Checklists /Cursor or Claude Code, Next.js and Vercel /Deploy
High
Set production environment variables on Vercel
A .env.local file is not uploaded with the deployment. The preview can work on your machine and fail on Vercel because the URL, anon key or database string is missing. Production and preview can also point at different Supabase projects on purpose.
How to check
- Open the Vercel project, then Settings, then Environment Variables.
- For each variable the README lists, confirm it exists for Production.
- Do not paste server secrets into a NEXT_PUBLIC_ name.
- Redeploy after adding variables. A new variable does not change a deployment that already finished.
Prompt
Fix prompt
You are working in this repository. Do not add features. Goal: the app fails with a clear message when a required server variable is missing, and the README lists every variable name. Steps: 1. Find every process.env read. 2. Group them into server-only and NEXT_PUBLIC_. 3. At the server boundary, throw an error that names the missing variable and does not print its value. 4. Update the README with the names and which Vercel environment needs them. 5. Do not create the Vercel project.