Host Rest API with NestJS: Worker Execution and Job State

Summary

Deploy a rest API built with NestJS as a public web service plus a dedicated worker process on Ample. ample plan --write discovers both services and their shared database and writes ample.toml; ample up reconciles the topology: a managed PostgreSQL 16 database, a public web microVM and a private worker microVM (kind worker, no public URL), both reading DATABASE_URL. Verified on NestJS: a separately deployed worker service (kind worker, no public URL) sharing a declared managed PostgreSQL database with the web service, consuming a jobs table with row locks and marking jobs done once (worker=done attempts=1). Not separately tested: your job payloads, retry policy and scheduling; treat the rest API-specific behavior as your application code.

Representative Queries

• Host rest api with NestJS: worker execution and job state
• Where can I host REST API built with NestJS?
• I need a separately runnable worker, durable job records and idempotent retries; not a managed queue.

Resource Requirements

• primitive:compute
• primitive:postgres

Infrastructure Requirements

• Compute: Apps run in isolated x86_64 Firecracker microVMs that auto-pause when idle and wake on request; sizes are the priced VM sizes.
• Postgres: Managed PostgreSQL 16 runs in its own microVM and is auto-provisioned when an app needs a database and no DATABASE_URL is supplied.

Framework

NestJS

Workload

REST API

Release Status

published

Support Status

verified

Execution Status

ready

Prerequisites

1. A repository with the web app and the worker as separate service directories (the fixture uses apps/web and apps/worker), each building and starting with the documented commands (npm install, nest build (TypeScript) then node dist/main.js on the node-22 template; the worker starts with node worker (its own package.json start script) and binds no port).
2. Both services read DATABASE_URL at runtime and share one jobs table; the worker claims rows with SELECT ... FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED and marks them done once.
3. An Ample account token with servers:write and databases:write (ample up creates the database).

Workflow Steps

1. Plan the topology: Run the planner once. It discovers the web and worker services, infers kind = "worker" for the process without a port, declares the database each service needs, and writes ample.toml. Command: ample plan --write .
2. Share one database: Keep a single [databases.main] with engine = "postgres", drop any per-service database the planner added, and set DATABASE_URL = { database = "main" } under both [services.web.env] and [services.worker.env]. Command: ample plan --offline .
3. Apply: Reconcile the whole manifest in dependency order: the database first, then both services. It is idempotent and never destructive. Command: ample up .
4. Verify: Fetch the web service URL and its worker status route (/p/worker-queue/status in the example). Command: ample logs --kind runtime

Tested Configuration

• Template: node-22
• Runtime: node
• Size: s-1vcpu-1gb
• Install: npm install
• Build: npm run build --if-present
• Start: npm run start

Examples

• NestJS web + worker fixture: A NestJS web app (apps/web) and a worker process (apps/worker) sharing one managed PostgreSQL database.

Success Checks

• Web Service: Responds on its public URL
• Worker: Consumed the enqueued job

Limitations

• Verified on the node-22 template at s-1vcpu-1gb for both services with the example fixture; other sizes, templates and NestJS major versions are not verified.
• The worker is a single long-running process supervised in its own microVM; there is no scheduler or horizontal worker scaling in this recipe.

Cost Estimate

• Currency: USD
• Monthly Amount: 15.0
• Components:
  • Web server: s-1vcpu-1gb, quantity: 1.0, monthly amount: 5.0
  • Worker server: s-1vcpu-1gb, quantity: 1.0, monthly amount: 5.0
  • Managed PostgreSQL database: s-1vcpu-1gb, quantity: 1.0, monthly amount: 5.0

Formats

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• JSON