🚀 Mockup Generator API - Deployment Guide

This guide will help you deploy your mockup generator API to various cloud platforms and servers. This is an API-only server that receives requests from other applications - no frontend required.

📋 Prerequisites

Before deploying, ensure you have:

A working mockup generator API (this repository)
Basic knowledge of Linux commands
A cloud provider account (for cloud deployments)
Server IP address (domain name optional)

🏗️ Server Requirements

Minimum Specifications

CPU: 1 vCPU (2+ recommended)
RAM: 1GB (2GB+ recommended)
Storage: 10GB SSD
OS: Ubuntu 20.04+ or CentOS 8+
Network: Public IP with port 5002 open

Software Dependencies

Node.js 18+
ImageMagick 7+
PM2 (for process management)

🌐 Deployment Options

🎯 API-Only Deployment Benefits

Why This Setup is Perfect for API-Only Servers:

✅ No Frontend Required - Just pure API endpoints
✅ Simpler Setup - No Nginx or SSL configuration needed
✅ Faster Deployment - 10 minutes vs 30+ minutes
✅ Lower Resource Usage - No web server overhead
✅ Direct Communication - Server-to-server requests work perfectly
✅ Easy Scaling - PM2 handles multiple instances automatically

Your API Endpoints:

http://your-server-ip:5002/api/mockup/generate/tshirt
http://your-server-ip:5002/api/mockup/generate/mobile_cover
http://your-server-ip:5002/api/mockup/generate
http://your-server-ip:5002/health

Option 1: VPS Deployment (Recommended for Production)

Popular VPS Providers

DigitalOcean: $5/month droplet
Linode: $5/month nanode
Vultr: $2.50/month instance
AWS EC2: t3.micro (free tier eligible)
Google Cloud: e2-micro (free tier eligible)

Step-by-Step VPS Deployment

1. Server Setup

ssh root@your-server-ip
apt update && apt upgrade -y
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_18.x | sudo -E bash -
apt-get install -y nodejs
apt install imagemagick -y
npm install -g pm2

2. Deploy Application

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/mockup-generator.git
cd mockup-generator
npm install
./create_maps.sh
npm start

3. Configure PM2

cat > ecosystem.config.js << EOF
module.exports = {
  apps: [{
    name: 'mockup-api',
    script: 'server.js',
    instances: 'max',
    exec_mode: 'cluster',
    env: {
      NODE_ENV: 'production',
      PORT: 5002
    },
    error_file: './logs/err.log',
    out_file: './logs/out.log',
    log_file: './logs/combined.log',
    time: true
  }]
}
EOF

mkdir logs
pm2 start ecosystem.config.js
pm2 save
pm2 startup

4. Open Firewall Port

ufw allow 5002
ufw enable

5. Test Your API

curl http://your-server-ip:5002/health
curl http://your-server-ip:5002/api/mockup/products

Option 2: Cloud VPS (Free Tier)

🌟 AWS EC2 (Recommended - Free Tier)

AWS offers the best free tier for API-only servers:

What You Get:

EC2 t2.micro: 750 hours/month for 12 months
1GB RAM, 1 vCPU
30GB storage
Ubuntu 20.04/22.04
Perfect for your mockup API

Deployment Steps:

Create AWS Account at aws.amazon.com
Launch EC2 Instance:
- Choose Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
- Select t2.micro (Free tier eligible)
- Create/Select Key Pair
- Configure Security Group (SSH, HTTP, Custom TCP 5002)

Connect to Server:

ssh -i your-key.pem ubuntu@your-server-ip

Setup Environment:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_18.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs
sudo apt install imagemagick -y
sudo npm install -g pm2

Deploy Application:

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/mockup-generator.git
cd mockup-generator
npm install
./create_maps.sh
pm2 start server.js
pm2 save
pm2 startup

Pros:

✅ 12 months completely free
✅ Full Linux control
✅ ImageMagick works perfectly
✅ Production ready
✅ Easy setup

Cons:

❌ Requires credit card (won't charge for free tier)
❌ 12-month limit

🌟 Google Cloud Platform (Free Tier)

What You Get:

e2-micro: 720 hours/month
1GB RAM, 1 vCPU
30GB storage
Ubuntu 20.04/22.04
$300 credit for 90 days

Deployment Steps:

Create GCP Account at cloud.google.com
Create VM Instance:
- Choose e2-micro (Free tier)
- Select Ubuntu 22.04
- Allow HTTP traffic
Connect and Setup (same as AWS)

Pros:

✅ Always free tier available
✅ $300 credit for 90 days
✅ Full Linux control
✅ ImageMagick works perfectly

Cons:

❌ Requires credit card
❌ More complex than AWS

🌟 DigitalOcean Droplet (Paid)

What You Get:

Basic Droplet: $5/month
1GB RAM, 1 vCPU
25GB storage
Ubuntu 20.04/22.04

Deployment Steps:

Create DigitalOcean Account
Create Droplet:
- Choose Ubuntu 22.04
- Select Basic $5/month plan
- Add SSH key
Connect and Setup (same as AWS)

Pros:

✅ Very reliable
✅ Simple pricing
✅ Good documentation
✅ Easy setup

Cons:

❌ No free tier
❌ $5/month cost

Option 3: Docker Deployment

Create Dockerfile

FROM node:18-alpine

RUN apk add --no-cache imagemagick

WORKDIR /app

COPY package*.json ./

RUN npm ci --only=production

COPY . .

RUN ./create_maps.sh

EXPOSE 5002

CMD ["npm", "start"]

Docker Compose

version: '3.8'
services:
  mockup-api:
    build: .
    ports:
      - "5002:5002"
    environment:
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - PORT=5002
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - ./logs:/app/logs

Deploy with Docker

# Build image
docker build -t mockup-api .

# Run container
docker run -d -p 5002:5002 --name mockup-api mockup-api

# Or with docker-compose
docker-compose up -d

Option 4: Serverless Deployment

Vercel (Free Tier)

Deployment Steps:

Install Vercel CLI:
```
npm i -g vercel
```
Deploy:
```
vercel
```

Configure vercel.json:

{
  "version": 2,
  "builds": [
    {
      "src": "server.js",
      "use": "@vercel/node"
    }
  ],
  "routes": [
    {
      "src": "/(.*)",
      "dest": "server.js"
    }
  ]
}

Pros:

✅ Free tier available
✅ Automatic deployments
✅ Global CDN

Cons:

❌ ImageMagick not supported
❌ Function timeout limits

Netlify Functions (Free Tier)

Deployment Steps:

Connect GitHub to Netlify

Configure netlify.toml:

[build]
  command = "npm install"
  functions = "netlify/functions"

[[redirects]]
  from = "/api/*"
  to = "/.netlify/functions/:splat"
  status = 200

Pros:

✅ Free tier available
✅ Easy GitHub integration

Cons:

❌ ImageMagick not supported
❌ Function limitations

🔧 Production Optimizations

Environment Variables

NODE_ENV=production
PORT=5002
CORS_ORIGINS=https://yourdomain.com,https://www.yourdomain.com
RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW=900000
RATE_LIMIT_MAX=100

PM2 Monitoring

pm2 install pm2-logrotate
pm2 install pm2-server-monit
pm2 monit

API Security (Optional)

// Add to server.js for basic API key authentication
app.use('/api', (req, res, next) => {
  const apiKey = req.headers['x-api-key'];
  if (apiKey !== process.env.API_KEY) {
    return res.status(401).json({ error: 'Unauthorized' });
  }
  next();
});

📊 Monitoring & Logging

Health Checks

curl http://your-domain.com/health
curl http://your-domain.com/api/mockup/health

Log Management

pm2 logs mockup-api
tail -f /var/log/nginx/access.log
tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log

Performance Monitoring

npm install -g clinic
clinic doctor -- node server.js

💰 Cost Comparison

Service	Free Tier	Paid Plans	ImageMagick	API-Only Ready
AWS EC2	750 hours/month	$5+/month	✅ Native	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Google Cloud	720 hours/month	$5+/month	✅ Native	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
DigitalOcean	None	$5+/month	✅ Native	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Linode	None	$5+/month	✅ Native	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Vultr	None	$2.50+/month	✅ Native	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

🎯 Recommended Deployment Strategy

For Testing/Development:

AWS EC2 - 12 months completely free
Google Cloud - Always free tier available

For Production:

AWS EC2 - Best free tier, full control
Google Cloud - Good alternative with credits
DigitalOcean - Simple and reliable

For High Traffic:

AWS EC2 with Load Balancer
Google Cloud with multiple instances
VPS with PM2 clustering - Multiple Node.js instances

🚀 Quick Start Commands

AWS EC2 Deployment (Recommended)

# 1. Create EC2 instance (via AWS Console)
# 2. Connect to server
ssh -i your-key.pem ubuntu@your-server-ip

# 3. Setup environment
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_18.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs
sudo apt install imagemagick -y
sudo npm install -g pm2

# 4. Deploy application
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/mockup-generator.git
cd mockup-generator
npm install
./create_maps.sh
pm2 start server.js
pm2 save
pm2 startup

Google Cloud Deployment

# 1. Create VM instance (via GCP Console)
# 2. Connect to server (same as AWS)
# 3. Run same setup commands as AWS

🔍 Troubleshooting

Common Issues:

ImageMagick not found:

sudo apt install imagemagick -y
sudo yum install ImageMagick -y

Port already in use:
```
sudo lsof -ti:5002 | xargs kill -9
```
Permission denied:
```
chmod +x create_maps.sh
chmod +x *.sh
```

Memory issues:

export NODE_OPTIONS="--max-old-space-size=2048"

📞 Support

GitHub Issues: Create an issue
Documentation: Check the main README.md
API Docs: Visit /api/mockup/docs when deployed

Happy Deploying! 🚀 Your mockup generator API is ready to scale and serve users worldwide!

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🚀 Mockup Generator API - Deployment Guide

📋 Prerequisites

🏗️ Server Requirements

Minimum Specifications

Software Dependencies

🌐 Deployment Options

🎯 API-Only Deployment Benefits

Why This Setup is Perfect for API-Only Servers:

Your API Endpoints:

Option 1: VPS Deployment (Recommended for Production)

Popular VPS Providers

Step-by-Step VPS Deployment

1. Server Setup

2. Deploy Application

3. Configure PM2

4. Open Firewall Port

5. Test Your API

Option 2: Cloud VPS (Free Tier)

🌟 AWS EC2 (Recommended - Free Tier)

What You Get:

Deployment Steps:

Pros:

Cons:

🌟 Google Cloud Platform (Free Tier)

What You Get:

Deployment Steps:

Pros:

Cons:

🌟 DigitalOcean Droplet (Paid)

What You Get:

Deployment Steps:

Pros:

Cons:

Option 3: Docker Deployment

Create Dockerfile

Docker Compose

Deploy with Docker

Option 4: Serverless Deployment

Vercel (Free Tier)

Deployment Steps:

Pros:

Cons:

Netlify Functions (Free Tier)

Deployment Steps:

Pros:

Cons:

🔧 Production Optimizations

Environment Variables

PM2 Monitoring

API Security (Optional)

📊 Monitoring & Logging

Health Checks

Log Management

Performance Monitoring

💰 Cost Comparison

🎯 Recommended Deployment Strategy

For Testing/Development:

For Production:

For High Traffic:

🚀 Quick Start Commands

AWS EC2 Deployment (Recommended)

Google Cloud Deployment

🔍 Troubleshooting

Common Issues:

📞 Support