strapi/docs/3.0.0-beta.x/guides/deployment.md
2019-05-28 16:31:40 +02:00

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Deployment

Strapi gives you many possible deployment options for your project or application. Strapi can be deployed on traditional hosting servers or services such as Heroku, AWS, Azure and others. The following documentation covers how to develop locally with Strapi and deploy Strapi with various hosting options.

(Deploying databases along with Strapi is covered in the Databases Guide.)

Table of contents:


Configuration

#1 - Configure

Update the production settings with the IP and domain name where the project will be running.

Path — ./config/environments/production/server.json.

{
  "host": "domain.io", // IP or domain
  "port": 1337
}

In case your database is not running on the same server, make sure that the environment of your production database (./config/environments/production/database.json) is set properly.

If you are passing a number of configuration item values via environment variables which is always encouraged for production environment, read the section for Dynamic Configuration. Here is an example:

Path — ./config/environments/production/server.json.

{
  "host": "${process.env.APP_HOST || '127.0.0.1'}"
  "port": "${process.env.NODE_PORT || 1337}",
}

#3 - Launch the server

Before running your server in production you need to build you admin panel for production

NODE_ENV=production npm run build

Run the server with the production settings.

NODE_ENV=production npm run start

::: warning We highly recommend using pm2 to manage your process. :::

Advanced configurations

If you want to host the administration on another server than the API, please take a look at this dedicated section.

Digital Ocean

This is a step-by-step guide for deploying a Strapi project to Digital Ocean. Databases can be on a Digital Ocean Droplet or hosted externally as a service. Prior to starting this guide, you should have created a Strapi project.

Digital Ocean Install Requirements

Create a "Droplet"

Digital Ocean calls a virtual private server, a Droplet. You need to create a new Droplet to host your Strapi project.

  1. Log in to your Digital Ocean account.
  2. Create a Droplet by clicking on New Droplet. Choose these options:
  • Ubuntu 18.04 x64
  • STARTER Standard
  • Choose an appropriate pricing plan. For example, pricing: $5/mo (Scroll to the left)
  • Choose a datacenter region nearest your audience, for example, New York.
  • OPTIONAL: Select additional options, for example, [x] IPv6.
  • Add your SSH key NOTE: We recommend you add your SSH key for better security.
    • In your terminal, use pbcopy < ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub to copy your existing SSH public key, on your development computer, to the clipboard.
    • Click on New SSH Key and paste in your SSH Key. Name this SSH key and then Save. (Additional instructions on creating and using SSH Keys can be found here.)
  • OPTIONAL: Choose a hostname or leave as-is.
  • Click the green Create button.

Digital Ocean will create your Droplet and indicate the progress with a percentage bar. Once this is complete, you may continue to the next steps.

Setup production server and install Node.js

These next steps will help you to set up a production server and set up a non-root user for managing your server.

Follow the official Digital Ocean docs for initial server set-up using Ubuntu 18.04. These docs will have you complete the following actions:

  1. Logging and set up root user access to your server with SSH.
  2. Creating a new user.
  3. Granting Administrative Privileges to the new user.
  4. Setting up a basic firewall.
  5. Giving your regular user access to the server with SSH key authentication.

Next, install Node.js:

  1. You will install Node.js using the instructions in section Install Node using a PPA from the official Digital Ocean docs for installing a production ready Node.js server.

After completing the steps to install Node.js, NPM and the "build-essential package", you will manually change npm's default directory. The following steps are based on how to resolve access permissions from npmjs.com:

  • Create a .npm-global directory and set the path to this directory for node_modules
cd ~
mkdir ~/.npm-global
npm config set prefix '~/.npm-global'
  • Create (or modify) a ~/.profile file and add this line:
sudo nano ~/.profile

Add this line.

export PATH=~/.npm-global/bin:$PATH
  • Lastly, update your system variables:
source ~/.profile

You are now ready to continue to the next section.

Install and Configure Git versioning on your server

A convenient way to maintain your Strapi application and update it during and after initial development is to use Git. In order to use Git, you will need to have it installed on your Droplet. Droplets should have Git installed by default, so you will first check if it is installed and if it is not installed, you will need to install it.

The last step is to configure Git on your server.

  1. Check to see if Git is installed, if you see a git version 2.x.x then you do have Git installed. Check with the following command:
git --version
  1. OPTIONAL: Install Git. NOTE: Only do if not installed, as above. Please follow these directions on how to install Git on Ubuntu 18.04.

  2. Complete the global username and GitHub settings: Setting up Git

After installing and configuring Git on your Droplet. Please continue to the next step, installing a database.

Install the database for your project

Digital Ocean has excellent documentation regarding the installation and use of the major databases that work with Strapi. The previous steps above should all be completed prior to continuing. You can find links, and any further instructions, to each database guide below:

:::: tabs cache-lifetime="10" :options="{ useUrlFragment: false }"

::: tab "PostgreSQL" id="postgreSQL-ubuntu"

  1. Install PostgresSQL on Ubuntu 18.04(Through Step 4 - Creating a New Database).

Complete the steps to install PostgreSQL, add a user and create a database.

  1. In order to connect to a PostgreSQL database with Strapi, it needs either to have a password, or specifically state there is no password by noting a empty string. Follow these commands from your terminal to alter the user you created and add a password:
sudo -u postgres psql     //only necessary if you switched away from the postgres@ user
[sudo] password for your-name:
psql (10.8 (Ubuntu 10.8-0ubuntu0.18.04.1))
Type "help" for help.

psql
postgres=# ALTER USER your-name PASSWORD 'password';
ALTER ROLE
postgres=# \q
exit
  • Optional: If in Development, your Strapi project is uses SQLite, you will need to install a dependency package called pg:

    • On your Development computer:

    Path: ./my-project/

    npm install pg --save
    

    Note: The pg package is automatically installed locally if you choose PostgreSQL as the initial database choice when you first set-up Strapi.

You will need the database name, username and password to continue to the next step of configuring that database.json file.

Local Development Configuration

  • You must have Git installed and set-up locally.
  • You must have created a repository for your Strapi project and have your development project initilized to this repository.

In your code editor, you will need to edit a file called database.json. Replace the contents of the file with the following, but change the username, password and database to match your installation.

Path: ./config/environments/production

{
  "defaultConnection": "default",
  "connections": {
    "default": {
      "connector": "strapi-hook-bookshelf",
      "settings": {
        "client": "postgres",
        "host": "localhost",
        "port": 5432,
        "username": "your-name",
        "password": "password",
        "database": "strapi"
      },
      "options": {}
    }
  }
}

You are now ready to push these changes to Github:

git add .
git commit -m "Configured production/database.json"
git push

Please continue to the next section, Deploy from GitHub.

:::

::::

Deploy from Github

You will next deploy your Strapi project to your Droplet by cloning it from GitHub.

From your terminal, logged in as your non-root user to your Droplet:

cd ~
git clone https://github.com/your-name/your-project-repo.git

Next, navigate to the my-project folder, the root for Strapi. You will now need to run npm install to install the packages for your project.

Path: ./my-project/

cd ./my-project/
npm install
NODE_ENV=production npm run build

Strapi uses Port: 1337 by default. You will need to configure your ufw firewall to allow access to this port:

cd ~
sudo ufw allow 1337/tcp
sudo ufw enable

Command may disrupt existing ssh connections. Proceed with operation (y|n)? y
Firewall is active and enabled on system startup

Your Strapi project is now installed on your Droplet.

OPTIONAL: You may see your project and set-up your first administrator user, by doing the following:

  • Navigate to the Strapi project folder. Path: ./my-project/. Run the following command from within the Strapi project root:

Path: ./my-project/

NODE_ENV=production npm run start

> my-project@0.1.0 strapi start

[2019-05-20T14:06:01.553Z] info Time: Mon May 20 2019 14:06:01 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
[2019-05-20T14:06:01.555Z] info Launched in: 2623 ms
[2019-05-20T14:06:01.555Z] info Environment: production
[2019-05-20T14:06:01.555Z] info Process PID: 13221
[2019-05-20T14:06:01.556Z] info Version: 3.0.0-alpha.25.2 (node v10.15.3)
[2019-05-20T14:06:01.556Z] info To shut down your server, press <CTRL> + C at any time

[2019-05-20T14:06:01.557Z] info ☄️  Admin panel: http://localhost:1337/admin
[2019-05-20T14:06:01.557Z] info ⚡️ Server: http://localhost:1337

Minimumly, create an admin user.

You will next need to install and configure PM2 Runtime.

Install and configure PM2 Runtime

PM2 Runtime allows you to keep your Strapi project alive and to reload it without downtime.

Ensure you are logged in as a non-root user. You will install PM2 globally:

npm install pm2@latest -g

Navigate to your Strapi Project folder and use the following command to set the environment variable to production and start pm2:

Path: ./my-project/

NODE_ENV=production pm2 start --name="strapi" npm -- start

Follow the steps below to have your app launch on system startup. (NOTE: These steps are modified from the Digital Ocean documentation for setting up PM2.)

  • Generate and configure a startup script to launch PM2, it will generate a Startup Script to copy/paste, do so:
$ cd ~
$ pm2 startup systemd

[PM2] Init System found: systemd
[PM2] To setup the Startup Script, copy/paste the following command:
sudo env PATH=$PATH:/usr/bin /usr/lib/node_modules/pm2/bin/pm2 startup systemd -u your-name --hp /home/your-name
  • Copy/paste the generated command:
$ sudo env PATH=$PATH:/usr/bin /usr/lib/node_modules/pm2/bin/pm2 startup systemd -u your-name --hp /home/your-name

[PM2] Init System found: systemd
Platform systemd

. . .


[PM2] [v] Command successfully executed.
+---------------------------------------+
[PM2] Freeze a process list on reboot via:
   $ pm2 save

[PM2] Remove init script via:
   $ pm2 unstartup systemd
  • Next, Save the new PM2 process list and environment. Then Start the service with systemctl:
pm2 save

[PM2] Saving current process list...
[PM2] Successfully saved in /home/your-name/.pm2/dump.pm2

  • OPTIONAL: You can test to see if the script above works whenever your system reboots with the sudo reboot command. You will need to login again with your non-root user and then run pm2 list and systemctl status pm2-your-name to verify everything is working.

In the sections to follow, are a few recommended additional actions to make developing your project more efficient.

The ecosystem.config.js file

  • You will need to configure an ecosystem.config.js file. It will be used by pm2 to restart your project whenever any changes are made to files within the Strapi file system itself (such as when an update arrives from GitHub). You can read more about this file here.

    • You will need to open your nano editor and then copy/paste the following:
cd ~
pm2 init
sudo nano ecosystem.config.js
  • Next, replace the boilerplate content in the file, with the following:
module.exports = {
  apps: [
    {
      name: 'your-app-name',
      cwd: '/home/your-name/my-strapi-project/my-project',
      script: 'npm',
      args: 'start',
      env: {
        NODE_ENV: 'production',
      },
    },
  ],
};

pm2 is now set-up to use an econsystem.config.js to manage restarting your application upon changes. This is a recommended best practice. Continue below to configure the webhook.

Set up a webhook

Providing that your project is set-up on GitHub, you will need to configure your Strapi Project Repository with a webhook. The following articles provide additional information to the steps below: GitHub Creating Webhooks Guide and Digital Ocean Guide to GitHub WebHooks.

  • You will need to access the Settings tab for your Strapi Project Repository:

    1. Navigate and click to Settings for your repository.
    2. Click on Webhooks, then click Add Webhook.
    3. The fields are filled out like this:
      • Payload URL: Enter http://your-ip-address:8080
      • Content type: Select application/json
      • Which events would you like to trigger this webhook: Select Just the push event
      • Secret: Enter YourSecret
      • Active: Select the checkbox
    4. Review the fields and click Add Webhook.
  • Next, you need to create a Webhook Script on your server. These commands create a new file called webhook.js which will hold two variables:

cd ~
mkdir NodeWebHooks
cd NodeWebHooks
sudo nano webhook.js
  • In the nano editor, copy/paste the following script, but make sure to replace your_secret_key and repo with the values that correspond to your project, then save and exit. NOTE: Earlier in this guide, there is a optional recommended step to create an ecosystem.config.js file to manage your application restarting function.

(This script creates a variable called PM2_CMD which is used after pulling from GitHub to update your project. The script first changes to the home directory and then runs the variable PM2_CMD as pm2 restart strapi. If the project uses the ecosystem.config.js keep your ecosystem.config.js as the point of starting your application and use the alternative below. PLEASE SEE COMMENTS IN THE CODE.)

var secret = 'your_secret_key';
var repo = '~/path-to-your-repo/';

const http = require('http');
const crypto = require('crypto');
const exec = require('child_process').exec;

// Use this command if you DID NOT create the ecosystem.config.js file
const PM2_CMD = 'pm2 restart strapi';
// Use this command if you DID create the ecosystem.config.js file and comment out/delete the above line.
// const PM2_CMD = 'cd ~ && pm2 startOrRestart ecosystem.config.js';

http
  .createServer(function(req, res) {
    req.on('data', function(chunk) {
      let sig =
        'sha1=' +
        crypto
          .createHmac('sha1', secret)
          .update(chunk.toString())
          .digest('hex');

      if (req.headers['x-hub-signature'] == sig) {
        exec(
          `cd ${repo} && git pull && ${PM2_CMD}`,
          (error, stdout, stderr) => {
            if (error) {
              console.error(`exec error: ${error}`);
              return;
            }
            console.log(`stdout: ${stdout}`);
            console.log(`stderr: ${stderr}`);
          }
        );
      }
    });

    res.end();
  })
  .listen(8080);
  • Allow the port to communicate with outside web traffic for port 8080:
sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp
sudo ufw enable

Command may disrupt existing ssh connections. Proceed with operation (y|n)? y
Firewall is active and enabled on system startup

Earlier you setup pm2 to start the services (your Strapi project) whenever the Droplet reboots or is started. You will now do the same for the webhook script.

  • Install the webhook as a Systemd service

    • Run echo $PATH and copy the output for use in the next step.
echo $PATH

/home/your-name/.npm-global/bin:/home/your-name/bin:/home/your-name/.local/bin:/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin:/usr/games:/usr/local/games:/snap/bin
  • Create a webhook.service file:
cd ~
sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/webhook.service
  • In the nano editor, copy/paste the following script, but make sure to replace your-name in two places with your username. Earlier, you ran echo $PATH, copy this to the Environment=PATH= variable, then save and exit:
[Unit]
Description=Github webhook
After=network.target

[Service]
Environment=PATH=your_path
Type=simple
User=your-name
ExecStart=/usr/bin/nodejs /home/your-name/NodeWebHooks/webhook.js
Restart=on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
  • Enable and start the new service so it starts when the system boots:
sudo systemctl enable webhook.service
sudo systemctl start webhook
  • Check the status of the webhook:
sudo systemctl status webhook
  • You may test your webhook by following the instructions here.

Further steps to take

Your Strapi project has been installed on a Digital Ocean Droplet using Ubuntu 18.04.

Heroku

This is a step-by-step guide for deploying a Strapi project on Heroku. Databases that work well with Strapi and Heroku are provided instructions on how to get started.

Heroku Install Requirements

If you already have the Heroku CLI installed locally on your computer. Skip to Login to Heroku.

1. Heroku CLI Installation

Download and install the Heroku CLI for your operating system:

:::: tabs cache-lifetime="10" :options="{ useUrlFragment: false }"

::: tab "macOS" Download the installer

Also available via Homebrew:

brew tap heroku/brew && brew install heroku

:::

::: tab "Ubuntu" Run the following from your terminal:

sudo snap install --classic heroku

:::

::: tab "Windows" Download the appropriate installer for your Windows installation:

64-bit installer 32-bit installer :::

::::

2. Login to Heroku from your CLI

Next, you need to login to Heroku from your computer.

heroku login

Follow the instructions and return to your command line.

3. Create a new project (or use an existing one)

Create a new Strapi project (if you want to deploy an existing project go to step 4).

::: warning NOTE

If you plan to use MongoDB with your project, refer to the create a Strapi project with MongoDB section of the documentation then, jump to step 4.

:::

Path: ./

strapi new my-project --quickstart

Note: When you use --quickstart to create a Strapi project locally, a SQLite database is used which is not compatible with Heroku. Therefore, another database option must be chosen.

4. Update .gitignore

Add the following line at end of .gitignore:

Path: ./my-project/.gitignore

package-lock.json

Even if it is usually recommended to version this file, it may create issues on Heroku.

5. Init a Git repository and commit your project

Init the Git repository and commit yoru project.

Path: ./my-project/

cd my-project
git init
git add .
git commit -am "Initial Commit"

6. Create a Heroku project

Create a new Heroku project.

Path: ./my-project/

heroku create

(You can use heroku create custom-project-name, to have Heroku create a custom-project-name.heroku.com URL. Otherwise, Heroku will automatically generating a random project name (and URL) for you.)

::: warning NOTE If you have a Heroku project app already created. You would use the following step to initialize your local project folder:

Path: ./my-project/

heroku git:remote -a your-heroku-app-name

:::

Your local development environment is now set-up and configured to work with Heroku. You have a new Strapi project and a new Heroku app ready to be configured to work with a database and with each other.

7. Heroku Database set-up

Below you will find database options when working with Heroku. Please choose the correct database (e.g. PostgreSQL, MongoDB, etc.) and follow those instructions.

:::: tabs cache-lifetime="10" :options="{ useUrlFragment: false }"

::: tab "PostgreSQL" id="heroku-postgresql"

Heroku Postgres

Follow these steps to deploy your Strapi app to Heroku using PostgreSQL:

1. Install the Heroku Postgres addon for using Postgres.

To make things even easier, Heroku provides a powerful addon system. In this section, you are going to use the Heroku Postgres addon, which provides a free "Hobby Dev" plan. If you plan to deploy your app in production, it is highly recommended to switch to a paid plan.

Path: ./my-project/

heroku addons:create heroku-postgresql:hobby-dev
2. Retrieve database credentials

The add-on automatically exposes the database credentials into a single environment variable accessible by your app. To retrieve it, type:

Path: ./my-project/

heroku config

This should print something like this: DATABASE_URL: postgres://ebitxebvixeeqd:dc59b16dedb3a1eef84d4999sb4baf@ec2-50-37-231-192.compute-2.amazonaws.com: 5432/d516fp1u21ph7b.

(This url is read like so: *postgres:// USERNAME : PASSWORD @ HOST : PORT : DATABASE_NAME*)

3. Set environment variables

Strapi expects a variable for each database connection configuration (host, username, etc.). So, from the url above, you have to set several environment variables in the Heroku config:

heroku config:set DATABASE_USERNAME=ebitxebvixeeqd
heroku config:set DATABASE_PASSWORD=dc59b16dedb3a1eef84d4999a0be041bd419c474cd4a0973efc7c9339afb4baf
heroku config:set DATABASE_HOST=ec2-50-37-231-192.compute-2.amazonaws.com
heroku config:set DATABASE_PORT=5432
heroku config:set DATABASE_NAME=d516fp1u21ph7b

Note: Please replace these above values with the your actual values.

4. Update your database config file

Replace the contents of database.json with the following:

Path: ./config/environments/production/database.json.

{
  "defaultConnection": "default",
  "connections": {
    "default": {
      "connector": "strapi-hook-bookshelf",
      "settings": {
        "client": "postgres",
        "host": "${process.env.DATABASE_HOST}",
        "port": "${process.env.DATABASE_PORT}",
        "database": "${process.env.DATABASE_NAME}",
        "username": "${process.env.DATABASE_USERNAME}",
        "password": "${process.env.DATABASE_PASSWORD}",
        "ssl": true
      },
      "options": {}
    }
  }
}
5. Install the pg node module

Unless you originally installed Strapi with PostgreSQL, you need to install the pg node module.

Path: ./my-project/

npm install pg --save

:::

::: tab "MongoDB" id="heroku-mongodb"

MongoDB Atlas

(Using Strapi and MongoDB requires different set-up and different configuration steps. You cannot use --quickstart to develop a MongoDB Strapi project.)

Please follow these steps the deploy a Strapi app with MongoDB on Heroku.

You must have completed the steps to use Strapi with MongoDB Atlas in production.

1. Set environment variables

When you set-up your MongoDB Atlas database you created and noted the five key/value pairs that correspond to your MongoDB Atlas database. These five keys are: DATABASE_NAME, DATABASE_USERNAME, DATABASE_PASSWORD, DATABASE PORT, and DATABASE_HOST.

Strapi expects a variable for each database connection detail (host, username, etc.). So, from MongoDB Atlas, you have to set the environment variables in the Heroku config (for DATABASE_HOST you need to surround the URL with "", and set DATABASE_PORT to nothing):

heroku config:set DATABASE_USERNAME=paulbocuse
heroku config:set DATABASE_PASSWORD=mySecretPassword
heroku config:set DATABASE_HOST="stapi-mongo-heroku-shard-00-00-fty6c.mongodb.net:27017,strapi-mongo-heroku-shard-00-01-fty6c.mongodb.net:27017,strapi-mongo-heroku-shard-00-02-fty6c.mongodb.net:27017/test?ssl=true&replicaSet=strapi-mongo-heroku-shard-0&authSource=admin&retryWrites=true"
heroku config:set DATABASE_PORT=
heroku config:set DATABASE_NAME=strapi-mongo-heroku

Note: Please replace these above values with the your actual values.

2. Update your database config file

Replace the contents of database.json with the following:

Path: ./config/environments/production/database.json.

{
  "defaultConnection": "default",
  "connections": {
    "default": {
      "connector": "strapi-hook-mongoose",
      "settings": {
        "client": "mongo",
        "host": "${process.env.DATABASE_HOST}",
        "port": "${process.env.DATABASE_PORT}",
        "database": "${process.env.DATABASE_NAME}",
        "username": "${process.env.DATABASE_USERNAME}",
        "password": "${process.env.DATABASE_PASSWORD}"
      },
      "options": {
        "ssl": true
      }
    }
  }
}

::::

8. Commit your changes

Path: ./my-project/

git commit -am "Update database config"

9. Deploy

Path: ./my-project/

git push heroku master

The deployment may take a few minutes. At the end, logs will display the url of your project (e.g. https://mighty-taiga-80884.herokuapp.com). You can also open your project using the command line:

Path: ./my-project/

heroku open

If you see the Strapi Welcome page, you have correctly set-up, configured and deployed your Strapi project on Heroku. You will now need to set-up your admin user as the production database is brand-new (and empty).

You can now continue with the Tutorial - Creating an Admin User, if you have any questions on how to proceed.

::: warning NOTE For security reasons, the Content Type Builder plugin is disabled in production. To update content structure, please make your changes locally and deploy again. :::


Project updates

When Strapi is deployed to Heroku, Heroku sets the environment variable to NODE_ENV=production. In production mode Strapi disables the content-type builder (for security reasons). Additionally, if you wanted to change the default production mode in Heroku, it wouldn't work as the file system is temporary. Strapi writes files to the server when you update the content-types and these updates would disappear when Heroku restarts the server.

Therefore, modifications that require writing to model creation or other json files, e.g. creating or changing content-types, require that you make those changes on your dev environment and then push the changes to Heroku.

As you continue developing your application with Strapi, you may want to use version control, or you can continue to use Git push heroku master to commit and push changes to Heroku directly.

Path: ./my-project/

git add .
git commit -am "Changes to my-project noted"
git push heroku master
heroku open

Docker

::: tip You can also deploy using Docker :::

The method below describes regular deployment using the built-in mechanisms.