The Real Story Behind Building is-cod.in Universe: From $52 Bills to Free Hosting 😅

The Journey No One Talks About 🎢

Hey dev.to family! 👋

I'm Araan, founder of is-cod.in Universe, and today I'm sharing the REAL story behind building our platform - including all the embarrassing mistakes and expensive lessons learned!

The Expensive Learning Curve 💸

The $52 Netlify Surprise 😱

Picture this: You're a student developer, excited about your new project, and then...

# Email from Netlify
Subject: Your Monthly Bill
Amount: $52
Usage: 4 days
Reason: Edge Function Execution

My reaction: "WHAT THE... 😨"

Yes, I actually got a $52 bill for just 4 days of usage! Why? Those sneaky edge functions were running wild!

What I did next (don't judge 😅):

1. Panicked
2. Deleted my account
3. Created a new one
4. Learned about pricing BEFORE deploying

The Hosting Adventure 🎪

Attempt 1: Netlify

• Pros: Easy to deploy
• Cons: Expensive edge functions
• Result: $52 bill and a deleted account 💀

Attempt 2: Vercel

// The dream
deploy.toVercel();

// The reality
Error: Sandbox execution timed out
Error: Function exceeded maximum execution time
Error: Why won't you work? 😭

Turns out Vercel's sandbox environment doesn't play nice with certain DNS operations!

Attempt 3: Railway

Looked promising until...

WARNING: Network egress approaching limit
WARNING: Network egress exceeded
WARNING: Your wallet is crying

Pro tip: Watch those egress limits like a hawk! 🦅

Final Solution: Microsoft Azure (Free Tier FTW!)

# The sweet spot
Azure Free Tier + Careful Resource Management = Happy Wallet 😊

Lessons Learned (The Hard Way) 📚

1. Read the Pricing Pages

   • Don't just click "Deploy"
   • Check the free tier limits
   • Understand what "egress" means BEFORE you need to

2. Test Locally First
   

   # Good approach
   Test locally
   Monitor resource usage
   Calculate potential costs
   Deploy safely

   # My approach initially
   Deploy first
   Cry later

1. Ask Your Community
   • Seniors have wisdom
   • Juniors have fresh perspectives
   • Twitter tech community saves lives

The Technical Challenges 🛠️

1. DNS Propagation

// What I thought I needed
const updateDNS = () => {
  // Simple update
};

// What I actually needed
const updateDNS = async () => {
  await handleCaching();
  await checkPropagation();
  await prayItWorks();
  await handleFailures();
  await consolePeople();
};

2. Resource Management

// Important lesson
interface Hosting {
  cost: number;
  limits: {
    egress: number;
    compute: number;
    patience: number;
  };
  reality: "Different from docs" | "Way different from docs";
}

Cloud Provider Comparison (From Experience) 🌩️

Netlify

• Great UI/UX
• Dangerous edge function pricing
• Best for static sites

Vercel

• Amazing for Next.js
• Sandbox limitations
• Watch those function timeouts

Railway

• Solid performance
• Clear pricing
• Watch the egress!

Azure (Our Choice)

• Reliable free tier
• Good documentation
• Complex but worth it

Money-Saving Tips for Developers 💰

1. Always Calculate Costs

   Monthly Users * Average Requests * Edge Function Calls = 💸

1. Use Free Tiers Wisely

   • Azure: Great limits
   • Vercel: Good for small projects
   • Railway: Watch the egress
   • Netlify: Avoid edge functions unless necessary

2. Monitor Everything
   

   // Set up alerts
   const monitorResources = () => {
     if (costs > budget) {
       sendPanicEmail();
       startPraying();
     }
   };

What We Use Now 🎯

Our current stack:

• Azure Free Tier for hosting
• Cloudflare for DNS
• MongoDB Atlas (free tier)
• Next.js for frontend
• TypeScript for sanity

Advice for New Developers 🌟

1. Start Small

   • Test locally
   • Use free tiers
   • Scale gradually

2. Read Documentation

   • Especially pricing pages
   • Including the fine print
   • Even the boring parts

3. Join Communities

   • Discord groups
   • Twitter tech community
   • Local dev meetups

The Happy Ending

Despite the $52 lesson and multiple hosting migrations, is-cod.in Universe is now running smoothly on Azure's free tier, serving thousands of users without breaking the bank!

Get Started (Without the Expensive Mistakes) 🚀

1. Visit register.is-cod.in
2. Create your free account
3. Get your subdomain
4. No surprise bills! 😉

Remember: Everyone makes mistakes - the key is learning from them (preferably from mine instead of your own 😅)

Happy coding (and careful deploying)! 🚀

Araan
Founder, is-cod.in Universe