Skip to content

README.md

Latest commit

 

History

History
178 lines (123 loc) · 5.25 KB

README.md

File metadata and controls

178 lines (123 loc) · 5.25 KB

🛒 SmartsankarCode E-commerce Backend

This is a Node.js + Express backend for an e-commerce platform built with MongoDB. It provides RESTful APIs to support user authentication, product listings, cart functionality, order processing, and more.

🔧 Tech Stack

  • Node.js with Express
  • MongoDB with Mongoose
  • JWT Authentication (HTTP-only Cookies)
  • Dotenv for config
  • CORS, Cookie-Parser, middleware

📁 Folder Structure

ecommerce-backend/

  • ├── config/ # Database and server configuration
  • ├── controllers/ # Route logic (auth, products, deliveryOptions, cart, orders, etc.)
  • ├── data/ # Dummy data files (e.g., products.json)
  • ├── middleware/ # Custom middleware (auth)
  • ├── models/ # Mongoose schemas (User, Product, deliveryOptions, Cart, Order, etc.)
  • ├── public/ # Static assets (like images)
  • │ └── images/
  • │ ├── Mens/
  • │ ├── Womens/
  • │ ├── Footwear/
  • │ └── Home-Kitchen/
  • ├── routes/ # API route definitions
  • ├── scripts/ # DB seeding or maintenance scripts etc.
  • ├── .env # Environment variables
  • ├── .gitignore # Git ignore rules
  • ├── package.json # Project metadata and dependencies
  • ├── package-lock.json # Exact dependency versions
  • └── README.md # Project documentation

🚀 Features

🔐 Authentication

  • Register / Login / Logout
  • JWT stored in HTTP-only cookies
  • Middleware for protected routes
  • Admin protection for certain APIs

🛍️ Products

  • Get all products
  • Filter by category (e.g., /api/products?mainCategory=Mens)
  • Product details by ID
  • Product image management via local file system

🚚 Delivery Options

  • Admin-defined delivery types
  • Custom id, deliveryDays, and priceRupees
  • Stored separately for flexibility
  • Used during cart and checkout flows

🛒 Cart

  • Add item to cart with selected delivery option
  • Update quantity and delivery type
  • Remove item from cart
  • Fetch all cart items with populated product details

📦 Orders

  • Place order based on current cart items
  • Stores product, quantity, delivery option, and calculated estimated delivery time
  • Calculates total price (product price × quantity + delivery charge)
  • Clears cart after order is placed
  • Admin can view all orders
  • Uses .populate() to include product and user info in order details

🔍 Why Use .populate() Instead of Matching on Frontend?

While building cart and order APIs, there were two possible strategies to show full product details:

  1. Frontend Matching: Match product IDs from cart/order with product list already fetched on frontend.
  2. Backend .populate(): Use Mongoose to fetch full related product data in backend and send complete JSON to frontend.

We chose backend .populate() because:

  • Ensures always latest and accurate product data
  • Avoids duplication of logic across frontend
  • Easier to maintain and debug
  • Keeps frontend lean and focused on display logic
  • Professional developers use .populate() especially for orders and history, where accurate pricing and delivery data is important

📦 API Overview

Auth

Method Route Description
POST /api/auth/register Register new user
POST /api/auth/login Login and set JWT
POST /api/auth/logout Clear JWT cookie
GET /api/auth/profile Get current user info (protected)

Products

Method Route Description
GET /api/products All products (optional: filter by mainCategory)
GET /api/products/:id Get product details by ID

Delivery Options

Method Route Description
GET /api/delivery-options List all delivery types

Cart

Method Route Description
GET /api/cart Get all cart items (with product details)
POST /api/cart Add item to cart
PUT /api/cart/:productId Update quantity/delivery option
DELETE /api/cart/:productId Remove item from cart

Orders

Method Route Description
POST /api/orders/place Place order from current cart
GET /api/orders/my-orders View all orders (user only)
GET /api/orders/admin View all orders (admin only)

🔑 Environment Variables (.env)

PORT=3000 MONGO_URI=************* JWT_SECRET=************

🧪 Testing APIs

Use Postman to test the APIs. Make sure to enable cookie persistence to maintain auth state across requests.

🛠️ Future Improvements (Optional)

  • Refresh tokens for longer login sessions

  • Product creation/edit/delete APIs (admin panel)

  • Reviews and ratings

  • Payment gateway integration

  • Pagination, filtering, and sorting for products

  • Inventory stock management

👨‍💻 Author Made by SmartSankarCode — beginner full-stack developer passionate about building real-world applications.