Deploying

Kernel's app deployment process is as simple as it is fast. There are no configuration files to manage or complex CI/CD pipelines.

Once you deploy an app on Kernel, you can schedule its actions on a job or run them from other contexts. You can even run actions multiple times in parallel.

Deploy the app

From local directory

Use our CLI from the root directory of your project:

kernel deploy <entrypoint_file_name>

Notes

• The entrypoint_file_name is the file name where you defined your app.
• Include a .gitignore file to exclude dependency folders like node_modules and .venv.

From GitHub

You can deploy a Kernel app directly from a public or private GitHub repository using the Kernel CLI. No need to clone or manually push code.

kernel deploy github \
  --url https://github.com/<owner>/<repo> \
  --ref <branch|tag|commit> \
  --entrypoint <path/to/entrypoint> \
  [--path <optional/subdir>] \
  [--github-token <token>] \
  [--env KEY=value ...] \
  [--env-file .env] \
  [--version latest] \
  [--force]

Notes

• --path vs --entrypoint: Use --path to specify a subdirectory within the repo (useful for monorepos), and --entrypoint for the path to your app's entry file relative to that directory (or repo root if no --path is specified).
• The CLI automatically downloads and extracts the GitHub source code and uploads your app for deployment.
• For private repositories, provide a --github-token or set the GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable.

Environment variables

You can set environment variables for your app using the --env flag. For example:

kernel deploy my_app.ts --env MY_ENV_VAR=my_value # Can add multiple env vars delimited by space

Deployment notes

• The dependency manifest (package.json for JS/TS, pyproject.toml for Python) must be present in the root directory of your project.
• For JS/TS apps, set "type": "module" in your package.json.
• View deployment logs using: kernel deploy logs <deployment_id> --follow
• If you encounter a 500 error during deployment, verify that your entrypoint file name and extension are correct (e.g., app.py not app or app.js).
• Kernel assumes the root directory contains at least this file structure:

project-root/
  ├─ .gitignore # Exclude dependency folders like node_modules
  ├─ my_app.ts # Entrypoint file (can be located in a subdirectory, e.g. src/my_app.ts)
  ├─ package.json
  ├─ tsconfig.json # If using TypeScript
  └─ bun.lock | package-lock.json | pnpm-lock.yaml # One of these lockfiles

# Successful deployment CLI output
SUCCESS  Compressed files
SUCCESS  Deployment successful
SUCCESS  App "my_app.ts" deployed with action(s): [my-action]
INFO  Invoke with: kernel invoke my-app my-action --payload '{...}'
SUCCESS  Total deployment time: 2.78s

Once deployed, you can invoke your app from anywhere.