Connect GitHub Repository to AWS Amplify

Oct 13, 2025 by wbrum.org 97 views

🎯 Summary

Deploying a Node.js REST API using AWS Amplify with automated test & production deployments is a crucial step in ensuring the scalability and reliability of your application. In this article, we will walk you through the process of setting up automated deployment for your API using AWS Amplify.

📌 Description

AWS Amplify is a development platform that helps you build, deploy, and manage scalable mobile and web applications. With Amplify, you can host your API on AWS and automatically deploy changes when pushing to GitHub. Additionally, you can use Amplify's backend environment management to separate test and production environments, deploy your API using AWS Lambda, and connect your API to DynamoDB for storing customer and feedback data.

📌 Steps to Implement

1️⃣ Connect GitHub Repository to AWS Amplify

To get started with automated deployment, you need to connect your GitHub repository to AWS Amplify. Here's how you can do it:

Go to the AWS Amplify Console and click on New App.
Select Backend as the app type.
Connect your GitHub repository where the API code is stored.
Grant AWS access to the repository.

2️⃣ Define Two Environments (`Test` & `Production`)

Once you have connected your GitHub repository to AWS Amplify, you need to define two environments: test and production. Here's how you can do it:

Branch develop → Auto-deploys to test environment.
Branch main → Auto-deploys to production environment.
Amplify automatically provisions separate Lambda functions for each environment.

3️⃣ Set Up Environment Variables in AWS Amplify

To ensure that your API loads the correct environment variables, you need to set them up in AWS Amplify. Here's how you can do it:

Go to Amplify → Backend → Environment Variables.
Add required variables:

PORT=5000
NODE_ENV=production 
DATABASE_URL=xxxxx
JWT_SECRET=xxxxx
AWS_REGION=xxxxx

Ensure Amplify loads these automatically at runtime.

4️⃣ Enable Automatic CI/CD Deployment

To enable automatic CI/CD deployment, you need to configure Amplify to build, deploy, and restart the API without manual intervention. Here's how you can do it:

Any push to develop triggers an auto-deploy to test.
Any push to main triggers an auto-deploy to production.
Amplify builds, deploys, and restarts the API without manual intervention.

5️⃣ Link API Routes to AWS Lambda

To link your API routes to AWS Lambda, you need to define an API route in AWS Amplify and provision an AWS Lambda function for handling requests. Here's how you can do it:

Define an API route in AWS Amplify (e.g., /api/health).
AWS Amplify provisions an AWS Lambda function for handling requests.
The Express.js API runs as a serverless function, so no need for EC2.

✅ Acceptance Criteria

To ensure that your API is deployed correctly, you need to meet the following acceptance criteria:

[ ] API is deployed via AWS Amplify and accessible online.
[ ] Pushing to develop auto-deploys to test environment.
[ ] Pushing to main auto-deploys to production environment.
[ ] API is running on AWS Lambda with dynamic scaling.
[ ] Environment variables are securely managed in AWS Amplify.
[ ] The API connects to AWS DynamoDB for storing data.

🛠️ Testing Steps

To test your API deployment, you need to follow these steps:

1️⃣ Deploy to Test Environment (`develop` branch)

Push a change to the develop branch in GitHub.
Verify that AWS Amplify automatically builds & deploys the update.
Confirm API is live in the test environment.

2️⃣ Deploy to Production (`main` branch)

Merge develop into main and push the change.
Check that AWS Amplify auto-deploys the production environment.
Validate that the API is running correctly in production.

3️⃣ Verify Environment Variables in AWS Amplify

Go to AWS Amplify → Backend Settings → Environment Variables.
Ensure that the API loads the correct values.

4️⃣ Test API Health Check

Run the following commands:

curl https://your-api-test-url/api/health curl https://your-api-prod-url/api/health

Expected Response:

{ "status": "ok" }

🤔 Frequently Asked Questions

In this article, we will answer some of the most frequently asked questions about automated deployment for API using AWS Amplify.

📝 Q1: What is AWS Amplify?

A1: AWS Amplify is a development platform that helps you build, deploy, and manage scalable mobile and web applications. It provides a set of tools and services that make it easy to integrate AWS services into your application.

📝 Q2: What is the benefit of using AWS Amplify for automated deployment?

A2: The benefit of using AWS Amplify for automated deployment is that it allows you to deploy your API automatically when you push changes to your GitHub repository. This means that you can focus on developing your application without worrying about the deployment process.

📝 Q3: How do I connect my GitHub repository to AWS Amplify?

A3: To connect your GitHub repository to AWS Amplify, you need to follow these steps:

Go to the AWS Amplify Console and click on New App.
Select Backend as the app type.
Connect your GitHub repository where the API code is stored.
Grant AWS access to the repository.

📝 Q4: What are the two environments that I need to define in AWS Amplify?

A4: The two environments that you need to define in AWS Amplify are test and production. You can define these environments by creating separate branches in your GitHub repository, such as develop for the test environment and main for the production environment.

📝 Q5: How do I set up environment variables in AWS Amplify?

A5: To set up environment variables in AWS Amplify, you need to follow these steps:

Go to Amplify → Backend → Environment Variables.
Add required variables:

PORT=5000
NODE_ENV=production 
DATABASE_URL=xxxxx
JWT_SECRET=xxxxx
AWS_REGION=xxxxx

Ensure Amplify loads these automatically at runtime.

📝 Q6: How do I enable automatic CI/CD deployment in AWS Amplify?

A6: To enable automatic CI/CD deployment in AWS Amplify, you need to follow these steps:

Any push to develop triggers an auto-deploy to test.
Any push to main triggers an auto-deploy to production.
Amplify builds, deploys, and restarts the API without manual intervention.

📝 Q7: How do I link API routes to AWS Lambda in AWS Amplify?

A7: To link API routes to AWS Lambda in AWS Amplify, you need to follow these steps:

Define an API route in AWS Amplify (e.g., /api/health).
AWS Amplify provisions an AWS Lambda function for handling requests.
The Express.js API runs as a serverless function, so no need for EC2.

📝 Q8: What are the acceptance criteria for automated deployment in AWS Amplify?

A8: The acceptance criteria for automated deployment in AWS Amplify are:

[ ] API is deployed via AWS Amplify and accessible online.
[ ] Pushing to develop auto-deploys to test environment.
[ ] Pushing to main auto-deploys to production environment.
[ ] API is running on AWS Lambda with dynamic scaling.
[ ] Environment variables are securely managed in AWS Amplify.
[ ] The API connects to AWS DynamoDB for storing data.

📝 Q9: How do I test my API deployment in AWS Amplify?

A9: To test your API deployment in AWS Amplify, you need to follow these steps:

Push a change to the develop branch in GitHub.
Verify that AWS Amplify automatically builds & deploys the update.
Confirm API is live in the test environment.
Merge develop into main and push the change.
Check that AWS Amplify auto-deploys the production environment.
Validate that the API is running correctly in production.

📝 Q10: What are the benefits of using AWS Amplify for automated deployment?

A10: The benefits of using AWS Amplify for automated deployment are:

Scalability: AWS Amplify allows you to deploy your API automatically when you push changes to your GitHub repository.
Reliability: AWS Amplify provides a reliable and scalable infrastructure for your API.
Security: AWS Amplify provides a secure environment for your API, with features such as environment variables and DynamoDB.
Cost-effectiveness: AWS Amplify provides a cost-effective solution for your API, with features such as serverless functions and dynamic scaling.