wacrm/docs/deployment-alternatives.md

Alternative hosts

Hostinger Managed Node.js Hosting is the recommended default — zero-ops, Git deploy from hPanel, AutoSSL. But WaCRM is a plain Next.js app; any host that runs long-running Node.js 20+ will work. This page is a quick sketch for the common alternatives. Each block assumes you've already completed Supabase setup and WhatsApp setup.

Vercel

1. Push your fork to GitHub.
2. https://vercel.com/new → Import Git Repository → pick the fork.
3. Environment Variables: paste every value from environment-variables.md. Mark the NEXT_PUBLIC_* ones as available at build time (Vercel does this automatically).
4. Deploy. Vercel handles HTTPS, preview URLs, and edge routing.
5. Attach your domain (Vercel → Project → Settings → Domains).
6. Update Meta → WhatsApp → Configuration → Webhook to https://<your-domain>/api/whatsapp/webhook.

Automations cron: Vercel has built-in cron (Pro plan). Add to vercel.json:

{
  "crons": [
    { "path": "/api/automations/cron", "schedule": "* * * * *" }
  ]
}

Vercel cron hits the endpoint server-to-server but doesn't let you send custom headers. The simplest path is to skip x-cron-secret and gate on Vercel's x-vercel-cron header instead:

// adjust src/app/api/automations/cron/route.ts
if (request.headers.get('x-vercel-cron') !== '1' &&
    request.headers.get('x-cron-secret') !== process.env.AUTOMATION_CRON_SECRET) {
  return NextResponse.json({ error: 'Unauthorized' }, { status: 401 });
}

Trade-offs:

• ✅ Fastest onboarding, preview URLs per PR, global CDN.
• ⚠️ Serverless functions have cold starts — inbound webhooks from Meta may occasionally take an extra second on the first hit.
• ⚠️ The in-memory rate limiter is per-function-instance, so effective limits multiply across regions. Swap for Upstash Redis if that matters.

Railway

1. https://railway.app/new → Deploy from GitHub repo → pick your fork.
2. Railway detects Next.js automatically. Default build + start commands are correct.
3. Variables: add every value from environment-variables.md.
4. Generate Domain under Settings, or attach a custom domain.
5. Update Meta webhook URL, same as above.

Automations cron: Railway has built-in cron. Services → + Cron:

• Schedule: * * * * *
• Command:

  curl -s -H "x-cron-secret: $AUTOMATION_CRON_SECRET" https://<your-domain>/api/automations/cron
  

Trade-offs:

• ✅ Long-running processes (no cold starts), built-in Redis if you need one, usage-based pricing.
• ⚠️ No preview deploys per PR out of the box (paid feature).

Raw VPS (any provider)

Any Ubuntu 22/24 or Debian 12 VPS with 2 GB+ RAM works. The Hostinger VPS walkthrough in deployment-hostinger.md (at the bottom, "When to reach for a VPS instead") gives the exact commands — PM2 + nginx + certbot. Same commands apply on DigitalOcean, Hetzner, Linode, AWS Lightsail, OVH, etc. Only the billing dashboard changes.

Systemd cron is the obvious scheduler:

* * * * * curl -s -H "x-cron-secret: $AUTOMATION_CRON_SECRET" https://<your-domain>/api/automations/cron > /dev/null

Trade-offs:

• ✅ Most control (custom binaries, private networking, your own observability stack), cheapest at scale.
• ⚠️ You are the ops team. Patching, TLS renewal, log rotation, backup to S3 — all you.

Self-hosted Docker / Kubernetes

No official image is shipped. If you containerise, the app is a plain Next.js standalone build:

FROM node:20-alpine AS deps
WORKDIR /app
COPY package*.json ./
RUN npm ci

FROM node:20-alpine AS build
WORKDIR /app
COPY --from=deps /app/node_modules ./node_modules
COPY . .
RUN npm run build

FROM node:20-alpine AS runner
WORKDIR /app
ENV NODE_ENV=production
COPY --from=build /app/.next ./.next
COPY --from=build /app/node_modules ./node_modules
COPY --from=build /app/package.json ./
COPY --from=build /app/public ./public
EXPOSE 3000
CMD ["npm", "start"]

Pass env vars via --env-file or a Kubernetes Secret. The cron ping stays an external concern (K8s CronJob, a sidecar, or an external uptime monitor).

Which should I pick?

If you want…	Pick
Zero-ops, lowest-friction deploy	Hostinger Managed Node.js
Preview URLs per PR, global edge	Vercel
Long-running processes, simple cron	Railway
Full control, cheapest at scale, you're OK on ops	VPS / self-host
Air-gapped or multi-region with your own K8s	Docker / Kubernetes

None of these are one-way doors — they all run the same fork of the same Next.js app.