Deploy a React app on EC2

Prerequisites

AWS account and EC2

An AWS account with access to EC2.

Running EC2 instance

An EC2 instance (Ubuntu recommended).

Elastic IP (recommended)

An Elastic IP for a stable public address.

FileZilla

FileZilla (SFTP) configured for the instance.

PuTTY or SSH

PuTTY or OpenSSH.

Node.js and npm

Node.js and npm on the instance.

Create the React app locally

1. Scaffold an app (replace my-react-app with your name):

   Terminal (local)

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   npx create-react-app@latest my-react-app

   Terminal (local)

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   cd my-react-app

2. Start the dev server:

   Terminal (local)

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   npm start

   The app opens at http://localhost:3000/.

   

3. Edit the UI under src/ — commonly src/App.js or src/App.jsx depending on your template.

Deploy on EC2

Add index.js at the project root (next to package.json) before you upload. It serves the CRA build folder and falls back to index.html for client-side routes.

const express = require('express');
const path = require('path');

const app = express();
const port = process.env.PORT || 3000;

app.use(express.static(path.join(__dirname, 'build')));

app.get('*', (req, res) => {
  res.sendFile(path.join(__dirname, 'build', 'index.html'));
});

app.listen(port, () => {
  console.log(`Server is running on port ${port}`);
});

1. Confirm the instance is running; note the public DNS or IP.

   

2. Connect with PuTTY or SSH.

   

3. Verify Node and npm.

   

4. Create a deploy directory and set ownership:

   Terminal (EC2)

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   sudo mkdir -p /home/ubuntu/reactjs-website
   sudo chown ubuntu:ubuntu /home/ubuntu/reactjs-website

   

5. Optional demo-only chmod 777 for SFTP (tighten later):

   Terminal (EC2)

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   sudo chmod 777 /home/ubuntu/reactjs-website

   

6. Upload the project with FileZilla. Exclude .git and node_modules (and usually build so you rebuild on the server).

   

7. Install PM2 globally:

   Terminal (EC2)

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   sudo npm i -g pm2

   PM2

   

8. From the project directory on EC2, install dependencies, add Express, and build:

   Terminal (EC2)

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   cd /home/ubuntu/reactjs-website
   npm install
   npm install express
   NODE_ENV=production npm run build

   Avoid habitual sudo npm install; fix file ownership with chown if uploads land as the wrong user.

9. Start with PM2:

   Terminal (EC2)

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   cd /home/ubuntu/reactjs-website
   sudo pm2 start index.js

   Allow inbound TCP 3000 (or your chosen PORT) in the security group. Visit http://<public-ip>:3000/.

   

10. You should see the built React app in the browser.

    

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