GitHub Pages Source dropdown is disabled and deployment fails with 404

[Tomgit-cyber]

GitHub Pages Source dropdown is disabled and deployment fails with 404

Hello,

I need help troubleshooting GitHub Pages for my public repository:

https://github.com/Tomgit-cyber/CifraBase

Problem

Under Settings → Pages → Build and deployment, the Source dropdown is gray and cannot be selected.

What I have verified

• The repository is public.
• The repository is not archived or disabled.
• I am signed in as the repository owner and can access the repository settings.
• My GitHub Actions workflow successfully builds the site and uploads the github-pages artifact.
• The deployment step fails with the following error:

Error: Creating Pages deployment failed

HttpError: Not Found

The error message indicates that GitHub Pages may not be enabled.

I also checked GitHub Status, which showed all systems operational at the time.

What I need help with

Could someone help me determine why the GitHub Pages Source dropdown is disabled and explain how to enable deployment for this repository?

I would prefer to resolve this through GitHub repository settings without modifying the application's source code or local data.

Thank you for your help.

[github-actions[bot]]

💬 Your Product Feedback Has Been Submitted 🎉

Thank you for taking the time to share your insights with us! Your feedback is invaluable as we build a better GitHub experience for all our users.

Here's what you can expect moving forward ⏩

• Your input will be carefully reviewed and cataloged by members of our product teams. 
  • Due to the high volume of submissions, we may not always be able to provide individual responses.
  • Rest assured, your feedback will help chart our course for product improvements.
• Other users may engage with your post, sharing their own perspectives or experiences. 
• GitHub staff may reach out for further clarification or insight. 
  • We may 'Answer' your discussion if there is a current solution, workaround, or roadmap/changelog post related to the feedback.

Where to look to see what's shipping 👀

• Read the Changelog for real-time updates on the latest GitHub features, enhancements, and calls for feedback.
• Explore our Product Roadmap, which details upcoming major releases and initiatives.

What you can do in the meantime 💻

• Upvote and comment on other user feedback Discussions that resonate with you.
• Add more information at any point! Useful details include: use cases, relevant labels, desired outcomes, and any accompanying screenshots.

As a member of the GitHub community, your participation is essential. While we can't promise that every suggestion will be implemented, we want to emphasize that your feedback is instrumental in guiding our decisions and priorities.

Thank you once again for your contribution to making GitHub even better! We're grateful for your ongoing support and collaboration in shaping the future of our platform. ⭐

[jinchuntan]

Your workflow already has pages: write and id-token: write plus the github-pages environment. I wouldn’t broaden its permissions to troubleshoot this.

The upload succeeding means the artifact was stored in Actions. It doesn’t confirm that Pages is enabled for the repository. GitHub’s setup guide treats those as separate steps.

Since the Source dropdown is disabled I’d try opening the same settings page in another browser while signed into the owner account. If it stays disabled there too then a screenshot of the whole Pages settings section would help identify any message above the dropdown.

If you already use GitHub CLI you can also check the Pages configuration without changing anything.

gh api repos/Tomgit-cyber/CifraBase/pages

A successful response means a Pages configuration exists. A 404 can mean the site doesn’t exist or that your credentials can’t access it. Make sure the CLI is signed into the owner account and has permission to read Pages before interpreting that result.

Could you share the status from that check and any message shown above the disabled dropdown? That would help narrow this down without touching your application files or local data.

[mohdkhatab]

Hi @Tomgit-cyber, the key detail here is that a successful upload does not mean Pages itself is enabled yet. The upload step only stores an artifact in Actions. The deploy step then looks for a Pages site for the repository, and if that site has never been created, it fails with exactly the 404 you are seeing.

Try creating the Pages site first, without changing your application code:

1. Go to Settings > Pages > Build and deployment.
2. If you can select a source, temporarily choose Deploy from a branch, pick your main branch and the root folder, and save. Wait until GitHub shows a Pages URL for the repository. That step creates the Pages site.
3. Change Source back to GitHub Actions.
4. Re-run the workflow from the Actions tab. The deploy step should now find the site.

If the Source dropdown is still greyed out, try the same Settings page in a private browser window or another browser, with extensions disabled, in case a cached page or an extension is blocking the control. Also check for any message above the dropdown about permissions or a policy.

You can also check whether a Pages site exists without changing anything, as mentioned above:

gh api repos/Tomgit-cyber/CifraBase/pages

If that returns a 404, there is no Pages site yet, and that is the problem to fix first. If it returns a site, check that its build type is for Actions.

Finally, confirm the deploy job itself has what Pages needs:

permissions:
  pages: write
  id-token: write
environment:
  name: github-pages
  url: ${{ steps.deployment.outputs.page_url }}

And that it uses the upload and deploy Pages actions. You do not need to broaden those permissions to fix a 404. The most likely fix is simply to create the Pages site once, then switch the source to GitHub Actions and re-run the workflow.