Deploy NodeJS App on AWS

What is AWS Lightsail?

AWS Lightsail is a simplified cloud service that provides developers with a quick and easy way to launch virtual private servers (VPS) with pre-configured environments. It's ideal for developers who want to get started quickly without the complexity of managing infrastructure.

Benefits of AWS Lightsail

• Easy to use with a simple interface
• Pre-configured environments for quick deployment
• Cost-effective for small to medium-sized applications
• Scalable resources as your application grows

Minimum server requirements

To run a Node.js application on AWS Lightsail, ensure your instance meets the following minimum requirements:

• 2 vCPUs
• 1 GB RAM
• 20 GB SSD storage

Dual Stack vs IPv6

AWS Lightsail instances support both IPv4 and IPv6 addressing. Dual-stack support allows your application to communicate over both protocols, ensuring compatibility with a wider range of clients and services.

Install Node JS on Ubuntu

Node.js is the runtime for running JavaScript on the server, and npm is the package manager used to install dependencies.

Verify the installation by checking the versions:

You should see the installed versions of Node.js and npm.

Install GIT

Git is a version control system that allows you to manage and track changes to your codebase. To install Git on Ubuntu, run the following commands:

Create Folder and Setup App

Now, create a directory for your Node.js application and set up your project files. You can either clone your repository from Git or manually upload your files.

If your code is in a Git repository, clone it:

Install the dependencies:

Test the application locally to ensure it runs:

If your app starts on a port (e.g., 3000), you should see it running. Press Ctrl+C to stop it for now.

Install PM2

PM2 is a process manager for Node.js applications. It allows you to manage and keep your application running continuously.

Start your Node.js application with PM2:

Check the status of your application:

To ensure PM2 restarts your application on server reboot, run:

This will generate a command. Run that command to set up the startup script. Finally, save the PM2 process list:

Install and Configure Nginx

Nginx is a web server that can also be used as a reverse proxy, load balancer, and HTTP cache. To install Nginx on Ubuntu, run the following commands:

Check and configure the firewall to allow HTTP traffic

Allow firewall to pass ssh

Enable firewall

Restart Nginx

or

Update Domain in Nginx

Edit the Nginx configuration file to route traffic from your domain to your Node.js app:

Update localhost on nginx

  location  /{
    proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
    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;

    try_files $uri $uri/ =404;
  }

Test Nginx

Restart Nginx

Allow Nginx for http

Check ufw status

Add SSL Certificate

To add an SSL certificate to your Nginx server, you can use Let's Encrypt to obtain a free SSL certificate.

Install Certbot

Obtain SSL Certificate

Follow the prompts to complete the SSL certificate installation. Certbot will automatically configure Nginx to use the new SSL certificate.

Update Nginx Configuration

Ensure your Nginx configuration includes the following lines to redirect HTTP to HTTPS:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name your_domain.com www.your_domain.com;
    return 301 https://$host$request_uri;
}

Restart Nginx

Test SSL Configuration

To test ssl working, visit your domain using https://your_domain.com

You should see a secure connection in the browser, indicating that your SSL certificate is properly installed and configured.

If you encounter any issues, check the Nginx error logs in /var/log/nginx/error.log.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You've successfully deployed your Node.js application on AWS Lightsail. Your app is now running with PM2 for process management and Nginx as a reverse proxy, ensuring high availability and performance.

For production environments, consider additional steps like setting up SSL certificates with Let's Encrypt, configuring environment variables securely, and implementing monitoring tools. Regularly update your dependencies and monitor server resources.

If you encounter issues, check the PM2 logs with pm2 logs and Nginx error logs in /var/log/nginx/error.log.