Lost and Found Portal

(This project solves the issue of tracking lost and found items efficiently for communities and colleges. It is continually being developed to include more features.)

A fully-featured, full-stack web application designed to help the community report, track, and reunite with their lost belongings. Built with a modern aesthetic, high performance, and secure authentication.

🚀 Tech Stack Used

🌐 Frontend (Client-Side)

• Framework: React.js (via Vite)
• Routing: React Router DOM (Protected routes & seamless navigation)
• Styling: Tailwind CSS (v4) for responsive, rich, and dynamic user interfaces
• HTTP Client: Axios (Configured with request interceptors for JWT)
• Icons: Lucide-React (Clean, modern SVG icons)

⚙️ Backend (Server-Side)

• Environment: Node.js
• Framework: Express.js (REST API architecture)
• Authentication: JSON Web Tokens (JWT) + Bcrypt (Password hashing)
• File Uploads: Multer (Local static image storage)
• Utilities: CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing) & dotenv

🗄️ Database

• Engine: MySQL
• Driver: mysql2/promise (Promise-based MySQL client)

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🛠️ Project Structure

The repository is divided into two entirely separate applications:

• /frontend: Contains the Vite React application.
• /backend: Contains the Node.js Express server.

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💻 Getting Started

1. Prerequisites

• Node.js installed on your machine.
• MySQL Server installed and running on port 3306.

2. Database Setup

Ensure your MySQL instance has the username root and password root. Then, initialize the schema:

cd backend
node scripts/initDB.js

3. Running the Backend

In your terminal, navigate to the backend folder and start the server:

cd backend
npm run dev

The API will be available at http://localhost:5000.

4. Running the Frontend

Open a new, separate terminal, navigate to the frontend folder, and start the development server:

cd frontend
npm run dev

The website will be available at http://localhost:5173.

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✨ Features

• User Authentication: Secure login & registration using encrypted passwords and JWT tokens.
• Interactive Dashboard: Users can safely manage, delete, or resolve their own posted items.
• Reporting System: Report either a Lost or Found item, complete with categorized details, locations, and direct image uploads.
• Dynamic Search & Filtering: Filter all items by "Lost" or "Found" status, and search dynamically through titles and descriptions.
• Contact Integration: View direct contact information (Email) of the person who reported the item to facilitate the return.