FAQ
Does BranchDeploy work with GitHub or Bitbucket?
No. BranchDeploy only supports Azure DevOps organisations using Azure Repos and Azure Pipelines.
GitHub Actions, Bitbucket Pipelines, and Jenkins are not supported.
Does BranchDeploy store my credentials or personal access token?
For the core flow — deploying from a work item in the extension — no. BranchDeploy uses your existing Azure DevOps browser session and never asks for a PAT.
If you enable the Teams bot or AI assistant (MCP) features (both Pro), you provide a Personal Access Token on the account page. There’s no browser session in those headless contexts, so Teams uses your PAT to resolve work item branches and MCP uses it to resolve branches and queue pipelines on your behalf. The PAT is encrypted at rest and never exposed back to clients.
How do I upgrade to Pro?
Install the free extension first. Then open Project Settings → BranchDeploy in Azure DevOps and click Upgrade to Pro. You’ll be taken to a secure Stripe checkout, and your licence activates automatically — the extension detects it the next time you open the settings. There’s no separate account step required for the licence itself.
What happens if I have two branches linked to the same work item?
BranchDeploy shows a picker so you can select which linked branch or pull request to deploy.
What happens if a PR and a branch are both linked?
BranchDeploy uses the PR source branch and ignores separate branch refs. A PR is treated as the stronger signal.
Can I deploy to multiple environments from the same work item?
Free tier: One active environment per project. To change the target environment, update the settings page.
Pro tier: Multiple environments are supported by the Pro cloud configuration used by MCP and Teams. The Azure DevOps work-item button currently uses the project’s single active environment.
What pipeline permissions does BranchDeploy need?
For the Azure DevOps extension deploy button, BranchDeploy requires:
- Read access to Azure Repos (to look up branches and PRs)
- Queue builds permission on the configured pipeline
No service principal, managed identity, or service account is required for that workflow. BranchDeploy runs as the person clicking the action.
For MCP deployments, the Azure DevOps PAT saved in your BranchDeploy account needs Work Items (Read), Code (Read), and Build (Read & Execute).
Can I restrict which users can deploy?
Not in BranchDeploy. Use Azure Pipelines Security settings to control who can queue the target pipeline.
Does BranchDeploy work with Azure DevOps Server (on-premises)?
No. BranchDeploy targets the hosted dev.azure.com service only.
Can I use BranchDeploy without linking branches to work items?
No. BranchDeploy deploys from the work item’s Development links. No linked branch or PR means nothing to deploy.
Does BranchDeploy support multi-stage pipelines?
Yes. BranchDeploy queues the configured build definition through the Azure DevOps Build Queue API and sets the resolved branch as the run source. That works with classic pipelines and YAML multi-stage pipelines that can be queued from Azure DevOps.
Is there a free trial for Pro?
Not currently. The free tier is permanent; Pro features are paid. See pricing.
How do I cancel a subscription?
Open your account page, go to the Billing tab, and click Manage billing to open the Stripe portal. Pro stays active until the end of the current billing period.
Where is my data stored?
Free tier configuration stays in Azure DevOps Extension Data storage. The extension may send limited anonymous usage telemetry unless it is disabled in Project Settings → BranchDeploy; telemetry excludes repository names, branch names, organisation names, project names, emails, access tokens, commit messages, and pipeline variables.
For Pro, deployment logs are stored on Cloudflare infrastructure in the EU. See the privacy policy.
How do I report a bug or request a feature?
Email support@branch-deploy.dev or open a request on the support page. Include your organisation URL, the error message, and steps to reproduce.
