Question 1

How to customize the authentication UI in this React Cognito starter?

Accepted Answer

You can modify the React components in the reactjs-webapp/ directory. The starter provides basic auth flows, but UI styling and components are left to the developer to implement, requiring additional CSS and component work.

Question 2

Can I use this starter with GitHub Actions instead of GitLab CI/CD?

Accepted Answer

No, the CI/CD pipeline is specifically configured for GitLab. To use GitHub Actions, you would need to rewrite the deployment scripts and adapt the infrastructure code, which adds complexity and negates the out-of-the-box benefits.

Question 3

ReactJS Cognito starter vs using AWS Amplify for authentication?

Accepted Answer

This starter uses AWS CDK for more control over infrastructure, ideal for teams wanting infrastructure-as-code. AWS Amplify offers quicker setup with higher-level abstractions but less customization, so choose based on control vs. speed.

Question 4

What are the AWS costs with this setup?

Accepted Answer

Costs depend on usage of AWS services like Cognito, S3, and CloudFront provisioned by CDK. Since it's a production-ready template, monitor AWS billing and scale resources as needed to avoid unexpected expenses.

Question 5

How to add a database to this starter?

Accepted Answer

Extend the CDK code in the cdk/ directory to provision a database (e.g., Amazon RDS or DynamoDB), then update the React app to interact with it. The starter focuses on authentication, so database integration requires additional development effort.

Question 6

Is this template good for large-scale applications?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it's designed as production-ready, but review security settings and scale infrastructure via CDK. For enterprise use, you may need to enhance monitoring, logging, and performance optimizations beyond the starter's baseline.

ReactJS + Cognito + CDK Starter

What is ReactJS + Cognito + CDK Starter?

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