Building WallyKroeker.com: From Local Dev to Production

Raw note: “I’m figuring out Wally Kroeker. I’m crafting my online presence. I want everyone to thrive, not just me. The site should reflect that philosophy and make it easy for others to reuse what I build.”

Building in Public with AI

This isn’t a generic “I built a website” story—it’s about co-building with AI in an open, reproducible way. The process emphasized flow, documentation, and learning by doing, using real tools that anyone can replicate.

The setup

WSL 2 (Ubuntu) for local development
Claude Code in the terminal as an AI pair programmer
VS Code when a GUI was helpful
A lightweight LXC container on my Proxmox homelab for production
Cloudflare Tunnel for secure, public access—no port forwarding needed

Why This Build Matters

WallyKroeker.com is meant to be more than a portfolio—it’s a public workshop. Every technical and design choice follows one compass: build open, useful systems so more people can thrive. Everything here can be forked, remixed, or adapted for your own site.

Tech Stack Overview

Frontend: Next.js 14 + Tailwind CSS

Why: Modern SSR performance, clean developer experience, minimal JavaScript.
Style: Dark-first (zinc-950 background), minimal animations, zero trackers.
Extras: @tailwindcss/typography for rich markdown rendering.

Content: Markdown + Frontmatter

Simple version-controlled posts—no CMS or database.
Markdown files live under content/posts/, parsed with gray-matter, remark, and rehype.
Auto-generated heading anchors via rehype-slug and rehype-autolink-headings.

---
title: "Your Post Title"
date: "2025-10-14"
tags: ["Build Log"]
description: "Short description"
---

Your content here…

Deployment: Proxmox LXC + Cloudflare Tunnel

Why: Full control without public ports or vendor lock-in.
How: Cloudflare Tunnel provides encrypted outbound connectivity; Cloudflare handles HTTPS and DNS.

Development Workflow with AI

Phase 1 – Setup & Architecture

Claude generated the base Next.js structure, Tailwind config, and markdown pipeline. I focused on architecture and style decisions while AI handled boilerplate.

Phase 2 – Content & Routing

Dynamic routes for posts (/blog/[slug]), project listings, and static generation were built collaboratively. Deep-linking came from adding the rehype plugins.

Phase 3 – Production Setup

Creating the LXC Container

Spun up an unprivileged Ubuntu container (with nesting=1).
Installed Node 22 via NVM and pnpm globally.
Cloned the repository and built the app.

Why LXC?

Uses a fraction of the RAM of a full VM
Starts in seconds
Still isolated and easy to back up

Systemd Service

/etc/systemd/system/wally-web.service:

[Unit]
Description=WallyKroeker Next.js
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=docker
WorkingDirectory=/home/docker/wallykroeker.com
Environment=NODE_ENV=production
ExecStart=/home/docker/.nvm/versions/node/v22.18.0/bin/node node_modules/next/dist/bin/next start -p 3000
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=5
NoNewPrivileges=true
ProtectSystem=full

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Commands:

sudo systemctl enable wally-web
sudo systemctl start wally-web
sudo systemctl status wally-web

Cloudflare Tunnel

# install & authenticate
cloudflared tunnel login
cloudflared tunnel create wallykroeker
sudo cloudflared service install
sudo systemctl start cloudflared

Then, in the Cloudflare dashboard, route wallykroeker.com → the tunnel. Result: public HTTPS with no open firewall ports.

Git Workflow

Local (WSL)

pnpm dev
pnpm build
git add .
git commit -m "content: new post"
git push origin main

Production (LXC)

cd ~/wallykroeker.com
./scripts/redeploy.sh

redeploy.sh:

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail
git pull origin main
pnpm install
pnpm build
sudo systemctl restart wally-web
echo "Redeployed."

Troubleshooting Highlights

1 – Module Not Found

Reinstall pnpm, clear and rebuild. Check logs with journalctl -u wally-web -n 50.

2 – Port Mismatch

Ensure Cloudflare tunnel config matches the app’s port (3000).

3 – Deployment Script Skipped Pull

Always confirm git pull isn’t commented out—simple oversight, big effect.

Working with AI as a Coding Partner

AI accelerated setup, documentation, and debugging. It produced full workflows and testing checklists on command, while I supplied environment-specific details (network, permissions, etc.). The collaboration felt like pairing with a fast, knowledgeable teammate who never gets tired.

What’s Live

WallyKroeker.com

Home with compass-style principles and featured projects
Blog listing with build logs like this
Projects page linking to Cognitive Loop, StillPoint, and community spaces
Dark, tracker-free design
<100 KB JS footprint and lightning-fast static rendering

Stack Diagram

Local Dev (WSL2)
│  ├── Claude Code (AI pair)
│  ├── VSCode
│  ├── pnpm dev
│  └── git push → GitHub
      ↓
GitHub (source of truth)
      ↓
Proxmox Host
│  └── Ubuntu LXC Container
│      ├── Node 22 + pnpm
│      ├── systemd (wally-web.service)
│      └── cloudflared (tunnel)
      ↓
Cloudflare Edge → wallykroeker.com

Files You Can Reuse

WORKFLOW.md – complete dev/deploy docs
workflow-test.md – end-to-end validation steps
ops/systemd/wally-web.service – systemd unit
ops/cloudflared/config.sample.yml – tunnel template
scripts/redeploy.sh – one-command deploy

Clone:

git clone https://github.com/wally-kroeker/wallykroeker.com.git

Key Takeaways

AI excels at scaffolding and documentation—let it handle repetition.
Local-first infrastructure with Proxmox + Cloudflare Tunnel is practical and secure.
Git-based deployment keeps everything auditable and simple.
Systemd is rock-solid for running Node apps in production.
Document as you go—future you will be grateful.
Test the full workflow, not just the app.

Next Steps

Coming soon:

More build logs (n8n automation, MCP servers, AD security audits)
Practical field guides and templates
Reusable starter stacks for local hosting
Cognitive Loop posts on human + AI workflows

Reflection

This site isn’t an endpoint—it’s a living workspace. Every improvement and experiment gets documented so others can adapt it. The compass remains clear: usefulness over perfection, transparency over mystique, community over ego.

Now the server is quietly running, the tunnel is live, and you’re reading this on the real site. That’s something worth celebrating.

Tools

WSL 2 (Ubuntu 22.04)
Claude Code (Sonnet 4.5)
VS Code
Next.js 14.2.5
Tailwind CSS 3.4.7
Proxmox VE + Ubuntu LXC
Cloudflare Tunnel
systemd + GitHub

Total time: ≈ 7 hours (build + deploy) Coffee: 3 cups Satisfaction level: High ✨