Deploying a MEVN Stack App that Uses 2 Servers to Firebase: A Step-by-Step Guide

Are you tired of dealing with the hassle of deploying your MEVN stack app to Firebase? Do you find yourself lost in a sea of confusing tutorials and outdated documentation? Fear not, dear developer, for we’ve got you covered! In this article, we’ll take you by the hand and guide you through the process of deploying your MEVN stack app that uses 2 servers to Firebase.

What is a MEVN Stack App?

Before we dive into the deployment process, let’s take a quick moment to explain what a MEVN stack app is. MEVN is a technology stack that consists of:

• MongoDB**: A NoSQL database that allows you to store and retrieve data in a flexible and scalable way.
• Express.js**: A Node.js web framework that enables you to build fast, scalable, and secure web applications.
• Vue.js**: A progressive and flexible JavaScript framework that allows you to build reusable and maintainable user interfaces.
• Node.js**: A JavaScript runtime environment that enables you to run your JavaScript code on the server-side.

A MEVN stack app is an application that uses these four technologies together to create a robust, scalable, and maintainable web application.

Why Use 2 Servers?

So, why would you want to use 2 servers for your MEVN stack app? There are several reasons:

• Separation of Concerns**: By using 2 servers, you can separate your frontend and backend logic, making it easier to maintain and update your application.
• Scalability**: Having 2 servers allows you to scale your application horizontally, which means you can handle more traffic and requests without compromising performance.
• Security**: Using 2 servers enables you to implement additional security measures, such as encryption and authentication, to protect your application and data.

Deploying to Firebase

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s move on to the main event: deploying your MEVN stack app that uses 2 servers to Firebase. Firebase is a cloud-based platform that provides a suite of services, including hosting, authentication, and real-time database, that make it easy to build and deploy web applications.

Step 1: Create a Firebase Project

The first step in deploying your MEVN stack app to Firebase is to create a new Firebase project. To do this:

1. Go to the Firebase website and sign in with your Google account.
2. Click on the “Create a new Firebase project” button.
3. Fill in the required information, such as project name and location.
4. Click on the “Create project” button.

Once you’ve created your Firebase project, you’ll be taken to the Firebase console, where you can configure your project settings and enable various Firebase services.

Step 2: Set up Firebase Hosting

The next step is to set up Firebase Hosting, which will allow you to host your frontend application on Firebase. To do this:

1. In the Firebase console, click on the “Hosting” tab.
2. Click on the “Get started” button.
3. Choose your hosting provider (in this case, Firebase).
4. Follow the instructions to set up Firebase Hosting.

Once you’ve set up Firebase Hosting, you’ll need to configure your `firebase.json` file, which is used to configure your Firebase Hosting settings. Here’s an example of what your `firebase.json` file might look like:

{
  "hosting": {
    "public": "dist",
    "ignore": ["firebase.json", "**/.*"],
    "rewrites": [
      {
        "source": "**",
        "destination": "/index.html"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Step 3: Deploy Your Frontend Application

Now that you’ve set up Firebase Hosting, it’s time to deploy your frontend application. To do this:

1. Run the command `npm run build` to build your frontend application.
2. Run the command `firebase deploy` to deploy your frontend application to Firebase Hosting.

Once you’ve deployed your frontend application, you should be able to access it via the Firebase Hosting URL provided in the Firebase console.

Step 4: Set up Firebase Cloud Functions

The next step is to set up Firebase Cloud Functions, which will allow you to host your backend API on Firebase. To do this:

1. In the Firebase console, click on the “Functions” tab.
2. Click on the “Get started” button.
3. Choose the runtime environment (in this case, Node.js).
4. Follow the instructions to set up Firebase Cloud Functions.

Once you’ve set up Firebase Cloud Functions, you’ll need to create a new Cloud Function for your backend API. Here’s an example of what your `functions/index.js` file might look like:

exports.api = functions.https.onRequest((req, res) => {
  // API logic goes here
  res.send("Hello, world!");
});

Step 5: Deploy Your Backend API

Now that you’ve set up Firebase Cloud Functions, it’s time to deploy your backend API. To do this:

1. Run the command `firebase deploy –only functions` to deploy your backend API to Firebase Cloud Functions.

Once you’ve deployed your backend API, you should be able to access it via the Firebase Cloud Functions URL provided in the Firebase console.

Step 6: Configure Your MongoDB Database

The final step is to configure your MongoDB database to work with your Firebase application. To do this:

1. Create a new MongoDB database instance on MongoDB Atlas or MongoDB Cloud Manager.
2. Create a new MongoDB user with read and write permissions.
3. Update your `server.js` file to connect to your MongoDB database instance.

Here’s an example of what your `server.js` file might look like:

const mongoose = require("mongoose");

mongoose.connect("mongodb://username:password@mongodb-instance.com:27017/mydatabase", { useNewUrlParser: true, useUnifiedTopology: true });

const app = express();

// API routes go here

app.listen(3000, () => {
  console.log("Server started on port 3000");
});

Conclusion

And that’s it! You’ve successfully deployed your MEVN stack app that uses 2 servers to Firebase. With this setup, you can take advantage of the scalability and security offered by Firebase, while also enjoying the flexibility and maintainability of a MEVN stack app.

Common Issues and Solutions

While deploying your MEVN stack app to Firebase, you may encounter some common issues. Here are some solutions to help you troubleshoot:

Issue	Solution
Error deploying to Firebase Hosting	Check that your `firebase.json` file is configured correctly, and that you have the correct permissions to deploy to Firebase Hosting.
Error deploying to Firebase Cloud Functions	Check that your `functions/index.js` file is configured correctly, and that you have the correct permissions to deploy to Firebase Cloud Functions.
Error connecting to MongoDB database	Check that your MongoDB database instance is correctly configured, and that your `server.js` file is connecting to the correct database instance.

We hope this article has been helpful in guiding you through the process of deploying your MEVN stack app that uses 2 servers to Firebase. If you have any further questions or issues, feel free to leave a comment below!

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