Kernel
Included
- —Next.js 16 App Router
- —Postgres + Drizzle (
users,subscriptions,audit_events) - —Auth.js v4 — email + password
- —Dashboard and account that read that schema
- —Setup mode on Vercel if env vars are missing
Starter Kit · Kernel
Smallest Next.js 16
+ Postgres + Auth.js v4
that is still yours.
The kernel — not this guild. Clone the repo, or two-click it into your Vercel or Netlify. Stripe, Shadcn, OAuth, and magic links stay out until you add them.
GitHub is the source. Vercel clones it, provisions Neon in the same click, and asks only for AUTH_SECRET (openssl rand -base64 32). Netlify clones the same repo. No DATABASE_URL in the URL.
“A kernel, not a chatbot, not a Stripe app, not a marketplace. Clone it. It’s yours.”
The first session
The loop
Clone it.
Own it.
- 01
Clone the kernel
GitHub first — github.com/buildsmiths/buildsmiths-nextjs-postgres. Or let Vercel / Netlify clone it into your account.
- 02
Postgres + a secret
Vercel can provision Neon in the same click. Locally, set DATABASE_URL and AUTH_SECRET in .env.local. Generate the secret with openssl rand -base64 32.
- 03
Push schema, seed
npm run db:push then npm run db:seed. Seed login is already there: dev@example.com / Password123!.
- 04
Run it. Grow it later
npm run dev. App Router, Drizzle, Auth.js v4 email + password. Stripe, OAuth, AI SDK — not in package.json until you ask.
What’s in
Lean at clone.
Add only what you ask.
Every clone stays predictable because the extras are not in package.json. This is not a kitchen-sink SaaS starter.
Later
Not in the clone
- —Stripe
- —Shadcn
- —Google OAuth UI / magic links
- —Vercel AI SDK, Redis, Resend
In the repo
The layout
Same map as the kernel’s START.md. Agents should read that file before inventing a second ORM or a second auth.
app/
Routes, layouts, server actions.
db/schema.ts
Drizzle. Keep this the source of truth.
lib/auth.ts
Auth.js v4. Email + password. Do not swap stacks unless asked.
scripts/seed.ts
Seed user. Local login is already defined.
Who it’s for
- People who want a small Next they own
- Agents that should not invent a second stack
- A demo you can fork in one sitting
- Not a marketplace template
Not this guild. The guild is the side room to X. The kernel is a cloneable app next door.
Local
Same steps as
the kernel README.
After clone: set DATABASE_URL and AUTH_SECRET in .env.local. Seed login is dev@example.com / Password123!.
terminal
git clone https://github.com/buildsmiths/buildsmiths-nextjs-postgres.git my-app cd my-app npm install cp .env.example .env.local npm run db:push npm run db:seed npm run dev
Take it with you
Clone it.
Own it.
Source on GitHub. One click into Vercel (Neon in the same click) or Netlify. Live demo if you want to poke around first.
Live demo →