exp-mvc

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Node.js Express project generator that instantly creates a clean, scalable, and production-ready folder structure based on the MVC architecture. Includes powerful CLI commands to generate controllers, models, routes, and complete CRUD scaffolds with auto-dependency installation.

Designed for developers who want to skip boilerplate setup and start building features immediately.

Install

npm install -g exp-mvc

After installing exp-mvc globally , run the following command:

expmvc new myapp

Or

npx exp-mvc new myapp

This will create:

./myapp

with the full project structure.

Navigate to the project folder:

cd myapp

Inside your project folder, install dependencies:

npm install

configure the mongodb connection in the .env file

MONGODB_URI=mongodb://localhost:27017/myapp

Run the server:

npm start

or

npm run dev

Run the watch command to automatically install dependencies on file save:

npm run watch

Open the browser at http://localhost:3000

🔥 CLI Commands Reference

Once inside your generated project, use the expmvc command to generate components:

Generate Complete CRUD Scaffold

Create a full CRUD module with controller, model, service, route, and validation files:

expmvc generate scaffold User name:string email:string password:string age:number

Generate Individual Components

Generate a controller

expmvc generate controller Product

Generate a model with fields

expmvc generate model Category name:string description:string

Generate a route

expmvc generate route Order

Generate a service

expmvc generate service Auth

Generate a validation file

expmvc generate validation User

Generate a view (EJS template)

expmvc generate view home/index

Command Aliases

'g' is alias for 'generate'

'expmvc g scaffold User name:string email:string'

Short forms

expmvc g c User        # controller

expmvc g m User        # model

expmvc g r User        # route

expmvc g s User        # service

expmvc g v User        # validation

Relations Between Models

1. Generate Individual Models with References:

# Generate User model
expmvc generate model User name:string email:string password:string

# Generate Post model with User reference
expmvc generate model Post title:string content:string user:ref:User

# Generate Comment model with User and Post references
expmvc generate model Comment content:string user:ref:User post:ref:Post

2. Create Relationships Between Existing Models:

# Add belongsTo relationship from Post to User
expmvc rel belongsTo Post User --field author

# Add hasMany relationship from User to Post
expmvc rel hasMany User Post --field posts

# Add belongsToMany relationship (for tags, categories, etc.)
expmvc rel belongsToMany Post Tag --field tags[]

3. Complete Relationship Scaffold:

# Scaffold User-Post relationship (One-to-Many)
expmvc sr User Post hasMany

# Scaffold Post-Comment relationship (One-to-Many)
expmvc sr Post Comment hasMany

# Scaffold User-Comment relationship (One-to-Many)
expmvc sr User Comment hasMany

4. Generate Complete CRUD with Relationships:

# Generate User scaffold
expmvc generate scaffold User name:string email:string password:string

# Generate Post scaffold with User reference
expmvc generate scaffold Post title:string content:string user:ref:User

# Then add the reverse relationship
expmvc rel hasMany User Post --field posts

Field Types Supported

# Available field types:
name:string           # String field
age:number            # Number field
isActive:boolean      # Boolean field
createdAt:date        # Date field
tags:array            # Array field
userId:objectid       # ObjectId reference

✨ Why Use This Generator?

• Saves Hours: Skip repetitive setup and focus on business logic

• Consistent Architecture: Enforces clean, maintainable structure

• Production Ready: Includes validation, services, and middleware patterns

• Scalable: Perfect for growing applications

• Developer Friendly: Intuitive CLI with helpful commands

Perfect For:

• Students learning Express.js

• Backend developers starting new projects

• Startups needing rapid prototyping

• API bootstrapping and hackathons

• Enterprise applications requiring structure

🔧 Advanced Usage

Custom Templates

You can customize the generated templates by modifying the generator files in your global installation.

Integration with Existing Projects

If you have an existing Express project with the same structure, you can still use the generator commands:

cd existing-express-project
expmvc generate scaffold Post title:string content:string

Environment Variables

Created .env file in your project root:

PORT=3000
MONGODB_URI=mongodb://localhost:27017/yourdb

❤️ Contributing

We welcome contributions! Here's how you can help:

1.Report Bugs: Open an issue with detailed description

2.Request Features: Suggest new features or improvements

3.Submit PRs: Fork the repo and submit pull requests

4.Improve Documentation: Help make the docs better

Thanks for using exp-mvc! Don't forget to give a ⭐ on GitHub if you like it!

Built with ❤️ for the Node.js community.