.
4. Either use an existing repository (pick the account, then the repository) or create a new one under one of your accounts (Skysize creates an empty repository for you).
5. For an existing repository, choose the branch to deploy from. This branch becomes your production branch: every push to it redeploys production.
6. Click Add repository.

What happens next:

• Your existing production environment is mapped onto the branch you chose (its name in Skysize changes from main to that branch's name). The database is untouched.
• The repository's other branches appear on the Branches tab as development branches, ready to be set to Staging or Development.
• Skysize registers its deploy key and push webhook on the repository, so deploy-on-push works immediately.
• Custom modules in the repository become available on the next deployment; install them from the Apps menu (see Add a Custom Module).

caution

Attaching a repository is a one-way operation: a project cannot go back to running without a repository, and it cannot be re-pointed at a different repository later. Choose the branch to deploy from carefully; you can still promote another branch to production afterwards from the Branches tab.

When to choose which

• Standard Odoo apps, no developer: start without a repository. It is the fastest way to a running instance, and you lose nothing: a repository can be attached the day you need one.
• Custom modules, themes, or a development team from day one: create the project with a repository so every environment maps to a Git branch. See Deploy Your First Instance.