Node Academy API

Node Academy is a RESTful API built with Express and TypeScript, designed to power an e-learning platform. It provides endpoints for user authentication, course management, and other educational features, leveraging a modern stack for security, performance, and scalability.

Table of Contents

• Features
• Tech Stack
• Dependencies
• Project Structure
• Installation
• Usage

Features

• User authentication and authorization (JWT-based)
• Course and content management for e-learning
• Secure API endpoints with rate limiting and helmet
• Database integration with Prisma ORM
• API documentation via Swagger
• Logging with Winston
• Optimized performance with compression

Tech Stack

• Node.js: JavaScript runtime for server-side logic
• Express: Web framework for building RESTful APIs
• TypeScript: Static typing for improved code quality and maintainability
• Prisma: ORM for database interactions

Dependencies

The following libraries are used in Node Academy to enhance functionality, security, and developer experience:

• @prisma/client: Prisma client for type-safe database queries and schema management, used to interact with the database for storing users, courses, and other e-learning data.
• bcrypt: Password hashing library to securely store user passwords in the database.
• compression: Middleware to compress HTTP responses, reducing payload size and improving API performance for e-learning content delivery.
• express-rate-limit: Rate limiting middleware to prevent abuse and DDoS attacks on the API, protecting user access and course endpoints.
• helmet: Security middleware that sets HTTP headers to protect against common web vulnerabilities, ensuring a safe e-learning environment.
• jsonwebtoken: Library for generating and verifying JSON Web Tokens (JWT) for user authentication and session management.
• swagger-jsdoc: Generates Swagger API documentation from JSDoc comments, making it easy to document and explore the e-learning API.
• swagger-ui-express: Serves Swagger UI for interactive API documentation, allowing developers and users to test endpoints directly.
• uuid: Generates unique identifiers, useful for creating unique course IDs, user sessions, or other resources in the platform.
• winston: Logging library for tracking API events, errors, and usage analytics, critical for debugging and monitoring the e-learning platform.

Project Structure

• prisma/: Contains the Prisma schema (schema.prisma) defining the database structure for users, courses, and other entities.
• src/app.ts: Sets up the Express application with middleware and routes.
• src/config/: Houses configuration settings like DB access, logger, swagger.
• src/controllers/: Defines logic to handle HTTP requests and responses.
• src/middlewares/: Custom middleware for authentication, rate limiting, etc.
• src/routes/: Organizes API endpoints (e.g., /users, /courses).
• src/server.ts: Entry point to start the server and connect to the database.
• src/services/: Encapsulates business logic, interacting with the database via Prisma.
• src/types/: Custom TypeScript types for type safety across the project.
• src/utils/: Reusable utilities like password hashing and JWT handling.

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/ronnyml/node-academy.git
   cd node-academy

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

3. Set up environment variables (e.g., in a .env file):

   DATABASE_URL="your-database-url"
   JWT_SECRET="your-jwt-secret"
   JWT_EXPIRES_IN="1h"
   PORT=3000
   

4. Initialize the database with Prisma:

   npx prisma migrate dev

5. Start the server:

   npm run dev

Usage

• Access the API at http://localhost:3000 (or your configured port).
• Explore the API documentation at /api-docs (served by Swagger UI).
• Example endpoints:
  • POST /api/v1/auth/login: Authenticate and receive a JWT.
  • GET /api/v1/courses: Retrieve available courses (protected route).

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