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MkDocs Merge

This simple tool allows you to merge the source of multiple MkDocs sites into a single one converting each of the specified sites to a sub-site of the master site.

Key Features:

  • Merge multiple MkDocs sites into a single master site
  • Automatic deduplication: multiple merges replace existing entries (no duplicates)
  • Site unification: combine sites with the same name into single navigation sections
  • File system updates: content is properly replaced when re-merging sites

Important Behavior Note (v0.11.0+)

When merging the same site multiple times, existing entries are replaced (not duplicated). This allows you to update subsites by re-running the merge command.

Changelog

Access the changelog here: https://ovasquez.github.io/mkdocs-merge/changelog/

Note: Since version 0.6 MkDocs Merge added support for MkDocs 1.0 and dropped support for earlier versions. See here for more details about the changes in MkDocs 1.0.


PyPI version MkDocs Merge Validation Build

MkDocs-Merge officially supports Python versions 3.8, 3.9 and 3.10. It has been tested to work correctly in previous 3.X versions, but those are no longer officially supported.

Install

$ pip install mkdocs-merge

Usage

$ mkdocs-merge run MASTER_SITE SITES [-u]...

Parameters

  • MASTER_SITE: Path to the main MkDocs site (contains mkdocs.yml)
  • SITES: Paths to MkDocs sites to merge (each needs mkdocs.yml and docs/ folder)
  • -u (optional): Unify sites with the same name into one section

Note: Re-merging the same site replaces the existing content (enables updates).

Unification Feature

The -u flag combines multiple sites with the same site_name into a single navigation section.

Without -u: Sites with the same name create duplicate navigation entries.
With -u: Sites with the same name are merged into one section.

Use Cases:

  • Microservices documentation grouped under "Services"
  • Multi-repository projects in the same logical section
  • Team-based documentation contributions

Example

$ mkdocs-merge run root/mypath/mysite /another/path/new-site /newpath/website

A single MkDocs site will be created in root/mypath/mysite, and the sites in /another/path/new-site and /newpath/website will be added as sub-pages.

Original root/mypath/mysite/mkdocs.yml

---
nav:
  - Home: index.md
  - About: about.md

Merged root/mypath/mysite/mkdocs.yml

---
nav:
  - Home: index.md
  - About: about.md
  - new-site: new-site/home/another.md # Page merged from /another/path/new-site
  - website: website/index.md # Page merged from /newpath/website

Development

Dev Install

Clone the repository and specify the dev dependencies on the install command. Project has been updated to use pyproject.toml so the version has to be manually synchronized.

Setup Virtual Environment

Before installing the package, create and activate a virtual environment in the root directory of the repo:

cd <root of the cloned repo>
python -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate

Install the package for development mode

# Using quotes for zsh compatibility
$ pip install -e '.[dev]'

Test

The tests can be run using tox from the root directory. tox is part of the development dependencies:

$ tox

Publishing

Package publishing uses GitHub Actions. Documentation is published manually from main branch via Actions tab.

Project Status

Very basic implementation. The code works but doesn't allow to specify options for the merging.

Pending work

  • Refactoring of large functions.
  • GitHub Actions build.
  • GitHub Actions release automation.
  • Publish pip package.
  • Better error handling.
  • Merge configuration via CLI options.
  • Unit testing (work in progress).
  • CLI integration testing.
  • Consider more complex cases.
  • Make MkDocs Merge module friendly: thanks to mihaipopescu