Next.js - Pre-Rendering

Pre-rendering in Next.js refers to the process of generating HTML pages in advance, before serving them to the client.
Next.js supports two types of pre-rendering: Static Generation and Server-side Rendering.

1. Static Generation

Static Generation (SG) is the recommended pre-rendering method for Next.js. It generates HTML pages at build time and reuses them on each request.

To enable Static Generation, create a page in the pages directory and export a function called getStaticProps. This function fetches data required for the page.
Next.js will pre-render the page with the fetched data and optimize it for performance.

2. Server-side Rendering

Server-side Rendering (SSR) generates HTML pages on each request. It's useful for pages that need to be updated frequently or require data that can't be pre-fetched at build time.

To enable Server-side Rendering, create a page in the pages directory and export a function called getServerSideProps. This function fetches data required for the page on each request.
Next.js will render the page server-side with the fetched data and send it to the client.

3. Example

Here's an example of how to use Static Generation and Server-side Rendering in a Next.js project:

Create a page called posts.js in the pages directory:

import { getStaticProps, getServerSideProps } from 'next';

export async function getStaticProps() {
    // Fetch data for Static Generation
    return {
        props: {
            posts: [/* Data fetched from an API */]
        }
    };
}

export async function getServerSideProps() {
    // Fetch data for Server-side Rendering
    return {
        props: {
            posts: [/* Data fetched from an API */]
        }
    };
}

export default function Posts({ posts }) {
    return (
        
            {/* Render posts */}
        
    );
}

Conclusion

Pre-rendering in Next.js is a powerful feature that improves performance and SEO by generating HTML pages in advance. Whether you choose Static Generation or Server-side Rendering depends on your project requirements, but both methods offer benefits for creating fast and dynamic web applications.