Next.JS wesbite - CSS Not Rendering on Prod & Static Assets Not Deploying (404 Errors)

aman-s167 · December 16, 2025, 12:58pm

Netlify Support Request: Static Assets Not Deploying (404 Errors)

Problem Summary

Site URL: https://perfectlyhired.com
Issue: All _next/static/* assets (CSS, JavaScript, fonts) return 404 errors on production deployment, while the site works correctly locally and on Netlify preview deployments.

Symptom: Deployment logs show only “4 new file(s) to upload” when there should be 50+ static files (55 files verified locally: 46 JS files, 1 CSS file, 7 font files, plus manifest files).

Impact: Site renders without any styling, JavaScript functionality, or fonts on production domain.

Technical Details

Build Configuration

Next.js Version: 16.0.10
@netlify**/plugin-nextjs Version**: 5.15.2 (latest)
Node Version: 20.12.2
Build Mode: SSR (Server-Side Rendering, NOT static export)
Build Command: npm run generate-sitemap && npm run build

Local Build Verification

Static Assets Generated: 55 files in .next/static/
- 46 JavaScript files in chunks/
- 1 CSS file: chunks/c4026e3d31803ba7.css
- 7 font files in media/
- Manifest files (_buildManifest.js, _ssgManifest.js, etc.)
Total Size: ~1.35 MB
Build Status: Successful

Production Deployment Evidence

From latest deployment logs:

Starting to deploy site from ‘.next’
Calculating files to upload
4 new file(s) to upload THIS IS THE PROBLEM
4 new function(s) to upload

 **Expected**: 50+ files should be uploaded **Actual**: Only 4 files uploaded ### Example 404 URLs (All Return 404) - `https://perfectlyhired.com/_next/static/chunks/c4026e3d31803ba7.css` - `https://perfectlyhired.com/_next/static/chunks/185c2acb2763bace.js` - `https://perfectlyhired.com/_next/static/media/83afe278b6a6bb3c-s.p.3a6ba036.woff2` --- ## Current Configuration ### `netlify.toml` ```toml [build] command = "npm run generate-sitemap && npm run build" publish = ".next" [[plugins]] package = "@netlify/plugin-nextjs" [build.environment] NODE_VERSION = "20.12.2" NETLIFY_NEXT_SKEW_PROTECTION = "true" [functions] node_bundler = "esbuild" external_node_modules = ["node-fetch"] # HTTP Headers for SEO [[headers]] for = "/*" [headers.values] X-Robots-Tag = "index, follow, max-image-preview:large, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1" X-Frame-Options = "DENY" X-Content-Type-Options = "nosniff" # Ensure CSS and JS assets are served correctly [[headers]] for = "/_next/static/*" [headers.values] Cache-Control = "public, max-age=31536000, immutable" [[headers]] for = "/_next/static/css/*" [headers.values] Content-Type = "text/css" Cache-Control = "public, max-age=31536000, immutable"

`next.config.js`

/** @type {import('next').NextConfig} */ const nextConfig = { pageExtensions: ['tsx', 'ts', 'jsx', 'js'], images: { domains: ['perfectlyhired.com'], }, async redirects() { return [ { source: '/perfectly-hired-ai-powered-role-creation', destination: '/ai-powered-job-description', permanent: true, }, { source: '/locations', destination: '/', permanent: true, }, ]; }, async rewrites() { return [ { source: '/recruitment-service/hire-:slug(.*)', destination: '/recruitment-service/hire/:slug', }, ]; }, async headers() { return [ { source: '/(.*)', headers: [ { key: 'X-Frame-Options', value: 'DENY', }, { key: 'X-Content-Type-Options', value: 'nosniff', }, { key: 'X-Robots-Tag', value: 'index, follow, max-image-preview:large, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1', }, ], }, ]; }, }; module.exports = nextConfig;

`middleware.ts`

import { NextResponse } from 'next/server'; import type { NextRequest } from 'next/server'; const SKIP_PREFIXES = [ '/_next', '/api', '/favicon.ico', '/robots.txt', '/sitemap.xml', '/icons', '/images', ]; export function middleware(request: NextRequest) { const pathname = request.nextUrl.pathname; if (SKIP_PREFIXES.some(prefix => pathname.startsWith(prefix))) { return NextResponse.next(); } return NextResponse.next(); } export const config = { matcher: [ '/((?!api|_next/static|_next/image|favicon.ico).*)', ], };

`public/_redirects`

Contains 5,000+ specific redirect rules
No catch-all redirects (commented out: # /* /index.html 200)
No redirects matching /_next/* paths
All redirects are specific URL-to-URL mappings

`.netlifyignore`

# Dependencies node_modules/ # Source files (not needed in deployment) src/ scripts/ archive/ *.backup *.md !README.md # Config and dev files .git/ .vscode/ .idea/ *.log .env .env.local .env.*.local # Test files **/*.test.* **/*.spec.* # Note: .next/ is needed for @netlify/plugin-nextjs, so we don't exclude it

Everything We’ve Tried

Configuration Changes

Explicit publish directory: Set publish = ".next" in netlify.toml
Removed publish directory: Tried letting plugin handle it automatically
Removed redirects from netlify.toml: Moved all redirects to public/_redirects to avoid conflicts
Updated middleware: Explicitly configured to skip /_next paths
Added skew protection: NETLIFY_NEXT_SKEW_PROTECTION = "true"

Plugin Configuration

Verified plugin version: Using latest @netlify/plugin-nextjs@5.15.2
Explicit plugin declaration: Plugin is explicitly listed in netlify.toml and package.json
Removed invalid plugin inputs: Removed incrementalSourceBundling (not supported in v5.15.2)

Build Verification

Local build check: Confirmed 55 static assets are generated correctly
Post-build verification script: Created diagnostic script that confirms .next/static/ contains all files
Build logs analysis: Build completes successfully, all files exist in .next/static/

Netlify UI Checks

Publish directory: Verified in Netlify UI (set to .next or empty)
Build command: Matches netlify.toml configuration
Environment variables: Verified BUILD_HOOK_URL and GOOGLE_SHEETS_WEBHOOK (unrelated to static assets)

Attempted Solutions That Didn’t Work

Standalone build mode: Tried output: 'standalone' in next.config.js - Plugin explicitly failed with error: “Your publish directory does not contain expected Next.js build output”
Manual static asset copy: Attempted copying .next/static to public/_next/static - Failed because Next.js reserves /_next route and conflicts with public/_next directory
Removing publish directory: Tried removing publish from netlify.toml - No change, still only 4 files
Adding plugin inputs: Tried incrementalSourceBundling = false - Plugin doesn’t accept this input in v5.15.2

Everything We Suspected (But Wasn’t the Issue)

Redirects Interference

Suspicion: Redirects in netlify.toml or public/_redirects might be catching /_next/static/* requests
Investigation:

Checked all redirects - none match /_next/* patterns
Removed redirects from netlify.toml - no change
Verified catch-all redirect is commented out
Conclusion: Not the issue

Middleware Interference

Suspicion: Middleware might be intercepting static asset requests
Investigation:

Updated middleware to explicitly skip /_next paths
Added matcher config to exclude static assets
Conclusion: Not the issue (middleware correctly configured)

Publish Directory Configuration

Suspicion: Wrong publish directory or plugin not finding .next/static
Investigation:

Tried explicit publish = ".next"
Tried removing publish directory (let plugin handle it)
Verified .next/static/ exists with 55 files after build
Conclusion: Not the issue (directory exists, plugin should find it)

Plugin Version

Suspicion: Outdated plugin version might have bugs
Investigation:

Currently using 5.15.2 (latest version)
Checked npm registry - no newer version available
Conclusion: Not the issue (using latest version)

CSS File Location

Suspicion: CSS files in wrong location (e.g., public/ directory)
Investigation:

CSS is correctly located in app/globals.css
No CSS modules in public/ directory
CSS is properly imported in app/layout.tsx
Conclusion: Not the issue (correct setup)

.gitignore Excluding Files

Suspicion: .next/ in .gitignore might prevent deployment
Investigation:

.next/ is correctly gitignored (standard practice)
Netlify builds generate .next/ during build process
Build logs confirm .next/static/ exists after build
Conclusion: Not the issue (normal and expected)

Environment Variables

Suspicion: Missing or incorrect environment variables
Investigation:

NETLIFY_NEXT_SKEW_PROTECTION = "true" is set
BUILD_HOOK_URL exists (unrelated to static assets)
NODE_VERSION = "20.12.2" is set
Conclusion: Not the issue (correctly configured)

.netlifyignore Excluding Files

Suspicion: .netlifyignore might be excluding .next/static/
Investigation:

.netlifyignore explicitly does NOT exclude .next/
Comment in file confirms: “Note: .next/ is needed for @netlify/plugin-nextjs”
Conclusion: Not the issue

Next.js Configuration

Suspicion: next.config.js might have incorrect settings
Investigation:

No output: 'export' (correct for SSR)
No output: 'standalone' (we tried this, plugin doesn’t support it)
Standard SSR configuration
Conclusion: Not the issue (correct configuration)

Build Cache Issues

Suspicion: Stale build cache causing issues
Investigation:

Cleared Netlify cache multiple times
Verified fresh builds generate correct files
Conclusion: Not the issue (cache cleared, problem persists)

What We Need Help With

Why is the plugin only uploading 4 files instead of 55+?
- The build generates all files correctly
- The plugin should automatically package .next/static/
- What is the plugin actually seeing/processing?
Is this a known bug with Next.js 16 and plugin v5.15.2?
- Are there compatibility issues?
- Are there workarounds or fixes available?
How can we verify what the plugin is processing?
- Can we get more detailed logs from the plugin?
- What files is it actually finding in .next/static/?
Is there a configuration we’re missing?
- Are there required environment variables?
- Are there plugin inputs we should be using?
Why do preview deployments work but production doesn’t?
- Same build process
- Same plugin version
- Different behavior between preview and production

Additional Information

Deployment Logs (Key Excerpts)

✅ Build completed successfully ✅ "Starting to deploy site from '.next'" ⚠️ "4 new file(s) to upload" - This is suspiciously low! ✅ Functions bundled correctly ✅ Site deployed successfully

Preview vs Production

Preview deployments: Static assets work correctly
Production deployment: Static assets return 404
Same build process: Identical configuration and build command

Diagnostic Script Output (Local)

✅ Verified 55 static assets exist in .next/static → These should be deployed by Netlify from .next directory

Additional Files (If Needed)

Here are the configuration files:

Configuration Files

`netlify.toml`

[build] command = "npm run generate-sitemap && npm run build" # Explicitly set publish directory - plugin will process .next and deploy static assets publish = ".next" [[plugins]] package = "@netlify/plugin-nextjs" [build.environment] NODE_VERSION = "20.12.2" # Enable skew protection to prevent 404s for static assets NETLIFY_NEXT_SKEW_PROTECTION = "true" [functions] node_bundler = "esbuild" external_node_modules = ["node-fetch"] # HTTP Headers for SEO [[headers]] for = "/*" [headers.values] X-Robots-Tag = "index, follow, max-image-preview:large, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1" X-Frame-Options = "DENY" X-Content-Type-Options = "nosniff" # Ensure CSS and JS assets are served correctly [[headers]] for = "/_next/static/*" [headers.values] Cache-Control = "public, max-age=31536000, immutable" [[headers]] for = "/_next/static/css/*" [headers.values] Content-Type = "text/css" Cache-Control = "public, max-age=31536000, immutable" # Note: _next/static/* assets are automatically handled by @netlify/plugin-nextjs # Do not add redirects for _next/* as they interfere with the plugin # Redirect blog tag pages to knowledge hub (handled in public/_redirects instead) # Temporarily removed from netlify.toml to test if redirects interfere with static assets # [[redirects]] # from = "/blog/tag/*" # to = "/knowledge-hub" # status = 301 # force = true

`next.config.js`

/** @type {import('next').NextConfig} */ const nextConfig = { // Explicitly use App Router only - ignore pages directory pageExtensions: ['tsx', 'ts', 'jsx', 'js'], images: { domains: ['perfectlyhired.com'], }, async redirects() { return [ { source: '/perfectly-hired-ai-powered-role-creation', destination: '/ai-powered-job-description', permanent: true, }, { source: '/locations', destination: '/', permanent: true, }, ]; }, async rewrites() { return [ { source: '/recruitment-service/hire-:slug(.*)', destination: '/recruitment-service/hire/:slug', }, ]; }, async headers() { return [ { source: '/(.*)', headers: [ { key: 'X-Frame-Options', value: 'DENY', }, { key: 'X-Content-Type-Options', value: 'nosniff', }, { key: 'X-Robots-Tag', value: 'index, follow, max-image-preview:large, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1', }, ], }, ]; }, }; module.exports = nextConfig;

`package.json` (Relevant Sections)

{ "name": "perfect-hire-landing-page", "version": "0.0.0", "private": true, "scripts": { "dev": "next dev", "build": "next build", "postbuild": "node scripts/copy-static-assets.js", "start": "next start", "lint": "next lint", "generate-sitemap": "node scripts/generate-sitemap.mjs", "generate-blog-index": "node scripts/generateBlogIndex.js", "diagnose": "node scripts/diagnose-build.js" }, "dependencies": { "@netlify/functions": "^4.1.5", "next": "^16.0.10", "react": "^18.3.1", "react-dom": "^18.3.1", "node-fetch": "^3.3.2" }, "devDependencies": { "@netlify/plugin-nextjs": "^5.15.2", "typescript": "^5.5.3" } }

`middleware.ts`

import { NextResponse } from 'next/server'; import type { NextRequest } from 'next/server'; // Skip middleware for static assets and API routes const SKIP_PREFIXES = [ '/_next', '/api', '/favicon.ico', '/robots.txt', '/sitemap.xml', '/icons', '/images', ]; export function middleware(request: NextRequest) { const pathname = request.nextUrl.pathname; // Skip middleware for static assets if (SKIP_PREFIXES.some(prefix => pathname.startsWith(prefix))) { return NextResponse.next(); } // All redirects are handled by Netlify _redirects file return NextResponse.next(); } export const config = { matcher: [ /* * Match all request paths except for the ones starting with: * - api (API routes) * - _next/static (static files) * - _next/image (image optimization files) * - favicon.ico (favicon file) */ '/((?!api|_next/static|_next/image|favicon.ico).*)', ], };

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Next.JS wesbite - CSS Not Rendering on Prod & Static Assets Not Deploying (404 Errors)

Netlify Support Request: Static Assets Not Deploying (404 Errors)

Problem Summary

Technical Details

Build Configuration

Local Build Verification

Production Deployment Evidence

next.config.js

middleware.ts

public/_redirects

.netlifyignore

Everything We’ve Tried

Configuration Changes

Plugin Configuration

Build Verification

Netlify UI Checks

Attempted Solutions That Didn’t Work

Everything We Suspected (But Wasn’t the Issue)

Redirects Interference

Middleware Interference

Publish Directory Configuration

Plugin Version

CSS File Location

.gitignore Excluding Files

Environment Variables

.netlifyignore Excluding Files

Next.js Configuration

Build Cache Issues

What We Need Help With

Additional Information

Deployment Logs (Key Excerpts)

Preview vs Production

Diagnostic Script Output (Local)

Additional Files (If Needed)

Configuration Files

netlify.toml

next.config.js

package.json (Relevant Sections)

middleware.ts

Related topics

`next.config.js`

`middleware.ts`

`public/_redirects`

`.netlifyignore`

`netlify.toml`

`next.config.js`

`package.json` (Relevant Sections)

`middleware.ts`