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Neweraofcoding
Neweraofcoding

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Getting Started with Vite

#tooling #javascript #frontend #beginners

A Practical Guide to the Fastest Frontend Dev Experience

Frontend tooling has changed dramatically in the last few years.
If you’ve used Webpack-based setups, you probably remember:

  • Slow dev servers
  • Long rebuild times
  • Complex configuration
  • Painful hot reloads

This is exactly the problem Vite was created to solve.

What Is Vite?

Vite is a modern frontend build tool that focuses on:

  • ⚡ Instant dev server startup
  • ⚡ Near-instant hot module replacement (HMR)
  • 📦 Optimized production builds
  • 🧠 Minimal configuration

Vite is not just a bundler — it’s a new way of thinking about frontend development.

Why Vite Is So Fast (The Secret Sauce)

Traditional tools:

  • Bundle everything before the dev server starts

Vite:

  • Serves source files directly via native ES modules
  • Bundles only for production

What this means

✔ Dev server starts instantly
✔ Files are loaded on demand
✔ HMR is blazing fast

Step 1️⃣ Install Node.js (If Needed)

Vite requires:

  • Node.js 18+ (recommended)

Check:

node -v
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Step 2️⃣ Create Your First Vite Project

The easiest way is using Vite’s official scaffolding tool:

npm create vite@latest
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You’ll be prompted to choose:

  • Project name
  • Framework (Vanilla, React, Vue, Svelte, etc.)
  • TypeScript or JavaScript

Example (React + TS):

npm create vite@latest my-app -- --template react-ts
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Then:

cd my-app
npm install
npm run dev
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🎉 Your app is running in milliseconds.

Step 3️⃣ Project Structure (Simple & Clean)

Typical Vite project:

my-app/
├─ index.html
├─ src/
│  ├─ main.ts
│  ├─ App.tsx
├─ vite.config.ts
├─ package.json
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Key difference:

index.html is part of your source, not hidden inside a build system.

This improves:

  • Transparency
  • Debugging
  • DX

Step 4️⃣ Understanding vite.config.ts

Minimal config example:

import { defineConfig } from 'vite';

export default defineConfig({
  server: {
    port: 5173
  }
});
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You don’t configure loaders, plugins, or bundling unless you really need to.

Step 5️⃣ Hot Module Replacement (HMR)

This is where Vite shines ✨

  • State is preserved
  • UI updates instantly
  • No full reloads

Perfect for:

  • Forms
  • Dashboards
  • Component-driven development

Step 6️⃣ TypeScript Works Out of the Box

Vite supports:

  • TypeScript
  • JSX / TSX
  • CSS Modules
  • PostCSS
  • SCSS

No extra setup needed.

Step 7️⃣ Production Build (Powered by esbuild + Rollup)

Dev mode:

  • Native ES modules

Production build:

  • Bundled using esbuild + Rollup
  • Optimized
  • Tree-shaken
  • Code-split

Build command:

npm run build
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Preview production build:

npm run preview
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Vite with Angular: The Reality (Important)

Angular does not officially use Vite by default.

Instead:

  • Angular CLI uses esbuild
  • Provides Vite-like DX
  • With full Angular integration

You can use Vite with Angular via community tools, but:

  • It’s not the recommended default
  • Angular’s native build system already delivers similar speed

👉 For Angular apps: prefer Angular CLI (esbuild)
👉 For framework-agnostic or React/Vue apps: Vite is ideal

Vite vs Webpack (DX Comparison)

Feature Webpack Vite
Dev server startup Slow ⚡ Instant
HMR Inconsistent ⚡ Extremely fast
Config complexity High Minimal
Debugging Hard Simple
DX Average Excellent

When You SHOULD Use Vite

✔ New projects
✔ React / Vue / Svelte apps
✔ Component libraries
✔ Design systems
✔ Micro-frontends

When You Should NOT Use Vite

❌ Legacy Angular CLI apps
❌ Heavy Webpack plugin dependency
❌ Highly custom build pipelines

Why Developers Love Vite

  • Faster feedback loop
  • Less mental overhead
  • Cleaner configs
  • More fun to work with

Vite makes frontend development feel modern again.

Final Thoughts

Vite isn’t just faster tooling —
it’s a developer experience upgrade.

If Webpack was about control,
Vite is about speed, simplicity, and clarity.

TL;DR

  • Vite is a next-gen frontend build tool
  • Instant dev server & fast HMR
  • Minimal configuration
  • Best for modern frontend frameworks
  • Angular gets similar benefits via esbuild

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