Social Media Backend

A basic social media backend developed with Node.js and Express, providing essential functionalities for building a social media application. Key features include user authentication, subscriptions, and post and video interactions, all stored and managed in MongoDB. Additional functionalities include password hashing with bcrypt, file uploads with multer, mongoDB aggregation pipeline and pagination for video content using mongooseAggregatePaginate.

Technologies Used

Technology	Description
Node.js	JavaScript runtime used for server-side applications (Node.js Official Site).
Express.js	A web framework for creating RESTful APIs (Express.js Documentation).
MongoDB	NoSQL database for storing user data and other platform-related information (MongoDB Official).
Mongoose	ODM for MongoDB, used to interact with the database easily (Mongoose Documentation).
JWT	JSON Web Tokens for secure user authentication (JWT Documentation).
Bcrypt.js	Library used to hash and verify passwords (Bcrypt.js Documentation).
Multer	Middleware for handling multipart file uploads (such as images) (Multer Documentation).
Cloudinary	Cloud storage service for storing profile images and cover photos (Cloudinary Official).

Features

Feature	Description
User Registration	Allows users to register using email/username and a secure password.
User Authentication	Authenticates users using JWT tokens to allow secure access to resources.
Password Management	Users can change their password securely using hashed password storage.
Profile Management	Users can update their profile details, including avatar and cover photo.
Subscription	Allows users to subscribe to channels and manage their subscriptions.
Watch History	Tracks the videos a user has watched and stores them in their history.

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/your-username/social-media-backend.git

2. Navigate into the project directory:

   cd social-media-backend

3. Install dependencies:

   npm install

4. Create a .env file for your environment variables:

   MONGODB_URI=<Your MongoDB URI>
   JWT_SECRET=<Your JWT Secret Key>
   REFRESH_TOKEN_SECRET=<Your Refresh Token Secret>
   CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=<Your Cloudinary Cloud Name>
   CLOUDINARY_API_KEY=<Your Cloudinary API Key>
   CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET=<Your Cloudinary API Secret>
   

5. Start the server:

   npm start

Usage

Frontend Integration

To use this backend, connect it to a frontend framework (e.g., React, Vue, or Angular) to build a fully functional social media application. All endpoints are RESTful, allowing you to seamlessly integrate this backend with various frontend libraries. Below are a few steps to help you connect the backend with the frontend:

1. Set up the Frontend Application:

   • Use a frontend framework like React or Vue to create the UI for your social media platform.
   • Ensure you handle the user interface for registration, login, and profile management.

2. Make HTTP Requests:

   • The frontend will interact with the backend by making HTTP requests to the endpoints exposed by this backend.
   • Use libraries like axios or fetch to send requests and handle responses.

3. Authentication:

   • When the user logs in, the frontend will send a POST request to the /users/login endpoint with the email and password.
   • The backend will return a JWT token, which the frontend can store (typically in localStorage or a cookie).
   • For all subsequent requests, the frontend should include this JWT token in the Authorization header to authenticate requests.

4. Profile Management:

   • The frontend can allow users to upload avatars and update their details by making PUT requests to endpoints like /users/update-avatar or /users/update-details.

5. Subscription and Watch History:

   • Users can subscribe to channels and view their watch history by interacting with the appropriate endpoints, such as /users/watch-history or /users/:username/channel-profile.

Endpoints

Authentication

Method	Route	Description
POST	/users/register	Registers a new user with details.
POST	/users/login	Logs in a user and returns a JWT token.
POST	/users/logout	Logs out the user by clearing the session.
POST	/users/refresh-token	Refreshes the access token using the refresh token.

User Management

Method	Route	Description
GET	/users/me	Retrieves the profile of the current user.
PUT	/users/update-details	Updates user details such as name and email.
PUT	/users/change-password	Allows the user to change their password.
PUT	/users/update-avatar	Uploads and updates the user’s avatar.
PUT	/users/update-cover-image	Uploads and updates the user’s cover image.

Channel & Subscription Management

Method	Route	Description
GET	/users/:username/channel-profile	Fetches the user’s channel profile.
GET	/users/watch-history	Retrieves the user’s watch history.

Error Handling

Error Code	Description
400	Bad Request - Invalid or missing data.
401	Unauthorized - Invalid credentials or authentication.
404	Not Found - Resource not found (e.g., user, video).
500	Internal Server Error - Unexpected server error.

Additional Resources

• MongoDB - A NoSQL database for easy scalability: MongoDB Official
• JWT (JSON Web Tokens) - For secure authentication: JWT.io
• Cloudinary - Cloud storage service for media: Cloudinary
• Express.js - Web framework for building RESTful APIs: Express.js Documentation
• Bcrypt.js - Library for securely hashing passwords: Bcrypt.js Documentation

Contribution

Feel free to contribute to this project by creating issues, submitting pull requests, or suggesting improvements. If you would like to contribute, please:

1. Fork the repository and clone it to your local machine.

2. Create a new branch for your changes:

   git checkout -b new-feature

3. Make your changes and commit them:

   git commit -m "Added new feature"

4. Push to your fork:

   git push origin new-feature

   5 . Open a pull request for review.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.