**Tags:** "Hello World" Examples · Next.js # Next SSR Hello World A minimal Next.js 15 server-side rendering recipe connecting to a PostgreSQL database, running on [Zerops](https://zerops.io). Demonstrates the full SSR lifecycle: standalone build, idempotent migration via `zsc execOnce`, and a live health check that queries the database on every request. ### Available Environments - [AI Agent](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=ai-agent) - [Remote (CDE)](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=remote-cde) - [Local](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=local) - [Stage](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=stage) - **Small Production** ← current - [Highly-available Production](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=highly-available-production) ### Services in this Environment **Services:** - **core** (core@1) - Containers: 1 × Shared Core, 0.00 GB RAM, 0 GB Disk - **app** (nodejs@22) :3000 - Containers: 2 × Shared Core, 0.38 GB RAM, 1 GB Disk - Repository: [zerops-recipe-apps/nextjs-ssr-hello-world-app](https://github.com/zerops-recipe-apps/nextjs-ssr-hello-world-app) - **db** (postgresql@18) :5432, :6432 - Containers: 1 × Shared Core, 0.75 GB RAM, 1 GB Disk **Total Resources:** 4 containers, 1.50 GB RAM, 3 GB Disk ### One-Click Deploy (Import YAML) Use this YAML with `zcli project import` to deploy this environment: ```yaml # Next.js SSR Hello World - Small Production Environment # # Production-ready setup optimized for moderate traffic. Runs two # containers by default for availability, with Zerops autoscaling # additional containers under load. project: name: nextjs-ssr-hello-world-small-prod services: - hostname: app type: nodejs@22 zeropsSetup: prod # buildFromGit pulls source code and zerops.yaml from this public # repository and triggers the first build automatically. buildFromGit: https://github.com/zerops-recipe-apps/nextjs-ssr-hello-world-app enableSubdomainAccess: true # minContainers: 2 ensures at least two containers run at all # times - one can restart or redeploy while the other serves # traffic, giving zero-downtime updates. minContainers: 2 verticalAutoscaling: # Reserve free RAM for V8 GC cycles and SSR rendering spikes. # Without minFreeRamGB the container gets exactly minRam and # OOM-kills under spike load. minRam: 0.25 minFreeRamGB: 0.125 # PostgreSQL for application data. Priority 10 starts the database # before app containers so migrations run against a ready database. - hostname: db type: postgresql@18 # NON_HA = single-node database - suitable for production workloads # where a short outage during database restart is acceptable. mode: NON_HA priority: 10 verticalAutoscaling: minRam: 0.5 minFreeRamGB: 0.25 ``` --- ## Next Steps After deploying one of the environments and getting to know Zerops, you have two paths to choose from: 1. **Template Flow** — Clone our GitHub repositories and use the whole recipe as a template 2. **Integrate Flow** — If you already have an existing application on a similar stack, integrate the recipe setup with your application Select a flow: [Template Flow](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=small-production&guideFlow=template) or [Integrate Flow](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=small-production&guideFlow=integrate) Both flows are shown below: ## How to take over the Small Production environment ### 📦 Clone the template repositories Fork or clone the following repositories to your local machine or GitHub account: - [zerops-recipe-apps/nextjs-ssr-hello-world-app](https://github.com/zerops-recipe-apps/nextjs-ssr-hello-world-app) ### 1. Find your service name Many commands and configurations need the exact name of your service. You can find it in the Zerops Dashboard. - Open your project in the Zerops Dashboard. - In the project overview, find the service you want to manage. - Use this exact name whenever a command or pipeline configuration asks for ``. Zerops GUI: Locating the Service Name ### 2. Configure deployment pipeline Go to Service Settings > Pipelines & CI/CD Settings in the Zerops Dashboard and connect your repository. For production, use a trigger on new tags. This keeps deployments intentional and tied to a specific version. You can also add a regex filter, such as `^v[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+$`, if you want to allow only semantic version tags. Zerops GUI: Triggers Alternatively, add `zcli push` to your existing CI/CD pipeline if you want full control over when deployments happen. Learn more about pipeline triggers: https://docs.zerops.io/features/pipeline ### 3. Deploy to production Create and push a new Git tag to deploy a specific version of your app: ```bash git tag -a v1.0.0 -m "Release version 1.0.0" git push origin v1.0.0 ``` > [!TIP] > Open the pipeline detail in the Zerops Dashboard to check the build progress and verify that all steps finish successfully. ### 4. Configure autoscaling Review the autoscaling settings for your runtime services and databases in Service Settings > Automatic Scaling Configuration in the Zerops Dashboard. Zerops GUI: Autoscaling configuration The most important settings are: ```yaml verticalAutoscaling: minRam: 1 minFreeRamGB: 0.5 minFreeRamPercent: 20 ``` > [!CAUTION] > Pay attention to `minFreeRamGB`. This value tells Zerops when to scale RAM vertically. Adjust it based on your app’s real memory needs. RAM scales up immediately, while CPU scales after two consecutive measurements below the threshold. > [!TIP] > Run a quick stress test with a tool like hey before real users arrive. This helps you see how your app behaves under load and tune the autoscaling settings. ### 5. Set up your domain To send real traffic to your app, configure public HTTP access in Service Settings > Public Access & Internal Ports in the Zerops Dashboard. Add your custom domain and point your DNS records to the Zerops IPs shown in the dashboard: Zerops GUI: Public access and custom domain ```text Type Name Content TTL A example.com Auto AAAA example.com Auto ``` For wildcard domains, add a CNAME record for SSL validation. Check the public access documentation: https://docs.zerops.io/features/access > [!TIP] > When changing DNS records for production, start with a low TTL value. Make sure SSL certificates are active before you disable the fallback Zerops subdomain. Once everything works, you can disable the Zerops subdomain so all traffic goes through your custom domain. --- ### 🎉 You are good to go! Your application is live in production and the core setup is complete. The following sections are optional. They cover extra production features such as log forwarding, backups, and diagnostic access. You can stop here and come back later when you need them. --- ### 6. Set up log forwarding (Optional) To send logs to an external service, go to Project Settings > Log Forwarding & Logs Overview in the Zerops Dashboard. You can forward logs to services like Better Stack, Papertrail, or your own self-hosted solution. Learn more about log forwarding: https://docs.zerops.io/references/logging ### 7. Configure database backups (Optional) Manage automated encrypted backups in Service Settings > Backups in the Zerops Dashboard. By default, backups run daily between 00:00 and 01:00 UTC. Before a major deployment, create a manual protected backup: ```bash zcli backup create --tags pre-deploy,protected ``` Read the backup documentation for more options: https://docs.zerops.io/features/backup ### 8. Set up diagnostic access (Optional) Use zCLI and VPN access when you need to inspect or maintain services directly. For runtime services: ```bash zcli vpn up ssh .zerops ``` For databases, connect through the VPN to reach the project’s private network, or set up secure direct IP access for your database admin tools. Check the VPN documentation: https://docs.zerops.io/references/cli/commands#vpn-up ## How to integrate app with Zerops ### 2. Key Configuration Points **Standalone mode** (`output: 'standalone'` in `next.config.mjs`): Next.js traces all imports at build time using `@vercel/nft` and bundles only the required modules into `.next/standalone/`. No `node_modules` directory is needed at runtime — the standalone folder is self-contained. **Three deploy artifacts**: Standalone mode does NOT automatically include `.next/static/` or `public/` inside the standalone folder. All three must be listed separately in `deployFiles` so the runtime server can find them. **Migration bundling**: The migration script (`migrate.js`) needs the `pg` driver, which lives inside `.next/standalone/node_modules/` at runtime. Rather than using `NODE_PATH` env var workarounds, we use `esbuild` in `buildCommands` to bundle `migrate.js + pg` into a self-contained `migrate.cjs` that runs anywhere. **`zsc execOnce`**: Production deployments run multiple containers. Without `zsc execOnce ${appVersionId}`, every container would run the migration simultaneously — causing race conditions. `execOnce` ensures exactly one container runs the migration per deploy version; all others wait. **No `.next/cache` in build cache**: Zerops cache restoration sets file ownership that triggers EACCES permission errors when Next.js tries to write to the cache directory on the next build. Only cache `node_modules`. ### 🎯 What's next? **Deploy other environments** — Ready to scale? Deploy additional environments for different stages of your workflow: - [AI Agent](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=ai-agent) - [Remote (CDE)](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=remote-cde) - [Local](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=local) - [Stage](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=stage) - [Highly-available Production](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-ssr-hello-world.md?environment=highly-available-production) ## Knowledge Base ### Platform Reference - [Routing & Domains](https://docs.zerops.io/features/access) - [Scaling](https://docs.zerops.io/features/scaling) - [Environment Variables](https://docs.zerops.io/features/env-variables) - [CLI (zcli)](https://docs.zerops.io/references/cli) ### Service Type Reference **Node.js** - [Build & Deploy](https://docs.zerops.io/nodejs/how-to/build-pipeline) - [Customize Runtime](https://docs.zerops.io/nodejs/how-to/customize-runtime) **PostgreSQL** - [Connect](https://docs.zerops.io/postgresql/how-to/connect) - [Backup & Restore](https://docs.zerops.io/postgresql/how-to/backup) - [Manage](https://docs.zerops.io/postgresql/how-to/manage) - [Scale](https://docs.zerops.io/postgresql/how-to/scale) --- ## Related Recipes - [Next Static Hello World](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/nextjs-static-hello-world.md) - [Bun Hello World](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/bun-hello-world.md) - [Go Hello World](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/go-hello-world.md) - [Zerops showcase](https://app.zerops.io/recipes/zerops-showcase.md)