Express.js Backend Boilerplate

This is a boilerplate template for a secure Express.js backend server with MongoDB integration, JWT authentication, and HTTPS support.

Features

• Express.js server with HTTPS support
• MongoDB integration using Mongoose
• JWT authentication
• Rate limiting
• CORS enabled
• Body parsing
• Logging with morgan and mercedlogger
• Nodemon for development
• Dockerfile for containerization

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v16.20.1 or later recommended)
• MongoDB instance
• OpenSSL for generating SSL certificates

Getting Started

1. Clone this repository:

git clone https://github.com/your-username/express-backend-boilerplate.git cd express-backend-boilerplate

2. Install dependencies:

npm install

3. Set up environment variables: Create a .env file in the root directory with the following content:

PORT=3000 DATABASE_URL=mongodb://admin:YourPassword@your-mongodb-host:27017/your-database?authSource=admin SECRET=your-jwt-secret

Replace YourPassword, your-mongodb-host, and your-database with your actual MongoDB credentials and details.

4. Generate SSL certificates:

openssl req -x509 -newkey rsa:4096 -keyout ./ssl/key.pem -out ./ssl/cert.pem -days 365 -nodes

This will create self-signed certificates in the ssl directory. For production, use certificates from a trusted Certificate Authority.

5. Start the server:

• For development: npm run test
• For production: npm start

Docker Support

To build and run the application using Docker:

1. Build the Docker image:

docker build -t express-backend-boilerplate .

2. Run the container:

docker run -p 3000:3000 -v $(pwd):/app express-backend-boilerplate

API Endpoints

• GET /: Hello world route
• POST /user/signup: User registration
• POST /user/login: User login
• GET /user/logout: User logout
• GET /protected: Example protected route (requires authentication)

Authentication

This boilerplate uses JWT for authentication. To access protected routes, include the JWT token in the Authorization header:

Authorization: Bearer

Configuration

• Server configuration: server.js
• Database connection: middlewares/db.connection.js
• Authentication middleware: middlewares/global.js
• User model: models/User.js

Security Considerations

• Always use HTTPS in production
• Keep your JWT secret secure and use a strong, unique value
• Regularly update dependencies to patch security vulnerabilities
• Use environment variables for sensitive information, never commit them to version control

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

This project is licensed under the ISC License.