How to use rails server and bot with procfile and foreman?

Question

I am trying to run my rails server and slackbot in two processes using Procfile and gem 'foreman'.

But when I use foreman start the bot is only running the server is not starting up. I tried removing the line bot and tried to run web only but in that case, also my server is not starting up it just shows started with pid 1502. But when I start it from another terminal with rails s it starts up with no problem. I have googled a lot and can't seem to find out a solution for this. Help is much appreciated. Thanks.

This is my Procfile :

web: bundle exec rails server -p $PORT
bot: rails runner -e development slackbot/slack.rb

What happens when you point a browser at `localhost:3000` (or whatever the port is)? — Kris, Sep 17 '19 at 10:10
It returns an error ```Could not get any response from server``` when i try to fire an api from postman. — Amal, Sep 17 '19 at 10:25
Are you sure you have the right port? Try hardcoding it in the Procfile. — Kris, Sep 17 '19 at 10:27
I tried ```bundle exec rails server -p 3000``` but still the same. — Amal, Sep 17 '19 at 10:30
@Kris Thanks hardcoding -p 3000 worked and i would like to know when i push it to production if removing -p 3000 will work ? — Amal, Sep 17 '19 at 10:35
Removing `-p 3000` will mean the server starts on the default port, for webrick it is 3000, but for other servers it is different. I have posted an answer. — Kris, Sep 17 '19 at 14:26

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered Sep 17 '19 at 14:24

2

It sounds like you perhaps need to specify the port, either set the environment var PORT:

export PORT=3000
foreman start

or hardcode the port in Procfile:

web: bundle exec rails server -p 3000

or remove the -p option, in which case the default port will be used:

web: bundle exec rails server

answered Sep 17 '19 at 14:24

Kris

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When i hardcode port 3000 it works like a charm in development but when i push it on to heroku it doesn't start. Does heroku use a different port to run the application ? – Amal Sep 18 '19 at 07:23
Sorry, no idea. That is a different question. – Kris Sep 18 '19 at 08:31
I just used ```-p $PORT``` and heroku picks up the port they want all fine now thanks. – Amal Sep 20 '19 at 08:23
I'm guessing Heroku sets the PORT env var. – Kris Sep 22 '19 at 08:33
Yes it does i was just trying to fix an issue before it happens. – Amal Sep 23 '19 at 05:50

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Sep 17 '19 at 12:58

Try the following config:

web: bundle exec rails server -p 3000
bot: rails runner -e development slackbot/slack.rb

Then run foreman start -f Procfile (or what file name you added)

Access: http://localhost:3000

Usually, I like using screen command to open the foreman process in the background, but this is not required here... it looks like: screen foreman start -f Procfile then I can just click ctrl + A + D to detach and the processes run in the background. This is useful for SSH connections e.g., EC2 instances.

My server is running when i hardcode 3000 but the application is not working in heroku. I guess heroku uses a different port for hosting applications do you know which port is it ? — Amal, Sep 18 '19 at 07:25

How to use rails server and bot with procfile and foreman?

2 Answers2