PERN Stack Backend Application with GraphQL and Apollo

A backend application built using the PERN stack (PostgreSQL, Express, React, Node.js) enhanced with GraphQL and Apollo Server for API management. This project serves as a foundation for building a React client to interact with a knowledge graph backend.

Features

• User authentication and authorization with JWT tokens
• GraphQL API powered by Apollo Server
• Sequelize ORM for PostgreSQL database interactions
• Real-time updates with GraphQL subscriptions
• DataLoader integration for optimized batch loading
• Logging with Winston and request logging with Morgan
• Environment-based configuration for development, testing, and production

Tech Stack

• Node.js
• Express
• PostgreSQL
• Sequelize
• GraphQL
• Apollo Server
• JWT (jsonwebtoken)
• DataLoader
• bcrypt (password hashing)
• Winston (logging)
• Mocha & Chai (testing)

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v10.11.0 or higher)
• PostgreSQL
• npm or yarn

Installation

git clone https://github.com/justin-napolitano/sup-court-pern-stack.git
cd sup-court-pern-stack
npm install

Environment Setup

Create a .env file in the project root with the following variables:

DATABASE_URL=postgres://username:password@localhost:5432/supreme_court
SECRET=your_jwt_secret_key
PORT=8000
NODE_ENV=development

Running the Application

npm start

The server will start on http://localhost:8000/graphql with GraphQL Playground enabled.

Running Tests

npm run test:execute-test

Project Structure

├── LICENSE
├── README.md
├── package.json
├── package-lock.json
├── src
│   ├── config
│   │   ├── db.js           # Database configuration
│   │   ├── index.js        # Environment config
│   │   └── logger.js       # Winston logger setup
│   ├── loaders
│   │   └── user.js         # DataLoader batch functions
│   ├── models
│   │   ├── index.js        # Sequelize initialization
│   │   ├── user.js         # User model
│   │   └── message.js      # Message model
│   ├── resolvers
│   │   ├── index.js        # Combined resolvers
│   │   ├── user.js         # User resolvers
│   │   ├── message.js      # Message resolvers
│   │   └── authorization.js# Authorization middleware
│   ├── schema
│   │   ├── index.js        # Schema aggregation
│   │   ├── user.js         # User GraphQL schema
│   │   └── message.js      # Message GraphQL schema
│   ├── subscription
│   │   ├── index.js        # PubSub setup
│   │   └── message.js      # Subscription events
│   ├── tests
│   │   ├── api.js          # API test utilities
│   │   └── user.spec.js    # User tests
│   ├── utils
│   │   └── auth.js         # JWT token helpers
│   ├── index.js            # Entry point
│   ├── server.js           # Express and Apollo server setup
│   └── first_start.js      # (Possibly legacy or initial server start)

Future Work / Roadmap

• Add frontend React client to consume the GraphQL API
• Expand test coverage and add integration tests
• Implement role-based access control with more granular permissions
• Add support for pagination and filtering on more queries
• Enhance subscription support for real-time features
• Improve error handling and validation
• Containerize the application with Docker for easier deployment
• Add CI/CD pipeline for automated testing and deployment

Note: This project currently focuses on backend setup and API development. Frontend integration and deployment strategies are planned for future iterations.