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Willyams Yujra
Willyams Yujra

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Create an SSR Application with Vite, React, React Query and React Router

#vitejs #ssr #react #reactquery

Create an SSR Application with Vite, React, React Query and React Router

In this tutorial, we will create a server-side rendered (SSR) application using Vite, React, React Query, React Bootstrap, and React Router. We'll also configure the vite-plugin-ssr-config plugin to handle SSR rendering.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

  • Node.js installed (version 20 or higher)
  • Yarn package manager
  • Basic knowledge of React and vite ecosystem

1. Create the Application

First, create a new Vite project with the React template:

yarn create vite my-ssr-app --template react cd my-ssr-app
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2. Install Required Libraries

Install the following dependencies:

yarn add react-router-dom@^6.28.0 react-bootstrap react-query vite-plugin-ssr-config vite-plugin-pages
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Let's understand what each package does:

  • react-router-dom@^6.28.0: Handles routing in React applications. We use version 6.28.0 specifically because version 7.x requires Remix framework.

    • Provides components like Route, Link, and routing hooks
    • Enables client-side navigation
    • Manages URL parameters and query strings

  • react-bootstrap: React components that implement Bootstrap's design system.

    • Provides pre-built, responsive UI components
    • Includes navigation, forms, cards, and other UI elements
    • No need to write Bootstrap classes manually

  • react-query: Powerful data synchronization library for React.

    • Manages server state in React applications
    • Provides hooks for data fetching, caching, and updates
    • Handles loading and error states automatically

  • vite-plugin-ssr-config: Plugin that enables server-side rendering in Vite applications.

    • Handles SSR configuration
    • Manages client/server code splitting

  • vite-plugin-pages: File system based routing plugin for Vite.

    • Creates routes based on file structure
    • Supports dynamic routes
    • Integrates with react-router-dom

3. Configure Project Structure

3.1 Move the Index File

Move the /index.html file to /spa/index.html. This separation allows us to maintain both SSR and SPA versions of the application:

mkdir spa mv index.html spa/
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Note: The /spa/index.html file will serve as the entry point for the SPA version, while SSR will use a different entry point.

3.2 Create SSR Directory Structure

Create the necessary directories for SSR:

mkdir -p ssr/pages/posts/$id
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4. Create the Root Document

Create /ssr/root.jsx to define the root document structure for server-side rendering:

import { LiveReload } from "@ssr/liveReload.jsx"; import { ViteScripts } from "@ssr/viteScripts.jsx"; import { Container, Nav, Navbar } from "react-bootstrap"; import { Link, Outlet } from "react-router-dom"; export const RootDocument = () => { return ( <html lang="en"> <head> <meta charSet="utf-8" /> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" /> <title>Vite + React SSR</title> <link rel="icon" href="vite.svg" type="image/svg" /> <link href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/bootstrap@5.3.3/dist/css/bootstrap.min.css" rel="stylesheet" /> <LiveReload /> </head> <body> <Container> <Navbar bg="light" expand="lg"> <Navbar.Brand href="/myapp/">Vite SSR</Navbar.Brand> <Navbar.Toggle aria-controls="navbarNav" /> <Navbar.Collapse id="navbarNav"> <Nav className="me-auto"> <Nav.Link to="/" as={Link}> Home </Nav.Link> <Nav.Link to="/posts" as={Link}> Posts </Nav.Link> <Nav.Link href="/myapp/spa">Vite SPA Entry</Nav.Link> </Nav> </Navbar.Collapse> </Navbar> </Container> <Container> <Outlet /> </Container> <ViteScripts /> </body> </html> ); };
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Important Note: PageServer uses suspense: true in all requests to ensure proper SSR rendering. On the other hand, PageBrowser uses suspense: false to allow smooth client-side navigation. This setup guarantees correct SSR rendering while preventing flickering and inconsistencies between the server-rendered content and the client-side state during hydration.

5. Create Application Pages

5.1 Home Page

Create /ssr/pages/index.jsx:

import { Container, Button } from "react-bootstrap"; import { Link } from "react-router-dom"; export default function HomePage() { return ( <Container> <h1>Welcome to the Vite + React SSR App</h1> <Button as={Link} to="/posts"> Go to Posts </Button> </Container> ); }
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5.2 Posts List Page

Create /ssr/pages/posts/index.jsx:

import { Card, Col, Row } from "react-bootstrap"; import { useQuery } from "react-query"; import { Link } from "react-router-dom"; const getPosts = () => fetch("https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/posts") .then((r) => r.json()) .catch((e) => { throw e; }); export default function PostsPage() { const { data = [] } = useQuery("posts", getPosts); return ( <div> <Row> {data.map((post) => ( <Col key={post.id} sm={12} md={6} lg={4} className="mb-4"> <Card> <Card.Body> <Card.Title>{post.title}</Card.Title> <Card.Text>{post.body}</Card.Text> <Card.Link as={Link} to={`/posts/${post.id}`}> Read More </Card.Link> </Card.Body> </Card> </Col> ))} </Row> </div> ); }
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5.3 Single Post Page

Create /ssr/pages/posts/$id/index.jsx: (Note: Using $id for Remix-style routing)

import { Card } from "react-bootstrap"; import { useQuery } from "react-query"; import { Link, useParams } from "react-router-dom"; const getPost = (id) => fetch("https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/posts/" + id) .then((r) => r.json()) .catch((e) => { throw e; }); export default function PostPage() { const { id } = useParams(); const { data = {} } = useQuery(["posts", id], () => getPost(id)); return ( <Card> <Card.Header>{data.title}</Card.Header> <Card.Body> <Card.Text>{data.body}</Card.Text> <Card.Link as={Link} to="/posts"> Back to Posts </Card.Link> </Card.Body> </Card> ); }
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6. Configure Vite

Modify the existing vite.config.js file:

import react from "@vitejs/plugin-react"; import { defineConfig } from "vite"; import pages from "vite-plugin-pages"; import ssr from "vite-plugin-ssr-config"; export default defineConfig({ base: "/myapp", plugins: [ react(), pages({ routeStyle: "remix", // Important: This enables Remix-style routing ($id instead of [id]) dirs: "ssr/pages", }), ssr({ rootDocument: "ssr/root.jsx", }), ], build: { rollupOptions: { input: { spa: "spa/index.html", // Include the original React SPA entry point }, }, }, });
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7. Development and Production

7.1 Development Server

Run the development server:

yarn dev
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Access your application at:

  • SSR version: http://localhost:5173/myapp
  • SPA version: http://localhost:5173/myapp/spa

7.2 Production Build

Build the application:

yarn build
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You should see output similar to this:

yarn run v1.22.22 $ vite build vite v6.0.7 building for production... CLIENT BUILD vite v4.5.5 building for production... ✓ 396 modules transformed. dist/client/spa/index.html 0.64 kB │ gzip: 0.35 kB dist/client/manifest.json 1.49 kB │ gzip: 0.38 kB dist/client/assets/react-35ef61ed.svg 4.13 kB │ gzip: 2.05 kB dist/client/assets/index-a36d8b68.css 1.39 kB │ gzip: 0.72 kB dist/client/chunks/index-600303c7.js 0.46 kB │ gzip: 0.32 kB dist/client/chunks/index-ef84de97.js 0.55 kB │ gzip: 0.37 kB dist/client/assets/spa-dc418d3e.js 0.94 kB │ gzip: 0.50 kB dist/client/chunks/preload-753c2a40.js 1.70 kB │ gzip: 0.89 kB dist/client/assets/main-79767691.js 2.74 kB │ gzip: 1.16 kB dist/client/chunks/vendor-d8646257.js 240.50 kB │ gzip: 75.98 kB ✓ built in 1.33s SERVER BUILD vite v4.5.5 building SSR bundle for production... ✓ 13 modules transformed. dist/bin/index-066b4199.js 0.81 kB dist/bin/index-b8b66606.js 0.92 kB dist/bin/virtual-6df6f849.js 0.98 kB dist/app.js 1.22 kB dist/bin/ssr-27500c0d.js 4.52 kB ✓ built in 52ms ✓ 31 modules transformed. ✓ built in 1.92s Done in 2.43s.
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The build will generate:

/dist/ ├── app.js # Application runtime ├── client/ # SSR public assets └── client/spa/ # SPA public assets
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Enter the 'dist' directory and run the server

cd dist node app.js
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7.3 Sanbox Production Server Configuration

For production deployment, you can configure sanbox server settings using a private directory:

  1. Create /private/package.json for server-specific dependencies 
{ "name": "app", "private": true, "type": "module", "scripts": { "start": "node app.js" }, "dependencies": { "react": "^18.3.1", "react-bootstrap": "^2.10.7", "react-dom": "^18.3.1", "react-query": "^3.39.3", "react-router-dom": "^6.28.0" } }
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  1. Create /private/.env for server configuration: 
SERVER_HOST=127.0.0.1 SERVER_PORT=4000
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Start the production server for the Sandbox project

cd dist yarn install yarn start
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Note: The server will be running at: http://127.0.0.1:4000/myapp

Additional Resources

For more detailed information and resources related to vite-plugin-ssr-config, please refer to the following:

Summary

This tutorial has shown you how to:

  • Set up a Vite project with SSR capabilities
  • Integrate React Query, React Bootstrap, and React Router
  • Create both SSR and SPA versions of your application
  • Configure development and production environments
  • Handle server-side rendering of React components

The resulting application provides a solid foundation for building performant, server-rendered React applications while maintaining the option to serve a traditional SPA version when needed.

Top comments (1)

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yracnet profile image
Willyams Yujra •

The plugin was renamed from vite-plugin-ssr-kit to vite-plugin-ssr-config at 2025-01-16.