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Setup Guide

Table of Contents​

Overview​

This guide provides step-by-step instructions for deploying the Rhea frontend application on Digital Ocean. The deployment uses PM2 for process management and Nginx as a reverse proxy server.

Deployment Process​

1. Clone the Repository​

git clone git@github.com:Rhea-Africa/Rhea-Frontend.git rhea-frontend
cd rhea-frontend

2. Install Dependencies​

yarn install

3. Build the Production Version​

yarn build

Process Management​

1. Install PM2​

PM2 is a production process manager for Node.js applications that helps keep applications alive and running.

npm install -g pm2

2. Start the Application with PM2​

pm2 start "PORT=3000 yarn start" --name rhea_frontend

3. Configure PM2 to Start on System Boot​

This ensures your application automatically restarts if the server reboots.

pm2 startup

Follow the instructions provided by PM2 to complete the setup.

4. Save the PM2 Process List​

pm2 save

Web Server Configuration​

1. Create Nginx Configuration​

Create a new Nginx configuration file for the frontend:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/rhea_main_frontend

2. Add Server Configuration​

Paste the following configuration, adjusting domain names if necessary:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name rhea.africa www.rhea.africa;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        proxy_buffering off;
    }
}

3. Enable the Configuration​

Create a symbolic link to enable the site:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/rhea_main_frontend /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

4. Test and Restart Nginx​

sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl restart nginx

SSL Configuration​

Secure the Site with Let's Encrypt​

Install Certbot and obtain SSL certificates:

sudo certbot --nginx

Follow the interactive prompts to select your domains and configure HTTPS settings.

Environment Variables​

Encrypting Environment Variables​

Important: Ensure there are no blank lines in your .env file to avoid decryption issues.

sops --encrypt --age '<public-key>' .prod.env > secret.env

Monitoring and Maintenance​

View Application Logs​

pm2 logs rhea_frontend

Monitor Application Status​

pm2 status

Restart the Application​

pm2 restart rhea_frontend