🚀 Deploying a WebSocket Server: A Step-by-Step Guide

Now that you have built your WebSocket server, it's time to deploy it so users can access it globally! In this guide, we will cover:

✅ Choosing a hosting platform
✅ Setting up the server
✅ Configuring a reverse proxy
✅ Securing with SSL (HTTPS & WSS)
✅ Testing after deployment

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🏗 1. Choosing a Hosting Platform

You need a server to deploy your WebSocket application. Here are some popular options:

Platform	Type	Best For	Cost
Heroku	PaaS	Quick deployment	Free (Limited)
Railway.app	PaaS	Simple setup	Free (Limited)
Render	PaaS	Automatic deployment	Free (Limited)
DigitalOcean	VPS	Custom setups	$$
Linode	VPS	Custom setups	$$
AWS EC2	Cloud	Large-scale apps	$$$
Google Cloud	Cloud	Enterprise apps	$$$

For this guide, we will deploy on Railway.app (easy) and AWS EC2 (advanced).

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🚀 2. Deploying on Railway.app (Easy & Free)

✅ Step 1: Create a Railway Account

1️⃣ Go to Railway.app
2️⃣ Click Sign Up and log in with GitHub
3️⃣ Click New Project → Deploy from GitHub
4️⃣ Select your WebSocket repository

✅ Step 2: Configure and Deploy

1️⃣ Click Environment Variables and set:

PORT=8080

2️⃣ Click Deploy and wait for it to complete
3️⃣ Copy the deployed URL (e.g., wss://yourapp.up.railway.app)

🎉 Your WebSocket server is live!

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🖥 3. Deploying on AWS EC2 (Advanced)

✅ Step 1: Launch an EC2 Instance

1️⃣ Log in to AWS Console
2️⃣ Go to EC2 Dashboard → Launch Instance
3️⃣ Choose Ubuntu 22.04 (or any OS you prefer)
4️⃣ Select t2.micro (Free Tier)
5️⃣ Configure Security Group:

• Allow Inbound Rules:
  • PORT 22 (SSH) → Your IP
  • PORT 8080 (WebSocket) → Anywhere
    6️⃣ Click Launch

✅ Step 2: Connect to Your Server

1️⃣ Open a terminal
2️⃣ Run the following command:

ssh -i your-key.pem ubuntu@your-ec2-ip

✅ Step 3: Install Node.js and WebSocket Server

Run these commands:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y nodejs npm
mkdir websocket-server && cd websocket-server
npm init -y
npm install ws express

✅ Step 4: Create a WebSocket Server

Create a file server.js:

const WebSocket = require("ws");
const server = new WebSocket.Server({ port: 8080 });

server.on("connection", (socket) => {
    console.log("🔗 Client connected!");

    socket.on("message", (message) => {
        console.log("📩 Received:", message);
        socket.send(`Echo: ${message}`);
    });

    socket.on("close", () => console.log("🔴 Client disconnected"));
});

console.log("🚀 WebSocket server running on ws://localhost:8080");

✅ Step 5: Run the Server

node server.js

✅ Step 6: Keep It Running with PM2

Install PM2:

npm install -g pm2
pm2 start server.js
pm2 save
pm2 startup

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🌍 4. Setting Up a Reverse Proxy with Nginx

To access your WebSocket server via a domain (e.g., wss://yourdomain.com), you need a reverse proxy.

✅ Step 1: Install Nginx

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y nginx

✅ Step 2: Configure Nginx for WebSockets

Edit Nginx config:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/websocket

Add this configuration:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name yourdomain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:8080;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "Upgrade";
    }
}

Save and exit.

✅ Step 3: Enable the Config & Restart Nginx

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/websocket /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo systemctl restart nginx

🎉 Now your WebSocket server is accessible at ws://yourdomain.com!

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🔐 5. Securing with SSL (HTTPS & WSS)

To use wss:// (secure WebSockets), install Certbot SSL:

sudo apt install -y certbot python3-certbot-nginx
sudo certbot --nginx -d yourdomain.com

Now your WebSocket server is accessible at:

wss://yourdomain.com

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🛠 6. Testing Your Deployed WebSocket Server

✅ Test with WebSocket Client

Open the browser console and run:

const socket = new WebSocket("wss://yourdomain.com");

socket.onopen = () => console.log("✅ Connected to server");
socket.onmessage = (event) => console.log("📩 Server says:", event.data);
socket.onclose = () => console.log("🔴 Disconnected");

✅ Test with WebSocket CLI (Linux/Mac)

wscat -c wss://yourdomain.com

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🎯 7. Summary

✅ Railway.app for quick and free deployment
✅ AWS EC2 for full control
✅ Nginx for a reverse proxy
✅ Certbot SSL for secure WebSockets (wss://)
✅ PM2 for running the server in the background