AWS Amplify Support
Fixing AWS Amplify Hosting build failures.
An Amplify build fails when something in the build environment differs from your laptop: Node version, a missing environment variable, a case-sensitive file name or the wrong output folder. The build log names the failing phase. We read it, reproduce the difference and fix it in the repo.
When You Need This
The situations where this work pays for itself.
Signs it is time
- The build fails at preBuild, build or deploy with an npm or yarn error
- It builds locally but fails in Amplify
- You see 'JavaScript heap out of memory' or the build times out
- The build succeeds but the site is blank or returns 404
- A dependency, framework or Node version update broke the build
What you get
- Root cause from the build log
- A corrected amplify.yml and environment variable setup
- Version pinning for Node and dependencies
- Branch preview setup to catch future failures
How we do it
A clear, safe process you can follow along with.
1. Identify the failing phase
We open the build log and see whether the failure is provisioning, cloning, preBuild (install), build, deploy or verify. Each phase has different causes.
2. Match the Node and package manager versions
We pin the Node version in the build settings or a .nvmrc and use the lockfile with npm ci, yarn or pnpm. Version drift between local and Amplify is a common cause of install failures.
3. Check environment variables and secrets
Variables are set per branch in the console and are not read from your local .env. Missing public variables for frameworks like Next.js or Vite make builds fail or produce broken sites.
4. Fix case sensitivity and paths
macOS and Windows tolerate import paths with the wrong case, and the Linux build image does not. We correct file names and imports and check the build working directory for monorepos with appRoot.
5. Fix output and memory
artifacts baseDirectory must point at the real build output folder, such as build, dist or out. For heap errors we raise memory with NODE_OPTIONS=--max-old-space-size or reduce build work, and check the build instance limits.
6. Verify and prevent regression
We trigger a build, confirm the deployed site works, and add a CI check or preview branch so dependency changes are caught before production.
Mistakes we help you avoid
Common ways this goes wrong, and what we do instead.
Assuming local equals build
The build is a clean Linux environment with fresh dependencies.
Wrong baseDirectory
A successful build with an empty or wrong folder gives a blank site.
Committing .env files
Set variables in Amplify instead, and never commit secrets.
Ignoring lockfile mismatches
Out-of-sync lockfiles produce different dependencies than you tested.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my build work locally but fail in Amplify?
Typically a different Node version, missing environment variables or case-sensitive file names on Linux. The build log shows the exact failing command.
Where do I set the Node version?
In the build settings, with a command such as nvm use in the preBuild phase, or the Node version defined for the build image. We confirm against current Amplify options.
What does a blank page after a successful build mean?
Usually the artifacts baseDirectory is wrong, or the single-page app lacks a rewrite rule. We check both.
Want Help With Fixing AWS Amplify Hosting build failures?
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