Building

This guide covers building each component of Anchor for production use. Whether you’re deploying the server, web app, or mobile app, you’ll find the necessary build commands and configurations here.

Building the Server

The server is a NestJS application that compiles TypeScript to JavaScript.

Development Build

Navigate to server directory

cd server

Install dependencies

pnpm install

Generate Prisma client

pnpm exec prisma generate

Build the application

pnpm build

This runs nest build which compiles TypeScript to the dist/ directory.

Production Build

pnpm build
pnpm run start:prod

The production start command (start:prod) runs node dist/src/main, which starts the compiled server on the configured PORT (default: 3001).

Environment Variables

Ensure these are set for production:

DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@host:5432/anchor
JWT_SECRET=your-secure-random-secret
APP_URL=https://your-domain.com
NODE_ENV=production
PORT=3001

Build Scripts

From server/package.json:

Command	Description
`pnpm build`	Compile TypeScript to JavaScript
`pnpm start`	Start server (requires build)
`pnpm start:dev`	Start in development mode with watch
`pnpm start:prod`	Start production server
`pnpm lint`	Run ESLint
`pnpm test`	Run unit tests
`pnpm test:e2e`	Run end-to-end tests

Building the Web App

The web app is a Next.js 16 application that can be built for static export or as a Node.js server.

Development Build

Navigate to web directory

cd web

Install dependencies

pnpm install

Build for production

pnpm build

This runs next build which creates an optimized production build in .next/.

Production Deployment

pnpm build
pnpm start

The web app requires the server to be running and accessible. Configure the SERVER_URL environment variable if the server is not on the default http://127.0.0.1:3001.

Build Optimization

Next.js automatically:

Minifies JavaScript and CSS
Optimizes images with next/image
Splits code for optimal loading
Generates static pages where possible
Creates a service worker for offline support (if configured)

Build Scripts

From web/package.json:

Command	Description
`pnpm dev`	Start development server on :3000
`pnpm build`	Create production build
`pnpm start`	Start production server
`pnpm lint`	Run ESLint

Environment Variables

SERVER_URL=http://127.0.0.1:3001  # Backend API URL
NODE_ENV=production

Building the Mobile App

The mobile app is built with Flutter and supports Android and iOS.

Prerequisites

Flutter SDK installed and configured
For Android: Android SDK and NDK
For iOS: Xcode and CocoaPods (macOS only)

Android Build

Navigate to mobile directory

cd mobile

Install dependencies

flutter pub get

Run code generation

dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

This generates code for:

Riverpod providers
Drift database tables
JSON serialization
Freezed data classes

Build APK

flutter build apk --release

Split APKs create smaller files for specific CPU architectures (arm64-v8a, armeabi-v7a, x86_64). The universal APK works on all devices but is larger.

Build App Bundle (for Play Store)

flutter build appbundle --release

The .aab file will be in build/app/outputs/bundle/release/.

iOS Build

Install dependencies

cd mobile
flutter pub get
cd ios
pod install
cd ..

Run code generation

dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

Build IPA

flutter build ios --release

For App Store submission, use Xcode to archive and upload.

Build Configuration

From mobile/pubspec.yaml:

name: anchor
version: 0.9.1+11

environment:
  sdk: ^3.10.1

The version format is major.minor.patch+buildNumber.

Flutter Build Commands

Command	Description
`flutter pub get`	Install dependencies
`flutter run`	Run in development mode
`flutter build apk`	Build Android APK
`flutter build appbundle`	Build Android App Bundle
`flutter build ios`	Build iOS app
`dart run build_runner build`	Generate code
`flutter clean`	Clean build cache

Docker Builds

Anchor provides Docker configurations for easy deployment.

Development Build

Use the development Docker Compose file:

docker compose -f docker-compose.dev.yml up -d

This builds and runs:

PostgreSQL database
Server with hot reload
Web app with hot reload

Production Build

Build the production image

docker build -t anchor:latest .

The Dockerfile:

Builds the server (NestJS)
Builds the web app (Next.js)
Combines them in a single container
Includes embedded PostgreSQL (PGlite)

Run the container

docker run -d \
  -p 3000:3000 \
  -v anchor_data:/data \
  --name anchor \
  anchor:latest

Using Pre-built Image

services:
  anchor:
    image: ghcr.io/zhfahim/anchor:latest
    container_name: anchor
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    volumes:
      - anchor_data:/data
    environment:
      - APP_URL=https://your-domain.com
      - JWT_SECRET=your-secret-here

volumes:
  anchor_data:

Build Verification

After building, verify each component:

Server

curl http://localhost:3001/api/health
# Expected: {"status":"ok"}

Web

Visit http://localhost:3000 and verify:

Pages load correctly
Assets are minified
API requests work
Authentication flow works

Mobile

Test the built APK/IPA:

Install on a physical device or emulator
Verify offline functionality
Test sync with server
Check performance and stability

Build Troubleshooting

Server Build Errors

pnpm exec prisma generate
pnpm build

Web Build Errors

# Clear Next.js cache
rm -rf .next
pnpm build

Mobile Build Errors

flutter clean
flutter pub get
dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

Performance Considerations

Server

Enable production mode (NODE_ENV=production)
Use connection pooling for PostgreSQL
Configure appropriate memory limits
Enable gzip compression

Web

Ensure next build runs successfully
Enable compression middleware
Use CDN for static assets
Configure caching headers

Mobile

Use --release flag for production builds
Enable ProGuard for Android (code shrinking)
Optimize images and assets
Test on real devices for performance

Continuous Integration

Example GitHub Actions workflow:

name: Build
on: [push]

jobs:
  build-server:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - uses: pnpm/action-setup@v2
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v3
        with:
          node-version: '18'
      - run: cd server && pnpm install
      - run: cd server && pnpm build
      - run: cd server && pnpm test

  build-web:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - uses: pnpm/action-setup@v2
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v3
        with:
          node-version: '18'
      - run: cd web && pnpm install
      - run: cd web && pnpm build

  build-mobile:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - uses: subosito/flutter-action@v2
        with:
          flutter-version: '3.x'
      - run: cd mobile && flutter pub get
      - run: cd mobile && dart run build_runner build
      - run: cd mobile && flutter build apk

Next Steps

Review the contribution guidelines before submitting changes
Learn about the architecture to understand the codebase
Return to getting started for development setup

Contributing

Building the Server

Development Build

Production Build

Environment Variables

Build Scripts

Building the Web App

Development Build

Production Deployment

Build Optimization

Build Scripts

Environment Variables

Building the Mobile App

Prerequisites

Android Build

iOS Build

Build Configuration

Flutter Build Commands

Docker Builds

Development Build

Production Build

Using Pre-built Image

Build Verification

Server

Web

Mobile

Build Troubleshooting

Server Build Errors

Web Build Errors

Mobile Build Errors

Performance Considerations

Server

Web

Mobile

Continuous Integration

Next Steps

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Contributing

Documentation Index

​Building the Server

​Development Build

​Production Build

​Environment Variables

​Build Scripts

​Building the Web App

​Development Build

​Production Deployment

​Build Optimization

​Build Scripts

​Environment Variables

​Building the Mobile App

​Prerequisites

​Android Build

​iOS Build

​Build Configuration

​Flutter Build Commands

​Docker Builds

​Development Build

​Production Build

​Using Pre-built Image

​Build Verification

​Server

​Web

​Mobile

​Build Troubleshooting

​Server Build Errors

​Web Build Errors

​Mobile Build Errors

​Performance Considerations

​Server

​Web

​Mobile

​Continuous Integration

​Next Steps

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Building the Server

Development Build

Production Build

Environment Variables

Build Scripts

Building the Web App

Development Build

Production Deployment

Build Optimization

Build Scripts

Environment Variables

Building the Mobile App

Prerequisites

Android Build

iOS Build

Build Configuration

Flutter Build Commands

Docker Builds

Development Build

Production Build

Using Pre-built Image

Build Verification

Server

Web

Mobile

Build Troubleshooting

Server Build Errors

Web Build Errors

Mobile Build Errors

Performance Considerations

Server

Web

Mobile

Continuous Integration

Next Steps