Self-Hosting

~22 min · self-host, next start, PM2

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Every framework feature works self-hosted

Server Components, RSC streaming, ISR, Server Actions, image/font optimization — all run on a vanilla Node.js server via next start. The pieces that change: you operate the SSL, the process manager, the CDN.

Production server

npm run build then npm run start. Default port 3000; override with -p. The server is single-process by default; use a process manager (PM2, systemd, launchd, Docker orchestrator) to keep it alive and scale.

Reverse proxy

Put nginx or Caddy in front of next start for TLS termination, request logging, and gzip/brotli. Caddy is the simplest because TLS is automatic.

Image optimization needs `sharp`

Self-hosted, the optimizer uses sharp internally. Install it explicitly so production doesn't fall back to unoptimized images.

Code

Build and run·bash

npm run build
npm install sharp                  # for next/image optimization
NODE_ENV=production npm run start  # default port 3000

# Custom port
NODE_ENV=production npm run start -- -p 8080

PM2 keeps it alive·bash

npm install -g pm2
pm2 start npm --name nextjs -- start
pm2 save
pm2 startup       # generate launchd / systemd integration

pm2 status
pm2 logs nextjs
pm2 reload nextjs # zero-downtime restart

Caddy reverse proxy·text

# Caddyfile
myapp.com {
  reverse_proxy localhost:3000
}
# Caddy handles HTTPS automatically via Let's Encrypt

External links

Exercise

Self-host a Next.js app on a Mac or Linux box behind Caddy. Verify HTTPS works automatically and that PM2 restarts the process if you kill it.

Self-Hosting

Every framework feature works self-hosted

Production server

Reverse proxy

Image optimization needs `sharp`

Code

External links

Exercise

Progress

Comments 0

Every framework feature works self-hosted

Production server

Reverse proxy

Image optimization needs sharp

Code

External links

Exercise

Progress

Image optimization needs `sharp`