---
schema_version: "1"
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title: Best Practices When Naming Branches
collection: admin
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/admin/current/en-us/platform/264-0-0/devops_center_pipeline_about_branches.md
canonical_url: https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.devops_center_pipeline_about_branches.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5
source_site: help.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: ec284abbc52b786edc60fb09a540da55b598a88244c1413fe2c1031ac24e6c03
description: Each pipeline stage has an associated branch in the source control repository, which contains the changes associated with your team’s work items. When building your pipeline, you can specify either an existing branch in the repository, or allow DevOps Center to create one for you. If you allow DevOps Center to create it for you, indicate a unique alphanumeric string.
products:
  - Salesforce Platform
release: "264"
---
# Best Practices When Naming Branches

Each pipeline stage has an associated branch in the source control repository, which contains the changes associated with your team’s work items. When building your pipeline, you can specify either an existing branch in the repository, or allow DevOps Center to create one for you. If you allow DevOps Center to create it for you, indicate a unique alphanumeric string.

We also recommend that branch names use:

- All lowercase letters
- 60 characters or fewer
- Hyphens or underscores as separators (no spaces)
- Both letters and numbers, but not all numbers

![Important](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-platform-devops_center_setup-264-0-0-production-enus/4741b024-a514-4bcf-8f2f-9d308932d2de/images/icon_important.png)

Important If you share branches across projects you can experience unexpected behavior particularly if changes are made to the branches outside of DevOps Center.

A branch must be sourced from the next stage’s branch (right to left). For example, let’s use our template pipeline structure to clarify what we mean. If your release environment’s branch is main, the branch for the pipeline stage to the left of it, `staging`, must be created from `main`. The branch for the pipeline stage to the left of Staging, called `uat`, must be created from the `staging`.

We handle this process for you if DevOps Center creates the branch. In this example, we’re creating a new branch for Staging from main. You provide a unique branch name, for example, `crm-staging`.

![Branch Settings dialog.](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-platform-devops_center_setup-264-0-0-production-enus/4741b024-a514-4bcf-8f2f-9d308932d2de/devops_center_setup/images/pipeline-branch-settings.png)