Platform target

Vercel

Nift targets Vercel's Build Output API directly: static site files go into Vercel's native deployment bundle instead of a conventional public/ directory.

nift init --target=vercel
nift build

What Nift creates

.vercel/output/
├── config.json
└── static/
    ├── index.html
    └── assets/...

The starter config.json declares Build Output API version 3. Vercel requires that metadata file, while static files placed under .vercel/output/static/ are served at the matching URL paths.

Deploying

Make Nift available wherever the build runs, run nift build, then deploy the resulting Build Output API bundle using the Vercel workflow you prefer. A local/prebuilt deployment can consume the already-generated .vercel/output tree.

Adding functions

Vercel's Build Output API also defines function primitives under .vercel/output/functions/. Nift does not generate function code or reinterpret its template language as a server runtime. Add Vercel functions according to Vercel's function/build-output contract and keep Nift responsible for the static side of the deployment.

Routing, environment and caching

Vercel project configuration and Build Output API metadata can control request routing and other deployment behaviour; Vercel also supplies environment variables to builds and runtime functions. These are provider concerns and remain separate from Nift route contracts.

Extension limitation

The Nift Vercel target accepts .html and .htm. Use generic nift init --ext=.php for a PHP-capable host; Vercel's static output does not turn a .php asset into a PHP runtime.

Official references: Build Output API, output configuration, and deployment primitives.