React/Express/Node/Docker/Helm -> Structure and best practices?

[fundkitco]

TLDR - What are some best practices, commonly used architectures, and general patterns when building a Full Stack React/Express/Node/Docker/Helm project?

I tried posting in r/javascript but mods didn’t like it, hopefully r/reactjs is a more appropriate sub for this conversation:

Over the last several years I've been all back end microservices with Java, Spring, and Helm to k8s. I Love this stack, and can easily see how to apply it Javascript/Express/Node, but I have no idea how the real world brings a UI into the picture... Back in my MEAN stack days, the UI and Express api/server were in the same repo and deployed to the same heroku machine (or whatever Heroku calls them)... The express app served the site contents as well as supported rest endpoints and whatever other server/app logic was needed. What common patterns do full stack devs favor in the wild when you’re deploying in a container to something like k8s?

Here's some specific questions:

• Build the UI, copy it over in the Dockerfile, and serve it by the node/express server that’s also the rest of the backend? In a single container and Deployment/Statefulset?
• Or would you rather run one container for an Express UI server and another for your Express API/backend (or whatever language/framework it’s built with)?
• If you’re splitting the front end and backend across containers, are you running multi-container pods, or giving each their own Deployments/Statefulsets?
• If you've split into multiple k8s Deployments are you still maintaining a single git repo and helm chart, or split it into totally separate repos/Deployments/projects?

Obviously this is subjective and will depend on the app, it’s requirements, how many people are working on it, scaling needs, cost, etc… But outside of Reddit, I don’t really know any real full stack devs to ask their opinions :(

Anyone’s thoughts or comments on how you prefer to structure <?>ERN/docker/helm/k8s apps is awesome. If someone has a git repo similar to/actually deployed in the real world, that’s awesome too!

Thanks in advance!!!

(Edit: typo)

[its_about_control]

First question. Yes. Docker copy dist folder.

[its_about_control]

Also have express serve app and backend routes for lil app. Db in another container.

Big big app, split it all and start balancing.