--- title: "Learn How to Gradually Adopt Jamstack with Netlify Redirects" description: "See how to gradually add Jamstack capabilities to your existing infrastructure with Netlify redirects. Proxying and shadowing unlock a simple and clear migration path. Check out this explanation and video demo." source: "https://www.netlify.com/blog/2020/03/19/learn-how-to-add-jamstack-to-your-infrastructure-in-8-minutes/" last_updated: "2026-07-11T03:24:52.000Z" --- What do you do if you have an existing site running on complex infrastructure and you want to start serving some of that site from the [Jamstack](https://www.netlify.com/jamstack/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex)? This is a common scenario. Especially in the enterprise where there may have been significant investment in a variety of platforms. Even though we might have identified some sections of our sites which are obvious candidates for serving with a Jamstack architecture, the path to adding this additional capability to the already complex system is not always obvious. Thankfully, there is a solution to this. One which is very simple to start exploring. ![Image of Netlify's CDN proxying unsatisfied requests to a legacy stack](/v3/img/blog/smart-cdn-proxy.png "Proxying and shadowing with the Netlify CDN") This solution is possible thanks to the high performance layer of logic possible at the [Netlify CDN](https://www.netlify.com/products/edge/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex). The [Netlify Redirects API](https://docs.netlify.com/routing/redirects/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex) might look simple, but it has some powerful capabilities and we can use some of those here. By adding a single line of configuration to a [\_redirects file](https://docs.netlify.com/routing/redirects/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex#syntax-for-the-redirects-file) or our [netlify.toml](https://docs.netlify.com/routing/redirects/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex#syntax-for-the-redirects-file#syntax-for-the-netlify-configuration-file), we can catch all requests for URLs which can be satisfied by assets deployed to the CDN, and proxy all others through to existing infrastructure. ``` /* https://existing-stack.com/:splat 200 ``` This small but mighty line of configuration enables wildcard proxying of all paths requested on our domain through to an equivalent path of another resource. And since Netlify honours a concept of [shadowing](https://docs.netlify.com/routing/redirects/rewrites-proxies/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex#shadowing), any URLs which resolve to something hosted within the Netlify site on the CDN will be captured and served directly. As this logic runs directly at the [edge of the Netlify CDN](https://www.netlify.com/products/edge/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex), it is _incredibly_ fast. And a perfect approach to gradually introducing Jamstack to your stack, or managing a complete migration from legacy stack to Jamstack. ## Watch a demo and try it out To watch a more detailed demonstration of this, take a look at this [8 minute section of this Introduction to Jamstack video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_l0qrPUJds&feature=youtu.be&t=12003) which puts this into effect from a standing start. You can also find links to [the example repository](https://github.com/philhawksworth/fcc-proxy-demo) used in that demo so you can start experimenting for yourself. For more information on using the Jamstack for better speed, scale, performance and time-to-market, take a look at our [White Paper](https://www.netlify.com/whitepaper/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex) or explore our [customers page](https://www.netlify.com/customers/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=proxy-shadows-pnh&utm_campaign=devex). ### Share - [X (fka Twitter)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Learn how to add Jamstack to your infrastructure in 8 minutes&url=https://www.netlify.com/blog/2020/03/19/learn-how-to-add-jamstack-to-your-infrastructure-in-8-minutes//) - [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.netlify.com%2Fblog%2F2020%2F03%2F19%2Flearn-how-to-add-jamstack-to-your-infrastructure-in-8-minutes%2F%2F) - [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://www.netlify.com/blog/2020/03/19/learn-how-to-add-jamstack-to-your-infrastructure-in-8-minutes//) - [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Learn how to add Jamstack to your infrastructure in 8 minutes+https://www.netlify.com/blog/2020/03/19/learn-how-to-add-jamstack-to-your-infrastructure-in-8-minutes//) * * * ### Tags - [Jamstack](/blog/tags/jamstack/) - [Architecture](/blog/tags/architecture/) ## Keep reading ![](/images/blog-fallback-thumbnail.svg) Opinions & Insights July 12, 2018 [ ### The Reign of Static Site Generators 👑 ](/blog/2018/07/12/the-reign-of-static-site-generators/) - ![Profile picture of Netlify team](/_astro/2ded7a52db41c7613be0baa648ac9bf9c1e8a985-300x300_DNhVu.svg) Netlify team ![](/images/blog-fallback-thumbnail.svg) News & Announcements December 19, 2019 [ ### Top 15 from 2019: features, resources, and news on Netlify and the JAMstack ](/blog/2019/12/19/top-15-from-2019-features-resources-and-news-on-netlify-and-the-jamstack) - ![Profile picture of Scott Mathson](/_astro/ff50e3d67a0f986ff642fc8ce6e492bc7ed05525-80x80_Z1UEirk.webp) Scott Mathson ## Recent posts News & Announcements June 25, 2026 [ ### Netlify Functions, designed for Agent Experience ](/blog/netlify-functions-designed-for-agent-experience) - ![Profile picture of Eduardo Bouças](/_astro/52958f21e8450baf6d8e60302341a984e220c0cd-512x512_13VDlu.webp) Eduardo Bouças News & Announcements June 24, 2026 [ ### How we measure Netlify’s Agent Experience ](/blog/how-we-measure-netlify-agent-experience) - ![Profile picture of Sean Roberts](/_astro/bbf2243f8171dbddd80ab2103622106cef84d125-512x512_Z1d2LKE.webp) Sean Roberts Guides & Tutorials May 15, 2026 [ ### How to build a real-time AI chatbot in minutes with Netlify Agent Runners (no backend) ](/blog/how-to-build-a-real-time-ai-chatbot-in-minutes-with-netlify-agent-runners-no-backend) - ![Profile picture of Nahrin Jalal](/_astro/f0e7c8f227a03fe58340c99ef5439d5a896c0733-272x272_Z23kDpD.webp) Nahrin Jalal ![](/_astro/3f255b372fa958df35802666ee33b4609b2d71bd-1200x1586_1VtE2D.webp) ### How do the best dev and marketing teams work together? 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