# Content missing or rendered incorrectly | answer.cloud Docs

> Canonical source: [Content missing or rendered incorrectly | answer.cloud Docs](https://www.answer.cloud/docs/troubleshooting/content/)

Diagnose missing CMS pages, unpublished changes, template fallback, path collisions, and stale indexes using the actual collection and entry state.

troubleshooting

# Content missing or rendered incorrectly

Diagnose missing CMS pages, unpublished changes, template fallback, path collisions, and stale indexes using the actual collection and entry state.

Reviewed November 1, 2026

When CMS content is missing or wrong, inspect the intended organization, site, collection, and entry before editing it again. A saved draft, a published payload, a rendered page, and a search result represent different stages.

## Compare draft and published state

1. Call `list_cms_collections` for the exact site and find the real collection key.
2. Call `list_cms_entries` with the relevant status or title query.
3. Use `get_cms_entry` for the existing entry ID.
4. Compare `published_payload`, `draft_payload`, `has_unpublished_changes`, and `live_url`.
5. Open the private preview and public page separately.

`upsert_cms_entry` saves a draft by default. The summary title can reflect a new draft while the live page still contains the published title. Publish the existing entry when the reviewed change should go live; do not create a second entry just because the first draft is not public.

If a combined save-and-publish failed, the error can include an already-saved draft ID. Reuse that ID while fixing publication.

## Resolve rendering problems

| Symptom                 | Check                                                                                   |
|-------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| `cms_no_live_deploy`     | Complete the site's first live deployment before Answer Cloud HTML publication.         |
| Generic or unstyled page | Check show/index template health, required markers, and deployed stylesheet responses.  |
| `cms_path_collision`     | A static artifact occupies a CMS-owned path; remove the overlap in source or deliberately change the path. |
| Entry missing from index | Confirm published status, collection destination, index template, and republish result. |
| Archived entry cannot be restored | Check the Free active-CMS allowance, including drafts.                              |
| External destination differs | Inspect `publish_destination` and the connected Webflow item/URL.                     |

Private templates normally live at `.aeo/cms/{collection_key}/show.html` and `index.html`. The show template needs `<!-- aeo:content -->`; the index needs `<!-- aeo:entries -->`. Defining template paths through a tool does not upload their files. Build and deploy the correct templates, then republish published content to apply them.

## Verify indexes and discovery

After publication, inspect the returned `written_paths` and actual entry/index URLs. Check the advertised text mirror and discovery resources for the same content and hostname. Preserve existing approved slugs when fixing rendering; title changes should not be used as an excuse to create unrelated URLs.

For a Webflow destination, the tool's Answer Cloud written paths are empty and its generated index URL is absent. Verify the configured external destination instead of expecting an Answer Cloud HTML copy.

## Separate publication from retrieval

A public page can exist while chat/search cannot retrieve it. Inspect deployment indexing warnings and the plan's chat allowance. Free chat includes the first ten eligible published content pages, excluding collection indexes; a later page may be outside that set.

Test a distinctive phrase and a meaningful chat question, then review the actual answer and references. See [CMS contracts](https://www.answer.cloud/docs/reference/cms-tools/), [discovery files](https://www.answer.cloud/docs/ai-visibility/discovery-files/), and [chat/search recovery](https://www.answer.cloud/docs/troubleshooting/chat-and-search/). Contact [support](https://www.answer.cloud/docs/account/support/) with collection and entry IDs if state and public output still disagree.