---
title: "Sites"
space: "Framework"
url: "https://docs.frappe.io/framework/user/en/basics/sites"
updated: "2026-02-17"
---

Frappe is a multitenant platform and each tenant is called a site. A site has its own database. Sites exist in a directory called `sites`, assumed as the current working directory when running a bench command.

Sites Directory
---------------

The sites directory `frappe-bench/sites` is where all the sites for this bench live. It also contains some other files and directories which are explained next.

### apps.txt

This file contains a list of Frappe apps. An app should be listed here before it can be installed on a site. It is added automatically when `bench get-app` command or `bench new-app` command is run.

### common_site_config.json

Configuration common to all sites can be put in this file. Learn more about [site configuration](/framework/v14/user/en/basics/site_config).

### assets

Assets contain files that are required to be served for the client browser. These generally include *.js, *.css, and image files. This directory is auto generated using the `bench build` command. This directory is served by Nginx in production.

Creating a new site
-------------------

To create a new site, run the following command from the `frappe-bench` directory:


```
$ bench new-site mysite.localhost

Installing frappe...
Updating DocTypes for frappe        : [========================================]
Updating country info               : [========================================]
*** Scheduler is disabled ***
  

```
The `mysite.local` directory will now be created in the `sites` directory.

Directory Structure
-------------------


```
sites/mysite.localhost
├── locks
├── private
│   ├── backups
│   └── files
├── public
│   └── files
├── site_config.json
└── task-logs
  

```
### locks

This directory is used by the scheduler to synchronize various jobs using the [file locking concept](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File_locking).

### private

This directory contains files that require authentication to access. It contains private files and backups. They can be accessed by the URL: `/private/files/private-file.png`.

### public

This directory contains publicly accessible files. They can be accessed by the URL: `/files/public-file.png`.

### site_config.json

This file contains site specific configuration.

Site Config
-----------

A file named `site_config.json` exists in every site directory and is used to store site specific configuration. The values are available in `frappe.conf` local variable as a dict.

Example `site_config.json`:


```
{
    "db_name": "test_frappe",
    "db_password": "test_frappe",
    "admin_password": "admin",
}
  

```
To learn more about managing Site or Bench level configurations, checkout [this comprehensive document](/framework/v14/user/en/basics/site_config).

Site Resolution
---------------

While responding to an HTTP request, a site is automatically selected based on,

* `Host` header in the HTTP request matches a site
* `X-Frappe-Site-Name` header in the HTTP request matches a site

It is also possible to force the development server to serve a specific site by starting it with the following command:


```
bench --site mysite.localhost serve
  

```
Set a site as the current site
------------------------------

To force a site to be used as the default site, run the following command:


```
bench use mysite.localhost
  

```
After running this command, site specific commands can be run without the `--site` parameter.

For example, instead of running:


```
bench --site mysite.localhost migrate
  

```
You can just run:


```
bench migrate
  

```