Enhance deployment process and documentation for shinyapps.io

.github/workflows/deploy-shinyapps.yaml

@@ -48,7 +48,10 @@ jobs:
 
       - name: Deploy to shinyapps.io
         env:
+          R_CONFIG_ACTIVE: production
+          CRAN_SNAPSHOT: ${{ env.CRAN_SNAPSHOT }}
           SHINYAPPS_NAME: ${{ secrets.SHINYAPPS_NAME }}
           SHINYAPPS_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.SHINYAPPS_TOKEN }}
           SHINYAPPS_SECRET: ${{ secrets.SHINYAPPS_SECRET }}
-        run: Rscript inst/tasks/deploy_to_shinyio.R
+        run: |
+          Rscript inst/tasks/deploy_to_shinyio.R

.gitignore

@@ -8,3 +8,5 @@ scratchpad.md
 
 # rsconnect deployment history (may contain app IDs)
 rsconnect/
+
+/.quarto/

README.md

@@ -1,7 +1,18 @@
 # r.shiny.template
 
+<!-- badges: start -->
+![Licence](<https://img.shields.io/badge/licence-proprietary-red>)
+[![Shiny App](https://img.shields.io/badge/shinyapps.io-whitelabel-1f65cc?logo=rstudio&logoColor=white)](https://tonkintaylor.shinyapps.io/whitelabel/)
+<!-- badges: end -->
+
 This repository contains a template for a Golem-based Shiny application, including automation for R CMD checks and deployment to shinyapps.io via GitHub Actions.
 
+## Package version management
+
+This project uses a snapshot approach to package management for reproducibility. Packages are pinned to the CRAN snapshot that was available when the R version in use was released. This ensures consistent package versions across development environments and CI/CD pipelines.
+
+Locally, the snapshot repository is configured automatically via `.Rprofile` when the project is opened in RStudio or Positron (triggered by the `.Rproj` file). The same approach is applied in CI/CD workflows—the `.github/actions/capture-cran-snapshot` composite action determines the snapshot URL based on the R release date and configures it before installing dependencies.
+
 ## Required environment variables
 
 The GitHub Actions workflow expects the following secrets to be configured in the repository settings under **Settings → Secrets and variables → Actions**:
@@ -11,3 +22,39 @@ The GitHub Actions workflow expects the following secrets to be configured in th
 - `SHINYAPPS_SECRET`: The API secret paired with the token; treat this as sensitive and never commit it to source control.
 
 Add each value as an individual secret to enable the deployment step in `.github/workflows/R-CMD-check.yaml`.
+
+## Customisation
+
+### Update DESCRIPTION file
+
+Edit `DESCRIPTION` to reflect your application:
+
+- **Package**: Change from `whitelabel` to your app name (must match `YOUR_APP_NAME` in the badge above).
+- **Title**: Update with a concise title describing your Shiny app.
+- **Authors@R**: Replace the author details with your own name, role, and email.
+- **Description**: Provide a one-paragraph description of what your application does.
+
+### Update the deployed app badge
+
+Replace the badge URL in `README.md` (near the top under the title) with your own deployed shinyapps.io link:
+
+```markdown
+[![Shiny App](https://img.shields.io/badge/shinyapps.io-SHINYAPPS_APPNAME-1f65cc?logo=rstudio&logoColor=white)](https://SHINYAPPS_NAME.shinyapps.io/SHINYAPPS_APPNAME/)
+```
+
+- Replace `SHINYAPPS_APPNAME` with the name of your application as listed in `DESCRIPTION`.
+- Replace `SHINYAPPS_NAME` with the shinyapps.io account identifier.
+
+### Change the R version
+
+The CI/CD workflows are configured to use a specific R version (currently `4.5.1`) that should ideally match the version used for local development. To update the R version:
+
+1. Search the `.github` directory for both formats of the current version:
+   - Dotted format: `4.5.1`
+   - Hyphenated format: `4-5-1`
+2. Replace all occurrences with your desired R version in the corresponding format (e.g., `4.6.0` and `4-6-0`).
+3. Update occurs in:
+   - `.github/workflows/R-CMD-check.yaml` (appears in `r-version` and `cache-version`)
+   - `.github/workflows/deploy-shinyapps.yaml` (appears in `r-version` and `cache-version`)
+
+This ensures that both testing and deployment use the same R version and package snapshot date.

inst/tasks/deploy_to_shinyio.R

@@ -51,7 +51,14 @@ app_name <- desc::desc_get_field("Package")
 # This prevents rsconnect from trying to reinstall the whitelabel package
 rsconnect::deployApp(
   appName = app_name,
-  appFiles = c("R/", "inst/", "NAMESPACE", "DESCRIPTION", "app.R"),
+  appFiles = c(
+    "R/",
+    "inst/app",
+    "inst/golem-config.yml",
+    "NAMESPACE",
+    "DESCRIPTION",
+    "app.R"
+  ),
   appPrimaryDoc = "app.R",
   account = account_name,
   forceUpdate = TRUE,