Deploy Docusaurus to thin.host
Build Docusaurus to build/ and deploy it from Claude Code with one tool call or one curl. thin.host serves the static files and gives you a live URL right away. Your agent can do every step for you through the thin.host MCP server, or you can run one curl command.
At a glance
| Step | Docusaurus |
|---|---|
| Build command | npm run build |
| Folder to deploy | build/ |
Preview build (served at /s/my-site/) | DOCUSAURUS_BASE_URL=/s/my-site/ npm run build |
| Deploy | curl -F file=@site.zip -H "Authorization: Bearer $THINHOST_API_KEY" https://thin.host/v1/websites/archive |
| Live URL | https://thin.host/s/my-site/, or your own domain |
Before you start
- Requires: Node.js 20 or later.
- A thin.host account. Sign up, then create an API key under Settings (for
curland the local MCP server), or connect your agent with OAuth as shown in Quickstart (MCP).
Create a project (skip if you have one)
npx create-docusaurus@latest my-docs classic
Set the base path
Until a domain points at it, a thin.host site lives under a sub-path: https://thin.host/s/<slug>/. Docusaurus bakes baseUrl into every asset URL, and url plus baseUrl are both required. The publish tools detect Docusaurus and warn when the baseUrl will not resolve at the returned URL.
// docusaurus.config.ts
url: 'https://docs.example.com',
baseUrl: process.env.DOCUSAURUS_BASE_URL ?? '/',
| Where readers will look | Build with |
|---|---|
The preview URL https://thin.host/s/my-site/ | DOCUSAURUS_BASE_URL=/s/my-site/ npm run build |
A custom domain, or a free <name>.thin.host subdomain | npm run build (base path /) |
Pick the slug (my-site here) before you build the preview, and pass the same slug when you deploy.
Build
npm run build
The finished site is in build/. That folder is what you deploy.
Deploy from your agent (MCP)
Connect thin.host to Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, Codex or ChatGPT once (setup for each client), then ask:
Build this Docusaurus project for thin.host with the slug my-site and publish the build/ folder.
With the local server (uvx thinhost-mcp) the agent runs the build and calls publish_website with the absolute path of build/; large builds are split across requests automatically. Later changes go out with update_website and sync=true, which also removes files the new build dropped.
The hosted connector (https://thin.host/mcp, used by claude.ai and ChatGPT) cannot read your disk. From a coding agent it uploads with the REST call below; otherwise it publishes from a public link to a zip or HTML file with publish_website_from_url.
Deploy with curl
cd build && zip -r ../site.zip . && cd -
curl -F file=@site.zip -F title="My Docusaurus site" -F slug=my-site \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $THINHOST_API_KEY" \
https://thin.host/v1/websites/archive
The JSON response includes url, the live address (https://thin.host/s/my-site/). To redeploy, upload the new zip to the site's archive endpoint; pages and assets missing from it are removed:
curl -F file=@site.zip \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $THINHOST_API_KEY" \
https://thin.host/v1/websites/my-site/archive
A single upload can be up to 30 MB. See the REST API reference for every field.
Add a custom domain
- Open the site in the dashboard and add your hostname under Custom Domains, for example
www.example.com. A<name>.thin.hostsubdomain is free and works immediately. - Create the DNS record the dashboard shows: a
CNAMEpointing atcname.thin.host. TLS is issued automatically once DNS resolves. - Rebuild with the base path
/(npm run build) and redeploy.
Pages on a custom domain get a canonical tag, a generated robots.txt and a sitemap.xml.
Docusaurus notes
- In JSX, use useBaseUrl() for static files; a literal '/img/x.png' breaks under a baseUrl.
- Docusaurus has a dedicated walkthrough, including the Claude Code skill.
More on Docusaurus: Docusaurus hosting walkthrough ยท Docusaurus & static builds (docs)
FAQ
Is there a Claude Code skill for Docusaurus deploys?
Yes. Install thin-host-docusaurus from https://thin.host/skills/thin-host-docusaurus/SKILL.md (or the thin.host Claude Code plugin) and say "deploy my docs".
Why does the preview URL load without styles or scripts?
The site is served under /s/<slug>/ until a custom domain points at it, so a build that references /assets/... asks the thin.host root for files that live under the sub-path. Build with the base path set to /s/<slug>/ for the preview, or map a domain (a free <name>.thin.host subdomain works) and build with base /.
How do I redeploy?
Rebuild, zip the output folder again and POST it to /v1/websites/<slug>/archive, or ask your agent to run update_website with sync=true. Sync removes files the new build no longer contains, so old hashed bundles do not pile up.
How large can a site be?
A single archive upload can be up to 30 MB. The local MCP server (uvx thinhost-mcp) reads the build folder directly and splits large sites across requests, up to 150 MB.
Sources
Commands and options checked against the official Docusaurus docs on 2026-10-14:
Other frameworks: all deploy guides. Coming from another host? Compare thin.host.