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Overview

Voxora can be deployed to various cloud platforms and hosting providers. This guide covers best practices and deployment strategies for both the web application and API server.

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Architecture

A typical production deployment consists of:

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Deployment Options

Vercel

Best for Next.js web app deployment

Railway

Easy full-stack deployment

AWS

Enterprise-grade infrastructure

Digital Ocean

Simple VPS hosting

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Pre-Deployment Checklist

1

Environment Variables

Set all required production environment variables
2

Database

Set up managed MongoDB (Atlas, etc.)
3

Redis

Set up managed Redis (Upstash, etc.)
4

Email Service

Configure SMTP provider (SendGrid, AWS SES)
5

File Storage

Set up S3 or similar for file uploads
6

Domain & SSL

Configure custom domain and SSL certificates
7

Security

Review security settings and secrets

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Build for Production

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Build Both Apps

npm run build
This creates optimized production builds:
  • Web App: .next/ directory with static and server files
  • API Server: Transpiled JavaScript (if using TypeScript)

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Verify Builds

cd apps/web
npm run start

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Environment Setup

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Production Environment Variables

# API Configuration
NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL=https://api.yourdomain.com
NEXT_PUBLIC_SOCKET_URL=https://api.yourdomain.com

# Widget
NEXT_PUBLIC_WIDGET_URL=https://cdn.yourdomain.com/widget

# Features
NEXT_PUBLIC_ENABLE_ANALYTICS=true
NEXT_PUBLIC_GA_MEASUREMENT_ID=G-XXXXXXXXXX

# Sentry
NEXT_PUBLIC_SENTRY_DSN=https://...@sentry.io/...

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Deployment Platforms

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Vercel (Web App)

1

Install Vercel CLI

npm i -g vercel
2

Login

vercel login
3

Deploy

cd apps/web
vercel --prod
4

Set Environment Variables

Configure in Vercel dashboard or via CLI:
vercel env add NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL production
vercel.json configuration:
apps/web/vercel.json
{
  "buildCommand": "npm run build",
  "outputDirectory": ".next",
  "framework": "nextjs",
  "env": {
    "NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL": "@api-url"
  }
}

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Railway (Full Stack)

1

Create Project

Sign up at railway.app
2

Install CLI

npm i -g @railway/cli
railway login
3

Deploy

railway init
railway up
4

Add Services

Add MongoDB and Redis from Railway marketplace

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Docker Deployment

Create production Docker images: 
FROM node:18-alpine AS base

# Dependencies
FROM base AS deps
WORKDIR /app
COPY package*.json ./
RUN npm ci --only=production

# Builder
FROM base AS builder
WORKDIR /app
COPY . .
COPY --from=deps /app/node_modules ./node_modules
RUN npm run build

# Runner
FROM base AS runner
WORKDIR /app
ENV NODE_ENV production

RUN addgroup --system --gid 1001 nodejs
RUN adduser --system --uid 1001 nextjs

COPY --from=builder /app/public ./public
COPY --from=builder --chown=nextjs:nodejs /app/.next/standalone ./
COPY --from=builder --chown=nextjs:nodejs /app/.next/static ./.next/static

USER nextjs
EXPOSE 3000
ENV PORT 3000

CMD ["node", "server.js"]
docker-compose.prod.yml: 
version: '3.8'

services:
  web:
    build: ./apps/web
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    environment:
      - NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL=http://api:3002
    depends_on:
      - api

  api:
    build: ./apps/api
    ports:
      - "3002:3002"
    environment:
      - MONGODB_URI=${MONGODB_URI}
      - REDIS_URL=${REDIS_URL}
      - JWT_SECRET=${JWT_SECRET}
    depends_on:
      - mongodb
      - redis

  mongodb:
    image: mongo:latest
    volumes:
      - mongodb_data:/data/db

  redis:
    image: redis:alpine
    volumes:
      - redis_data:/data

volumes:
  mongodb_data:
  redis_data:

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Database Setup

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MongoDB Atlas

1

Create Cluster

Sign up at mongodb.com/cloud/atlas
2

Configure Network Access

Add your server IP addresses or allow access from anywhere (0.0.0.0/0)
3

Create Database User

Create a user with read/write permissions
4

Get Connection String

mongodb+srv://<user>:<password>@cluster.mongodb.net/voxora

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Redis Cloud (Upstash)

1

Create Database

Sign up at upstash.com
2

Get Connection URL

redis://default:<password>@<host>:<port>
3

Update Environment

Set REDIS_URL in your environment variables

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CDN & Static Assets

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Widget Distribution

Host the chat widget on a CDN: 
# Build widget
cd apps/api/public
aws s3 sync widget/ s3://your-bucket/widget/

# Set CloudFront or CDN URL
WIDGET_CDN_URL=https://cdn.yourdomain.com/widget

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SSL/TLS Configuration

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Let’s Encrypt (Free SSL)

# Install certbot
sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx

# Obtain certificate
sudo certbot --nginx -d yourdomain.com -d www.yourdomain.com

# Auto-renewal
sudo certbot renew --dry-run

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Load Balancing

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Nginx Configuration

/etc/nginx/sites-available/voxora
upstream api_servers {
    server 127.0.0.1:3002;
    server 127.0.0.1:3003;
    server 127.0.0.1:3004;
}

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name api.yourdomain.com;
    
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://api_servers;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection 'upgrade';
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_cache_bypass $http_upgrade;
    }
}

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Monitoring & Logging

Sentry

Error tracking and performance monitoring

LogRocket

Session replay and analytics

DataDog

Infrastructure and application monitoring

PM2

Process management and monitoring

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PM2 Setup

# Install PM2
npm install -g pm2

# Start API with PM2
pm2 start apps/api/src/index.js --name voxora-api

# Start on system boot
pm2 startup
pm2 save

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Scaling Considerations

Horizontal Scaling

Run multiple API instances behind a load balancer

Database Sharding

Shard MongoDB for large datasets

Redis Clustering

Use Redis cluster for high availability

CDN

Serve static assets via CDN

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Next Steps

Web App Deployment

Detailed web app deployment guide

API Server Deployment

Detailed API deployment guide