How to Deploy from Monorepo on DigitalOcean App Platform

Go to the DigitalOcean dashboard at cloud.digitalocean.com/apps. Click Create in the top right corner, then select App Platform from the dropdown menu. This opens the app creation wizard where you can begin configuring your monorepo deployment.

Connect your GitHub or GitLab account if not already linked. Choose the monorepo repository containing your source code. Specify the branch or tag (e.g., main) with your app code. Enable Autodeploy for automatic redeploys on pushes to this branch or tag, then click Next.

In the Source Directories field, enter the subdirectory for your first service (e.g., frontend for a web app or api for a backend service). Use / for root-level apps or if runtime access to the full repo is needed. The entire repo clones to /workspace at build time; your specified subdirectory becomes the working directory. Files outside the source directory are accessible only during the build phase. If your app needs to access files outside its subdirectory at runtime, adjust build and run commands with cd <subdirectory> directives (e.g., in Run Command: cd api && npm start). Click Next.

App Platform auto-detects the initial resource (e.g., Web Service). Click Edit next to it to configure: Instance size (Basic defaults to 0.25GB RAM, 1 vCPU, ~$5/month; scale later as needed), HTTP Port (auto-detected, e.g., 8080; customize if needed), Run Command (override detected command, e.g., npm run start:prod; for Dockerfiles, this overrides ENTRYPOINT), and Build Command (customize for monorepo, e.g., pnpm install if using PNPM; the Node.js buildpack supports it natively). Expand Add Resource (Optional) > Detect from Source Code > Add for additional services (e.g., /api as another Web Service). Repeat the source directory configuration for each resource. Add Database if needed (dev database or existing managed database; credentials are accessible via environment variables). Click Next.

On the Environment page, click Edit to add app-level or resource-level environment variables (e.g., DATABASE_URL, API_KEY, NODE_ENV). Check the Encrypt checkbox for sensitive values like API keys and database passwords to ensure they are encrypted in the App Spec. Common variables include database connection strings, API endpoints, and feature flags. Click Next.

On the Info page, click Edit to set the App Name (auto-generated but customizable, e.g., my-monorepo-app, Project (select the project where your app will be deployed), and Region (choose the geographic region closest to your users for optimal performance; note that static sites are served on DigitalOcean's global CDN and region selection is not available for them). Click Next.

On the Review page, verify your app's resources, environment variables, billing information, and deployment settings. Review each service's source directory, build command, run command, and instance size. Confirm that all environment variables are correctly set and encrypted where necessary. Once you have verified all settings are correct, click Create Resources to initiate the deployment process.

App Platform automatically builds, deploys, and provisions each container. Monitor the deployment progress in the Overview page, where you can view build logs and deployment status for each service. Once deployment completes successfully, your app is accessible at the URL displayed at the top of the Overview page. Each service operates independently, allowing isolated updates, quicker deployments, and consistent environments across all stages.

For advanced multi-service isolation and independent scalability, containerize each service using Docker. Create a Dockerfile for each service specifying its dependencies and runtime environment. Set up a docker-compose.yml file for local development and inter-service communication. In App Platform, select the appropriate registry image and ensure it is correctly tagged and points to the correct Dockerfile within your monorepo. This approach enables better scalability, modular development, and streamlined CI/CD pipelines. Each service operates independently, allowing isolated updates and quicker deployments.

With Autodeploy enabled, your app automatically redeploys whenever you push changes to the specified branch. Monitor deployment history and logs in the App Platform dashboard. Set up alerts for deployment failures and performance issues. For subsequent deployments, the process takes 15-30 minutes with autodeploy enabled, significantly faster than manual redeployments. This structure aligns with modern DevOps principles and provides a solid foundation for adding autoscaling, centralized logging, and API gateways in the future.