Blog with VPS Hosting: A DIY Guide

Getting started

First, you will need a GitHub repository to host your source code. Next, install astrojs or any other static website framework of your choice. Personally, I use GitHub Actions for automatic build and deployment whenever I push to the main branch. To set up these actions, create a .github/workflows directory at the root of your project. Then, create a file named build-and-deploy.yml and insert the following code:

name: Build and Deploy

on:
    push:
        branches:
            - main

jobs:
    deploy:
        runs-on: ubuntu-latest
        steps:
            - name: Checkout code
              uses: actions/checkout@v3

            - name: Install Node.js
              uses: actions/setup-node@v3
              with:
                  node-version: 20

            - name: Install dependencies
              run: npm ci

            - name: Build
              run: npm run build

            - name: Add robots.txt
              run: echo 'User-agent:*' > ./dist/robots.txt && echo 'Disallow:' >> ./dist/robots.txt

            - name: Copy files via SCP
              uses: appleboy/scp-action@v0.1.4
              with:
                  host: ${{ secrets.HOST }}
                  username: ${{ secrets.USERNAME }}
                  key: ${{ secrets.SSHKEY }}
                  port: ${{ secrets.PORT }}
                  source: ./dist/*
                  target: ${{ secrets.SERVER_FOLDER }}
                  strip_components: 1
                  rm: true

The syntax of GitHub Actions is relatively straightforward. This action triggers on a push to the main branch. The job, named deploy, runs on Ubuntu. Each step includes a name, uses or run, and sometimes with:

• name: simply the identifier for the step in the logs
• uses: invokes a pre-existing action
• run: executes a command in the CLI
• with: specifies parameters for the step

For instance, the “Checkout code” step checks out the repository on the runner. The “Install Node.js” step installs Node.js, specifying version 20.

The “Copy files via SCP” step is particularly noteworthy. SCP, or Secure Copy Protocol, is a method for securely transferring files between a local host and a remote host or between two remote hosts. In this action, we use the repository’s secrets to securely transfer the built files to the server. The appleboy/scp-action@v0.1.4 action simplifies this process, allowing for easy and secure file transfer using SSH credentials.