Launching Your First App

The first thing you want to do is make sure that your code is running correctly on your local computer. If it's not running locally, chances are it won't run in a live environment. This is easily done using a local webserver and database management software. There's plenty of options out there, depending on your operating system.

Many popular frameworks use auto install scripts. Keep in mind that Pagoda Box is a destination, not a source. Source code modifications need to be made locally, committed into git, then deployed to Pagoda Box. Auto installers cannot be run directly on Pagoda Box.

All configuration related to your app’s deployment lives in a file named "Boxfile" placed in the root directory of your project. In short, the Boxfile specifies how Pagoda Box should be configured for your source code. The Boxfile is intended to be re-used whenever possible, especially when using frameworks for multiple projects. When a Boxfile is not present, we load a default configuration which works for most apps.

It is only necessary to specify configuration settings in your Boxfile that are different than the default. In other words, you don’t need to go overboard by specifying a value for every single configuration setting. Only specify the options you need. For an in-depth look at the Boxfile, check out our Understanding the Boxfile Guide.

You'll be using git to push code from your local computer up to Pagoda Box. So if you haven't already, set up git.

Make sure you add your SSH Key to your Pagoda account settings so you have the proper permissions to push to the Pagoda repo.

Once you've setup Git, you're ready to launch your app.

You can launch an app using one of two tools — your dashboard or the Pagoda Terminal Client.

Through the Dashboard

To launch an app through the dashboard, simply login to the dashboard and click the "New Application" Button. Enter your app name and click the Launch Application button. An empty repo is created which you then push code to.

Once your repo is launched, cd into your application directory and follow the terminal commands shown on the post launch page.

   

Your code is automatically deployed on push and you are live! If you want to disable auto-deploys on push, you can do it under the Admin tab in your app dashboard.

Through the Pagoda Terminal Client

To launch your app through the Pagoda Terminal Client, cd into your app's repo and issue the following command:

 TerminalLaunch Your App Through the Terminal Client 

This will create an empty repo on Pagoda Box. To connect your local repo to that app, issue the following command:

 TerminalConnect Your Local Repo to Your Live App 

This will automatically add a "pagoda" remote to your repo and connect it to your live app. Now just push to your pagoda remote and your app will be live!

 TerminalPush Your Code Live 

If you want to disable auto-deploys on push, you can do it under the Admin tab in your app dashboard.