🚀 4-Hour Extreme Refactoring: Returning to Astro for Performance Optimization
In technology, a single deviation in architecture often costs several times more to correct. In the latest refactoring of the Chinese Font Plan, we completed a “strategic retreat” from a non-production-ready framework back to a mature ecosystem.
🏗️ Reflection: The SSR Mistake
Previously, we migrated the project from Astro to Solid-start (Solid.js + Vinxi). We were lured by the promise of full-stack SSR, but reality hit hard.
Let’s be blunt: Solid-start is far from being a production-ready framework.
Throughout its use, we encountered numerous issues stemming from SSR: Hydration Mismatches, unstable middleware behavior, and constant runtime errors on static hosting platforms. For a project targeting ultimate loading performance, this immature architecture was a nightmare.
Migrating to a non-production-ready framework was a major mistake. Returning to Astro 5.0, with its mature SSG and Islands Architecture, is the correct path for performance optimization.
🤖 Zen Code: The Heavy Lifter
While the direction was clear, the volume of code for a cross-framework migration was massive. This is where Zen Code, powered by Gemini 3 Flash Preview, showed its incredible efficiency.
1. How It Helped
Zen Code did more than just autocomplete; it handled the most painful parts of the migration:
- Fixing SSR Logic: It helped me decouple chaotic Server Actions into Astro frontmatter and client-side Islands, completely eliminating hydration errors.
- Automated Route Refactoring: It mapped complex API routes back to Astro’s static or server endpoints.
- Performance-Driven Styling: It assisted in the full atomic conversion from Less to Tailwind CSS.
2. The Results
- AI Contribution: ~60% of code changes were AI-generated.
- Total Time*: 4 hours to migrate core functionality.
- Performance Gain: After returning to Astro, the removal of unnecessary runtime JS kept Lighthouse scores at 100/100 and reduced the build size by ~30%.
💰 The Cost of Efficiency
Efficiency comes with a cost. This refactoring cost $6.6 in API fees.
Model pricing remains expensive for large-scale context reads. Gemini 3 Flash Preview is fast, but without efficient caching, frequent rewrites cause the bill to rise quickly.
However, considering it corrected an architectural mistake that would have taken days in just 4 hours, the ROI of $6.6 is still excellent.
💡 Summary & Advice
- Avoid Non-Production Frameworks: For core business, mature ecosystems (like Astro) matter more than novel concepts.
- AI is a Refactoring Powerhouse: For cross-architecture “heavy lifting,” tools like Zen Code save 80% of repetitive labor.
- Embrace Islands: For high-performance web apps, Astro’s partial hydration remains the best solution.
Driven by Zen Code, returning to ultimate performance.