Deploying a Monorepo

What is a Monorepo?

A monorepo (short for "monolithic repository") is a software development strategy where multiple projects, services, or packages are stored in a single version-controlled repository. Unlike a polyrepo setup, where each project has its own repository, a monorepo allows teams to manage shared code, enforce consistent tooling, and improve collaboration.

Key Features of a Monorepo:

• Code Sharing: Components within the repository can easily share dependencies and libraries.
• Consistency: Ensures uniform coding standards, tools, and configurations across projects.
• Single Source of Truth: All services and applications exist in a single repository, making version control and dependency management easier.
• Better Collaboration: Teams can work on different services while benefiting from shared knowledge and resources.
• Simplified CI/CD Pipelines: Builds and deployments can be optimized with a unified process across projects.

CloudStation and Monorepos

CloudStation makes it easy to deploy monorepos. The primary type supported is:

1. Shared Monorepo – A repository where multiple components share code or configurations from the root directory (e.g., Yarn workspaces or Lerna projects).

Deploying a Shared Monorepo

Shared monorepos are popular in the JavaScript ecosystem and contain multiple components that rely on a common root directory.

By default, all components are built using a single command from the root directory (e.g., npm run build). However, if you're using Nixpacks, you can override the build command in the service settings.

├── package.json
└── packages
    ├── backend
    │   └── index.js
    ├── common
    │   └── index.js
    └── frontend
        └── index.jsx

To deploy this type of monorepo in CloudStation, set up a custom start command in the Service Settings for each project that needs to run separately.

Steps to Deploy

1. Open the project canvas and select the service you want to configure.
2. Navigate to the Settings tab.
3. Define a custom start command, such as npm run start:backend for the backend and npm run start:frontend for the frontend.