Project Name

A comprehensive API project built with Node.js, Mongo, and featuring security implementations, rate-limiting, and robust error handling. The project is also set up for automated CI/CD deployment using GitHub Actions.

deployed link

check backend service health (/) -render - https://cars-brainiac.onrender.com -heroku - https://carbrainiac-5e171b67476a.herokuapp.com (might be down)

Table of Contents

• Project Name
• deployed link
• Table of Contents
  • Setup and Installation
    • Pre-requisites
    • Step-by-Step Guide
      • 1. Clone the Repository
      • 2. Install Dependencies
    • 3. Set Up Environment Variables
  • API Endpoints
• Database diagram
• Backend Architecture
• Security Implementations
  • 1. CORS
  • 2. Rate Limiting
  • 3. Helmet
• Error Handling
• Deploying to Heroku with GitHub Actions
  • Prerequisites
  • Deployment Workflow
    • Workflow Overview
• Test and Deploy to Heroku Workflow
  • Workflow Overview
  • Summary
• Swagger Documentation

Setup and Installation

Pre-requisites

Ensure that the following software is installed and running on your machine:

• Node.js: v16+
• MongoDB: Ensure MongoDB is installed and running.

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/your-repo.git
cd your-repo

2. Install Dependencies

npm install

3. Set Up Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the root directory and provide the following values:

APP_NAME=
APP_ENV=development | production
PORT=4000
MONGO_URL_DEV=<mongodb://localhost:27017/cars>
MONGO_URL_PROD=
ALLOWED_ORIGINS=http://localhost:4000,https://cars-brainiac.onrender.com
JWT_SECRET=<your_jwt_secret e.g >
TOKEN_EXPIRES=<30d>
CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=<dlbwktrdc>
CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_API_KEY=<642815273652323>
CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_API_SECRET=<fu__lJiJvHJ1g0j-MbEvhWbgUyA>

1. Start the Server

npm run dev [development]

or

npm run start [production]

2. To run unit test

npm run test

API Endpoints

HTTP Method	Endpoint	Description
POST	/api/users/create	Create a new user
POST	/api/users/login	login in user
POST	/api/car [Protected-seller]	post a new car by seller
GET	/api/car[Protected-seller&buyer]	Retrieve all posts for a user
POST	/api/car/:id[Protected-seller&buyer]	Add a comment to a post

Database diagram

Backend Architecture

Security Implementations

1. CORS

The API is restricted to specific domains via CORS middleware. The allowed origins can be configured through environment variables for flexibility.(add your local url or deployed url to ALLOWED_ORIGINS )

2. Rate Limiting

To prevent DDoS attacks and brute-force attempts, rate-limiting restricts the number of requests a single IP can make in a given time window.

3. Helmet

Helmet adds security headers to protect the application from common web vulnerabilities such as XSS, clickjacking, and others.

Error Handling

A global error handler catches all errors and logs them via Winston for traceability. Custom error classes ensure proper status codes and error messages are returned to clients

Deploying to Heroku with GitHub Actions

This project is configured to automatically deploy to Heroku using GitHub Actions. The deployment process uses Docker to containerize the application and push it to Heroku's container registry. Additionally, PostgreSQL and Redis add-ons are set up to provide database and caching services.

Prerequisites

1. A Heroku account and a Heroku application.
2. A GitHub repository for the project.

Deployment Workflow

This repository is configured with a GitHub Actions workflow that automatically deploys the application to Heroku whenever a PR is made to the main branch (or another branch if configured) and merged.

Workflow Overview

The deployment workflow performs the following steps:

Test and Deploy to Heroku Workflow

This GitHub Actions workflow automates the process of testing and deploying a Node.js application to Heroku whenever there is a push to the main branch.

Workflow Overview

1. Trigger:
   The workflow is triggered on a push event to the main branch.

2. Job:
   The workflow contains a single job named test-and-deploy, which runs on the latest version of Ubuntu.

3. Steps:

   • Checkout Code:
     Utilizes the actions/checkout@v2 action to check out the repository's code. This step ensures that the latest version of the code is available for subsequent steps.

   • Set up Node.js:
     Uses actions/setup-node@v2 to install and configure Node.js, specifying version 16. This ensures that the workflow runs in an environment that matches the project’s requirements.

   • Install Dependencies:
     Runs npm install to install all necessary packages and dependencies for the project. This step is crucial for ensuring that the application can run and tests can be executed.

   • Run Tests:
     Executes the test suite using npm test. The CI: true environment variable is set to ensure that Jest runs in CI mode, preventing accidental hangs during testing.

   • Build the Project:
     Executes npm run build to build the project. This step compiles the application and prepares it for deployment.

   • Deploy to Heroku:
     Uses the akhileshns/heroku-deploy@v3.13.15 action to deploy the application to Heroku. The following parameters are used:

     • heroku_app_name: The name of your Heroku app, retrieved from GitHub Secrets.
     • heroku_email: Your Heroku account email, also retrieved from GitHub Secrets.
     • heroku_api_key: Your Heroku API key, securely accessed from GitHub Secrets.

Summary

This workflow automates the critical steps of testing and deploying a Node.js application to Heroku, ensuring that your application is always up to date and functioning correctly after every push to the main branch. By leveraging GitHub Actions, you can maintain a streamlined development process and quickly respond to changes in your codebase.

Swagger Documentation

For detailed API documentation and examples of how to interact with the endpoints, please refer to the Swagger collection:

swagger Documentation Link for local: http://localhost:{PORT}/api-docs/#/Cars/get_api_cars example (http://localhost:4000/api-docs/#/Cars/get_api_cars ) for deployed: https://cars-brainiac.onrender.com/api-docs/#/