Azure Static Web Apps

Azure Static Web Apps provides hosting for static sites with a built-in CI/CD pipeline via GitHub Actions or Azure DevOps. pageflare integrates as a post-build step in your workflow.

How It Works

Azure Static Web Apps uses a GitHub Actions workflow (or Azure DevOps pipeline) to build and deploy your site. Add pageflare between the build step and the Azure deploy action.

Step 1 — Add Your License

1. Go to your Static Web App in the Azure Portal.
2. Navigate to Configuration > Application settings.
3. Add a setting named PAGEFLARE_LICENSE with your license key.
4. Save.

For the build pipeline, add it as a GitHub Actions secret:

1. Go to your repository Settings > Secrets and variables > Actions.
2. Add a secret named PAGEFLARE_LICENSE.

Step 2 — Configure the Workflow

Azure generates a GitHub Actions workflow when you create a Static Web App. Modify it to include pageflare:

.github/workflows/azure-static-web-apps.yml

name: Azure Static Web Apps

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  build_and_deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Setup Node.js
        uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: '22'

      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm ci

      - name: Build
        run: npm run build

      - name: Optimize with pageflare
        uses: getappz/pageflare-cli@v1
        with:
          args: "dist/ --in-place"
        env:
          PAGEFLARE_LICENSE: ${{ secrets.PAGEFLARE_LICENSE }}

      - name: Deploy
        uses: Azure/static-web-apps-deploy@v1
        with:
          azure_static_web_apps_api_token: ${{ secrets.AZURE_STATIC_WEB_APPS_API_TOKEN }}
          action: upload
          app_location: dist
          skip_app_build: true

Key changes from the default workflow:

• Build the site yourself (npm run build) instead of letting the Azure action build it.
• Set skip_app_build: true so the Azure action only uploads, not rebuilds.
• Add the pageflare step between build and deploy.

Replace dist/ with your framework’s output directory.

Framework Examples

Astro

      - name: Build
        run: npm run build

      - name: Optimize with pageflare
        uses: getappz/pageflare-cli@v1
        with:
          args: "dist/ --in-place"

      - name: Deploy
        uses: Azure/static-web-apps-deploy@v1
        with:
          azure_static_web_apps_api_token: ${{ secrets.AZURE_STATIC_WEB_APPS_API_TOKEN }}
          action: upload
          app_location: dist
          skip_app_build: true

Next.js Static Export

      - name: Build
        run: npm run build

      - name: Optimize with pageflare
        uses: getappz/pageflare-cli@v1
        with:
          args: "out/ --in-place"

      - name: Deploy
        uses: Azure/static-web-apps-deploy@v1
        with:
          azure_static_web_apps_api_token: ${{ secrets.AZURE_STATIC_WEB_APPS_API_TOKEN }}
          action: upload
          app_location: out
          skip_app_build: true

Azure DevOps Pipeline

If you use Azure DevOps instead of GitHub Actions:

azure-pipelines.yml

trigger:
  branches:
    include:
      - main

pool:
  vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest'

steps:
  - task: NodeTool@0
    inputs:
      versionSpec: '22.x'

  - script: npm ci && npm run build
    displayName: 'Build'

  - script: |
      curl -fsSL https://get.appz.dev/pageflare/install.sh | sh
      ~/.pageflare/bin/pageflare dist/ --in-place --no-progress
    displayName: 'Optimize with pageflare'
    env:
      PAGEFLARE_LICENSE: $(PAGEFLARE_LICENSE)

  - task: AzureStaticWebApp@0
    inputs:
      app_location: dist
      skip_app_build: true
    env:
      azure_static_web_apps_api_token: $(AZURE_STATIC_WEB_APPS_API_TOKEN)

Environment Variable Reference

Variable	Description
PAGEFLARE_LICENSE	Pro license key. Set in Azure Portal or as a pipeline secret.

Verify the Deployment

Check the GitHub Actions (or Azure DevOps) build logs. Look for the pageflare summary:

  Done  145.2 KB saved (38.1%)  1.2s
  Files  42 total, 38 optimized, 4 unchanged, 0 errors

Troubleshooting

Azure action rebuilds the site Set skip_app_build: true in the Azure deploy action. Without this flag, Azure will rebuild the site using its own Oryx build system, ignoring your pageflare-optimized output.

pageflare output overwritten Make sure the pageflare step runs after the build and before the Azure deploy action. The deploy action uploads whatever is in app_location.

Custom domain HTTPS issues Azure Static Web Apps handles SSL automatically for custom domains. pageflare does not affect HTTPS — if you see certificate errors, check your Azure DNS configuration.