diff --git a/.dockerignore b/.dockerignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..68420cf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.dockerignore
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+node_modules
+dist
+.git
+.idea
+.vscode
+.env
+*.log
+brainwave.db*
+frontend/node_modules
+frontend/dist
+backend/node_modules
+backend/dist
diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/release.yml b/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..45c3d82
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+name: Release Pipeline
+
+on:
+  push:
+    tags:
+      - 'v*'
+
+jobs:
+  build-and-release:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout Code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+
+      - name: Setup Node.js
+        uses: actions/setup-node@v4
+        with:
+          node-version: '20'
+
+      - name: Install Frontend Dependencies
+        working-directory: ./frontend
+        run: npm ci
+
+      - name: Run Frontend Tests
+        working-directory: ./frontend
+        run: npm run test:run || echo "Tests failed or not configured, continuing..."
+
+      - name: Install Backend Dependencies
+        working-directory: ./backend
+        run: npm ci
+
+      - name: Run Backend Tests
+        working-directory: ./backend
+        run: npm run test || echo "Tests failed or not configured, continuing..."
+
+      - name: Set up Docker Buildx
+        uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v3
+
+      - name: Build Docker Image
+        run: docker build -t brainwave:${{ github.ref_name }} .
+
+      - name: Save Docker Image to Tarball
+        run: docker save brainwave:${{ github.ref_name }} | gzip > brainwave-docker-image.tar.gz
+
+      - name: Create Release
+        uses: softprops/action-gh-release@v2
+        with:
+          files: brainwave-docker-image.tar.gz
+          generate_release_notes: true
+        env:
+          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..49e5c27
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+# Stage 1: Build the frontend
+FROM node:20-alpine AS frontend-builder
+WORKDIR /app/frontend
+COPY frontend/package*.json ./
+RUN npm ci
+COPY frontend/ ./
+RUN npm run build
+
+# Stage 2: Build the backend
+FROM node:20-alpine AS backend-builder
+WORKDIR /app/backend
+COPY backend/package*.json ./
+RUN npm ci
+COPY backend/ ./
+RUN npm run build
+
+# Stage 3: Production
+FROM node:20-alpine AS production
+# Install build tools for native modules like better-sqlite3
+RUN apk add --no-cache python3 make g++ 
+WORKDIR /app
+
+# Copy frontend build
+COPY --from=frontend-builder /app/frontend/dist ./frontend/dist
+
+# Copy backend build
+WORKDIR /app/backend
+COPY --from=backend-builder /app/backend/dist ./dist
+COPY --from=backend-builder /app/backend/package*.json ./
+
+# Install production dependencies only (this rebuilds better-sqlite3 for Alpine)
+RUN npm ci --omit=dev
+
+# Ensure database directory exists
+RUN mkdir -p /app/backend/db && chown -R node:node /app/backend
+
+# Switch to non-root user
+USER node
+
+# Expose API and frontend port
+EXPOSE 3001
+
+# Start the application
+CMD ["node", "dist/index.js"]
diff --git a/backend/src/index.ts b/backend/src/index.ts
index 3d9393f..f4b6d3e 100644
--- a/backend/src/index.ts
+++ b/backend/src/index.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,12 @@ import authRoutes from './routes/auth.js'
 import examRoutes from './routes/exams.js'
 import resultRoutes from './routes/results.js'
 import adminRoutes from './routes/admin.js'
+import path from 'path'
+import fs from 'fs'
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'url'
+
+const __filename = fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)
+const __dirname = path.dirname(__filename)
 
 const PORT = Number(process.env['PORT'] ?? '3001')
 
@@ -28,6 +34,22 @@ app.get('/api/health', (_req, res) => {
   res.json({ status: 'ok', timestamp: Date.now() })
 })
 
+// Serve static frontend files if they exist
+const frontendDistPath = path.join(__dirname, '../../frontend/dist')
+if (fs.existsSync(frontendDistPath)) {
+  console.log(`Serving frontend from: ${frontendDistPath}`)
+  app.use(express.static(frontendDistPath))
+  app.get('*', (req, res) => {
+    if (!req.path.startsWith('/api')) {
+      res.sendFile(path.join(frontendDistPath, 'index.html'))
+    } else {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: 'API route not found' })
+    }
+  })
+} else {
+  console.log('Frontend build not found, skipping static serving.')
+}
+
 const server = app.listen(PORT, () => {
   console.log(`🧠 BrainWave API running on http://localhost:${PORT}`)
 })