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CharleOS is deployed to Vercel with automatic deployments from GitHub. This page provides an overview of the deployment process.

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Deployment Architecture

GitHub (main branch)
  ↓
  Trigger: Push to main
  ↓
Vercel Build
  ├── Install dependencies
  ├── Run database migrations
  ├── Build Next.js app
  └── Deploy to production
  ↓
charle.agency (live)

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Environments

EnvironmentURLBranchPurpose
Productionhttps://charle.agencymainLive application
Previewhttps://charle-os-*.vercel.appFeature branchesPR previews
Localhttp://localhost:3000AnyDevelopment

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Deployment Process

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Automatic Deployments

Every push to main triggers a deployment:
1

Push to GitHub

git push origin main
2

Vercel Detects Change

Webhook triggers Vercel build automatically
3

Build Process

  • Install npm dependencies
  • Run database migrations (postinstall script)
  • Build Next.js application
  • Generate static assets
4

Deploy

  • Upload to Vercel’s CDN
  • Update DNS to point to new deployment
  • Old deployment kept for 30 days (rollback)
5

Post-Deploy

  • Environment goes live
  • Vercel sends notification
  • Logs available in dashboard

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Preview Deployments

Pull requests get automatic preview deployments:
  • URL: https://charle-os-git-{branch}-charle.vercel.app
  • Purpose: Test changes before merging
  • Database: Uses DEV branch (safe to experiment)
  • Auto-cleanup: Deleted after PR merges

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Build Configuration

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package.json Scripts

{
  "scripts": {
    "build": "next build",
    "postinstall": "drizzle-kit migrate"
  }
}
Build process:
  1. npm install - Install dependencies
  2. postinstall hook runs → drizzle-kit migrate - Apply database migrations
  3. npm run build - Build Next.js app

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Environment Variables

Production environment variables are set in Vercel dashboard: Required for build:
  • DATABASE_URL - Production database connection
  • BETTER_AUTH_SECRET - Auth encryption key
  • BETTER_AUTH_URL - https://charle.agency
  • GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID - Google OAuth credentials
  • GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET
Runtime variables:
  • All integration API keys (Pusher, Resend, Algolia, etc.)
  • Feature flags
  • Service URLs
Environment variables are encrypted at rest and only decrypted during build/runtime.

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Database Migrations

Migrations run automatically during deployment: 
// package.json
{
  "postinstall": "drizzle-kit migrate"
}
How it works:
  1. Vercel installs dependencies
  2. postinstall hook triggers
  3. Drizzle applies pending migrations from drizzle/ folder
  4. If migrations fail, deployment fails (safe!)
  5. App starts with updated schema
Always test migrations locally before deploying. Failed migrations will prevent deployment.

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Rollback

If a deployment has issues:

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Option 1: Rollback in Vercel Dashboard

  1. Go to Vercel Dashboard
  2. Click “Deployments”
  3. Find previous working deployment
  4. Click ”⋯” → “Promote to Production”

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Option 2: Revert Git Commit

# Revert last commit
git revert HEAD
git push origin main

# Vercel automatically deploys the revert

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Option 3: Redeploy Previous Commit

# Go to specific commit
git checkout abc123

# Force push (use with caution!)
git push origin main --force

# Or create revert commit
git revert abc123..HEAD
git push origin main

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Monitoring

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Vercel Analytics

Built-in analytics show:
  • Page views
  • Load times
  • Core Web Vitals
  • Top pages
Access: Vercel Dashboard → Analytics

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Sentry Error Tracking

Production errors are tracked in Sentry:
  • Runtime errors
  • API failures
  • Performance issues
  • User context
Access: Sentry Dashboard

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Logs

View deployment logs in Vercel: Build logs:
  • Show build output
  • Database migration results
  • Warnings and errors
Runtime logs:
  • API route logs
  • Server component logs
  • Edge function logs
Access: Vercel Dashboard → Deployments → Select deployment → Logs

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Performance Optimization

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Caching Strategy

Vercel automatically caches:
  • Static assets (images, CSS, JS)
  • Server Components (ISR)
  • API routes with Cache-Control headers

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Edge Functions

API routes run on Vercel’s Edge Network:
  • Global: Deployed to 90+ edge locations
  • Fast: Sub-100ms response times
  • Scalable: Auto-scales to demand

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Image Optimization

Next.js Image component uses Vercel’s optimization:
  • Automatic format conversion (WebP/AVIF)
  • Responsive sizing
  • Lazy loading
  • CDN caching

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Security

  • All traffic encrypted with TLS 1.3
  • Automatic SSL certificate management
  • HTTP → HTTPS redirect
  • Encrypted at rest
  • Only decrypted during build/runtime
  • Never exposed in logs or UI
  • Vercel’s Edge Network provides DDoS mitigation
  • Automatic rate limiting
  • IP blocking for suspicious traffic
// next.config.ts
module.exports = {
  async headers() {
    return [
      {
        source: '/:path*',
        headers: [
          { key: 'X-Frame-Options', value: 'DENY' },
          { key: 'X-Content-Type-Options', value: 'nosniff' },
          { key: 'Referrer-Policy', value: 'origin-when-cross-origin' },
        ],
      },
    ];
  },
};

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Troubleshooting

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Build Failures

Error: “Build failed” Common causes:
  1. TypeScript errors
  2. Failed database migration
  3. Missing environment variables
  4. Dependency installation failure
Fix:
  1. Check build logs in Vercel dashboard
  2. Run npm run build locally to reproduce
  3. Fix errors and push again

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Runtime Errors

Error: “Application error” / 500 Internal Server Error Fix:
  1. Check Sentry for error details
  2. View runtime logs in Vercel
  3. Verify environment variables are set
  4. Check database connection

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Migration Failures

Error: “Migration failed” Fix:
  1. Test migration locally: npm run db:migrate
  2. Check migration SQL for syntax errors
  3. Verify database schema compatibility
  4. If needed, create fix-forward migration

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Best Practices

Always build and test locally:
# Build locally
npm run build

# Run production build
npm run start

# Test migrations
npm run db:migrate
Test changes in preview before merging:
  1. Create PR
  2. Wait for Vercel preview deployment
  3. Test preview URL
  4. Merge when confirmed working
Watch for issues after deploying:
  • Check Vercel Analytics for traffic
  • Monitor Sentry for errors
  • Verify key user flows work
  • Check database migrations succeeded
Regular dependency updates:
# Check for updates
npm outdated

# Update dependencies
npm update

# Test thoroughly before deploying

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Deployment Checklist

Before deploying to production:
  • All tests passing (unit + E2E)
  • TypeScript compiles without errors
  • Database migrations tested locally
  • Environment variables configured
  • Breaking changes documented
  • Rollback plan prepared
  • Monitoring/alerts configured

Vercel Deployment

Vercel-specific configuration

CI/CD Pipeline

Automated testing and deployment

Database Migrations

Managing schema changes

Environment Variables

Configuration reference