If you're using Astro as a static site builder—its behavior out of the box—you don't need an adapter.
If you wish to [use server-side rendering (SSR)](https://docs.astro.build/en/guides/server-side-rendering/), Astro requires an adapter that matches your deployment runtime.
[Deno](https://deno.land/) is a runtime similar to Node, but with an API that's more similar to the browser's API. This adapter provides access to Deno's API and creates a script to run your project on a Deno server.
Add the Deno adapter to enable SSR in your Astro project with the following `astro add` command. This will install the adapter and make the appropriate changes to your `astro.config.mjs` file in one step.
If you prefer to install the adapter manually instead, complete the following two steps:
1. Install the Deno adapter to your project’s dependencies using your preferred package manager. If you’re using npm or aren’t sure, run this in the terminal:
```bash
npm install @astrojs/deno
```
1. Update your `astro.config.mjs` project configuration file with the changes below.
After [performing a build](https://docs.astro.build/en/guides/deploy/#building-your-site-locally) there will be a `dist/server/entry.mjs` module. You can start a server by importing this module in your Deno app:
You can set the port (default: `8085`) and hostname (default: `0.0.0.0`) for the deno server to use. If `start` is false, this has no effect; your own server must configure the port and hostname.
The [Astro Deno](https://github.com/withastro/astro/tree/main/examples/deno) example includes a `preview` command that runs the entry script directly. Run `npm run build` then `npm run preview` to run the production deno server.