Deploy Aurora Drift to GitHub Pages, Vercel, or Netlify

Aurora Drift compiles to a dist/ folder of fully static files — plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript with no server-side runtime required. That output can be dropped onto any static hosting service that can serve files over HTTPS. The sections below cover the three most popular targets: GitHub Pages, Vercel, and Netlify.

The build step (npm run build) requires the original Vite source project. If you are working with the compiled repository directly, the dist/ output already exists as the repository contents — you can deploy those files as-is without running a build. Never commit API keys, access tokens, or any other secrets to the repository.

GitHub Pages
Vercel
Netlify

The Aurora Drift repository includes a .nojekyll file at the root. This file tells GitHub Pages to bypass its default Jekyll processing pipeline and serve all files as-is — including files and directories whose names start with an underscore (such as _assets/). Without .nojekyll, those directories would be silently ignored and the page would fail to load. Make sure this file is present in whatever branch you push to.

Build the project

If you have the original Vite source, run:

npm run build

This produces the dist/ folder. Confirm it contains index.html, an assets/ directory, and a pages/ directory. If you are deploying the compiled repository directly, skip this step — the repository root is already the deployable output.

Push to the gh-pages branch

The simplest approach is to use the gh-pages npm package:

npx gh-pages -d dist

This command creates (or resets) a gh-pages branch containing only the contents of dist/ and pushes it to GitHub automatically. If you are deploying the compiled repository directly, push the repository root contents instead.

Enable Pages in repository settings

Go to your repository on GitHub → Settings → Pages. Under Build and deployment, set the source to Deploy from a branch and select the gh-pages branch, root directory /. Save and wait ~60 seconds for the first deployment to become live.

Subdirectory deployments: If your site will be hosted at https://username.github.io/repo-name/ rather than at a custom domain root, you need to add a base option to vite.config.js in the original source project before building:

// vite.config.js (original source project only)
export default {
  base: '/repo-name/',
}

Rebuild after making this change. Without it, all asset paths will resolve from / and the page will render as a blank white screen. This setting is not available in the compiled repository, which has no vite.config.js.

Vercel auto-detects Vite projects and requires almost no configuration.

Connect the repository

Go to vercel.com/new, sign in with GitHub, and import your Aurora Drift repository. Vercel will scan the codebase and auto-select Vite as the framework preset.

Confirm build settings

In the project configuration screen, verify or set:

Setting	Value
Framework Preset	Vite
Build Command	`npm run build`
Output Directory	`dist`
Install Command	`npm install`

Leave all other fields at their defaults.

Deploy

Click Deploy. Vercel runs the build in an isolated container, uploads the output to its global CDN, provisions a free HTTPS certificate, and assigns a .vercel.app subdomain — all automatically. The first deploy usually completes in under two minutes.

Vercel automatically creates a preview deployment for every branch and pull request, giving each one its own unique URL. This makes it easy to share work-in-progress versions of your portfolio (e.g. a new colour scheme or a new page) with collaborators before merging to the main branch.

Netlify supports both drag-and-drop one-off deploys and continuous deployment from a Git repository.

Deploy (drag-and-drop or Git)

Option A — Instant drag-and-drop: Run npm run build locally (requires original source), then drag the dist/ folder onto app.netlify.com/drop. Netlify publishes it instantly with a random subdomain.Option B — Continuous Git deployment: Go to app.netlify.com → Add new site → Import an existing project and connect your GitHub repository. Set the following values in the build configuration:

Setting	Value
Build command	`npm run build`
Publish directory	`dist`

Optionally add a _redirects file

Aurora Drift uses hash-based routing (/#/about, /#/work, etc.), so hash fragments are never sent to the server and deep links work correctly on static hosts without any server-side rewrite rules. The /* /index.html 200 redirect is therefore not required.If you want a belt-and-suspenders safety net anyway, create a file at public/_redirects in the original source project (the public/ directory is copied verbatim into dist/ by Vite):

/* /index.html 200

This rule tells Netlify’s CDN edge nodes to serve index.html for every unmatched request path, returning HTTP 200 rather than 404.

Trigger a deploy

If you used Option B, push a commit to your main branch — Netlify will pick it up automatically. If you used drag-and-drop and want to update the site, repeat the drag-and-drop with a freshly built dist/ folder, or upgrade to Git-linked deploys.

GitHub Pages documentation

Official guide to configuring GitHub Pages, custom domains, HTTPS enforcement, and the gh-pages branch workflow.

Vercel documentation

Vercel’s full docs covering project configuration, environment variables, preview deployments, and custom domain setup.

Getting Started

Core Components

Animation System

Theming & Styling

Pages

Customization

Deploy Aurora Drift to GitHub Pages, Vercel, or Netlify

Further reading

GitHub Pages documentation

Vercel documentation

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Getting Started

Core Components

Animation System

Theming & Styling

Pages

Customization

Documentation Index

​Further reading

GitHub Pages documentation

Vercel documentation

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Further reading