Automated Deployment of a Next.js Application on Ubuntu server with Git Hooks

Deploying a Next.js application can be streamlined by automating the process with Git hooks and managing the application lifecycle with PM2. In this article, I'll walk you through setting up your server, transferring your application.

Step 1: Set Up the Server

Install Node.js, npm, pm2, git:

ssh your-username@serverIp
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y nodejs npm
sudo npm install -g pm2
sudo apt install -y git

Step 2: Transfer Your Next.js Application to the Server

On your local machine:

Add the Remote Repository

git remote add deploy ssh://your-username@serverIp/your-username/home/apps/my-nextjs-app.git

On the server:

Create the Bare Repository

mkdir -p /your-username/home/apps/my-nextjs-app.git
cd /your-username/home/apps/my-nextjs-app.git
git init --bare

Set Up the Post-Receive Hook

cd /your-username/home/apps/my-nextjs-app.git/hooks
nano post-receive

Add the following script to the post-receive hook:

#!/bin/bash
REPO_PATH=/your-username/home/my-nextjs-app.git
APP_PATH=/your-username/home/apps/my-nextjs-app
NODE_ENV=production

GIT_WORK_TREE=$APP_PATH git checkout -f main

cd $APP_PATH

npm install
npm run build

pm2 restart nextjs-app || pm2 start npm --name "nextjs-app" -- start

Make the hook executable:

chmod +x post-receive

Step 3: Deploy Your Application

On your local machine, push your code:

git push deploy main

Conclusion

In conclusion, deploying a Next.js application on Ubuntu can be efficiently managed through manual deployment, CI/CD pipelines, containerization, cloud services, PaaS solutions, static site export, or third-party hosting services, each offering unique benefits based on scalability, ease of use, cost, and complexity