How to implement server-side rendering (SSR) with React?

@denis 

To implement server-side rendering (SSR) with React, you can follow these steps:

1. Set up a Node.js server: Start by creating a Node.js server using a framework like Express. This server will handle the initial rendering of the React components on the server side.
2. Define routes: Define the routes of your application using the server framework. You will want to set up routes for each page that you want to render using SSR.
3. Install dependencies: Install the necessary dependencies for server-side rendering in React, such as react, react-dom, and react-router-dom.
4. Create a server-side entry point: Create a server-side entry point for your React application. This file will be responsible for rendering the React components on the server.
5. Configure webpack: Configuring webpack is necessary to enable server-side rendering. Set up webpack configurations for both the client and the server side.
6. Build scripts: Create build scripts that will compile your server-side entry point and the client-side code using webpack. These scripts will generate the necessary files to render your React components on the server.
7. Render React components on the server: In the server-side entry point, import the necessary React components and render them using ReactDOMServer.renderToString() or ReactDOMServer.renderToStaticMarkup(). These functions will convert the React components into HTML on the server.
8. Pass data to the components: If your React components rely on any data, you will need to fetch that data on the server and pass it as props to the components during server-side rendering.
9. Set up routing: Use the react-router-dom library to handle routing in your server-side entry point. This will ensure that the correct components are rendered based on the requested URL.
10. Send the rendered HTML to the client: Once the components are rendered on the server, send the generated HTML back to the client. You can include it in the server response or send it as a separate API call.
11. Rehydrate on the client: On the client-side, rehydrate the React components by using ReactDOM.hydrate(). This will take over the rendered HTML from the server and attach event listeners to the client-side components.
12. Handle client-side navigation: Once the initial rendering is complete, the client-side React components will take over. Implement client-side navigation using React Router to enable seamless transitions between pages without full-page reloads.

By following these steps, you can successfully implement server-side rendering with React. Remember to optimize your SSR setup for performance and be aware of the trade-offs involved in using SSR.