Project Setup Instructions

Follow the steps below to set up and run the project on your local machine.

1. Clone the Repository

# Replace `<repository-url>` with the actual GitHub repository URL
git clone https://github.com/vatsaaaal/dragon-craigslist.git
cd dragon-craigslist

2. Install PostgreSQL

Ensure you have PostgreSQL installed on your machine. If not, follow these steps:

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)

sudo apt update
sudo apt install postgresql postgresql-contrib

macOS (Homebrew)

brew install postgresql
brew services start postgresql

Windows

1. Download PostgreSQL from https://www.postgresql.org/download/.
2. Follow the installer instructions to set up PostgreSQL.

3. Create Environment Files

.env.example File

This file provides a template for your environment configuration:

{
    "PG_USER": "your_database_user",
    "PG_HOST": "localhost",
    "PG_DATABASE": "dragon_db",
    "PG_PASSWORD": "your_database_password",
    "PG_PORT": 5432,
    "JWT_SECRET": "your_jwt_secret_key",
    "FRONTEND_URL": "http://localhost:5173"
}

Example env.json File

Create a file named env.json in the root directory based on the example below:

{
  "PG_USER": "postgres",
  "PG_HOST": "localhost",
  "PG_DATABASE": "dragon_db",
  "PG_PASSWORD": "Longingia@12",
  "PG_PORT": 5432,
  "JWT_SECRET": "u+OnGjhDu4GmMFcPJJSDmjq448tCvTVUMt8AYT9JDM8=",
  "FRONTEND_URL": "http://localhost:5173"
}

Generate a JWT Secret

Use the following command to generate a secure JWT secret:

node -e "console.log(require('crypto').randomBytes(32).toString('base64'))"

Add the generated key to the JWT_SECRET field in your env.json file.

.env.local File

Create a file named .env.local in the root directory with the following content:

VITE_API_URL=http://localhost:3000

4. Install Dependencies

Run the following command to install the required Node.js modules:

npm install

5. Set Up the Database

Run the following command to create the required database and tables in PostgreSQL:

npm run setup

6. Run the Project

Use two separate terminals to start the backend and frontend servers:

Terminal 1: Start the Backend Server

npm run start

Terminal 2: Start the Frontend Development Server

npm run dev

7. Access the Application

• Backend API: http://localhost:3000
• Frontend: http://localhost:5173

Notes

• Ensure PostgreSQL is running before executing the npm run setup command.
• If you encounter any issues, ensure your environment variables are correctly set in the env.json and .env.local files.