Step-by-Step Tutorial for Server-side Rendering with Vue and NuxtJS

Table of Contents

Introduction to Server-Side Rendering

Server-side Rendering or SSR refers to a technique for rendering web applications on the server side before they are sent to the client. We can infer that the server generates the HTML content for the web page and then sends it to the user’s browser rather than relying on the client-side JavaScript to generate the content after the page has loaded.

We can also say that in SSR or Server Side Rendering when a user requests a page from a server that uses the SSR, the server runs the application code, generates the HTML content for the page, and after that, send it to the user browser, especially for the users having slow internet connection. SSR can also improve the accessibility and the search engine ranking of your web application because search engines and users with disabilities can more easily index or interpret the page’s content.

SSR can be beneficial for complex or dynamic web applications that require significant amounts of JavaScript to render the content on the client side. By using SSR, web developers can provide a better user experience and improve the performance, accessibility, search engine ranking, and maintainability of their web applications. But before we jump onto our topic of Server-side Rendering with Vue and NuxtJS, let us first understand the difference between CSR and SSR.

How Server-side Rendering differs from Client-side Rendering?

Generally, there is a fundamental difference between server-side rendering and client-side rendering. However, the impact they make can be of the essence. A simple shift from CSR to SSR can significantly benefit your web application. Given below are a few points that will help you better understand the difference between the two:

Overview of Vue.js and Nuxt.js

Vue.js is a widely used JavaScript framework for creating UIs and SPAs. It utilizes a reactive data model and provides a lightweight and flexible approach to web application development. Built on standard web technologies, Vue uses a component-based and declarative programming model, making UI development simpler. Vue is renowned among developers for its ease of use and extensive documentation.

Nuxt.js is a framework built on Vue.js that makes creating server-side rendered web applications easier. It simplifies routing and rendering and has features like automatic code splitting and static site generation to improve development efficiency.

Now that we have consolidated the basic details of the heads as needed, let us move forward with the Step-by-Step for creating a basic Vue server-side rendering application with Nuxt.js.

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Step-by-Step Process to Create a Basic Server-side Rendering with Vue and NuxtJS Application

To help you better understand the benefits of Vue SSR with NuxtJS, let us move ahead with our step-by-step tutorial on How to use Server-Side Rendering with Nuxt.js and Vue Application:

Step: 1 Creating a New Directory and Installing Nuxt.js

The first step is to create a new directory for your project and install Nuxt.js by using npm or yarn.

mkdir my-ssr-app
cd my-ssr-app
npm install nuxt
# or
yarn add nuxt

Step 2: Configuring Your Project

Then, create a nuxt.config.js file in the root directory and specify the options you wish to customize:

For Nuxt 2

export default {
   server: {
     port: 3000
   },

  // Specify the root URL of the app
  router: {
    base: '/'
  },
  
  components: {
    dirs: [
      '~/components',
      '~/shared/components'
    ]
  }
}

For Nuxt 3

export default defineNuxtConfig({
   // Specify the root URL of the app
   router: {
   },

   //specify the css
   css : [],
   
   //specify any module if used
   modules: []
})

Step 3: Creating your Vue.js Components

Thereafter, create a basic Vue.js component in the components/ directory:

For Nuxt 2

<template>
  <div>
    <h1>Hello, {{ name }}!</h1>
  </div>
</template>

<script>
export default {
  name: 'HelloWorld',
  props: {
    name: String
  }
}
</script>

For Nuxt 3

<template>
  <div>
    <h1>Hello, {{ name }}!</h1>
  </div>
</template>

<script setup>
  const props = defineProps({
     name: String
  )}
</script>

Step 4: Creating Pages

To create pages for your project, generate a new directory named “pages/” and for every page create a Vue.js component where the URL of each page will correspond to the name of its component file.

For Nuxt 2

<template>
  <div>
    <h1>This is the homepage</h1>
    <HelloWorld name="World" />
  </div>
</template>

<script>
import HelloWorld from '~/components/HelloWorld.vue'

export default {
  components: {
    HelloWorld
  }
}
</script>

For Nuxt 3

<template>
  <div>
    <h1>This is the homepage</h1>
    <HelloWorld name="World" />
  </div>
</template>

<script setup>
  //components are auto-imported in Nuxt 3
</script>

Step 5: Starting the Server

In the end, start the server using the command given below:

npm run dev

Now, that you have completed setting up your application, visit http://localhost:3000 to access it. Further, after examining the source code of your page, you can see that it has already been pre-rendered on the server.

Conclusion