Node Express Starter 2.0

A modern, feature-rich starter template for building scalable web applications with Node.js, Express, MySQL, and Socket.io. This template provides a solid foundation for developing web applications using the MVC architecture pattern.

Features

• Authentication Ready: Built-in authentication system supporting both REST API and cookie-based EJS authentication flows
• MVC Architecture: Clean and organized code structure following the Model-View-Controller pattern
• Real-time Support: Integrated Socket.io for real-time communication
• Database Integration: Preconfigured Sequelize ORM with MySQL support
• API Validation: Request validation using Joi
• Modern UI: Clean and responsive user interface
• Security: Implementation of best security practices
• Email Integration: Nodemailer setup for sending emails
• Session Management: Express session with cookie support

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v14 or higher)
• MySQL
• npm or yarn

Quick Start

You can get started with Node Express Starter 2.0 in two ways:

Option 1: Using npx (Recommended)

npx nx-starter my-project
cd my-project

This will create a new project in the my-project directory with all dependencies installed.

Option 2: Clone the Repository

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/khokonm/node-express-starter-2.0.git
cd node-express-starter-2.0

2. Install dependencies

npm install

3. Configure environment variables

cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your configuration

4. Start development server

npm run dev

5. For production

npm start

Project Structure

├── controllers/        # Route controllers (handle incoming requests)
│   ├── api/           # API controllers for REST endpoints
│   ├── auth/          # Authentication controllers
│   └── views/         # View controllers for server-side rendering
├── events/            # Event handlers for Socket.io and system events
├── libs/              # Library functions and shared business logic
├── middleware/        # Express middleware (auth, validation, etc.)
├── models/            # Database models and schemas
├── routes/            # Application routes and API endpoints
├── services/          # Business logic and external service integration
├── utils/             # Utility functions and helpers
├── validations/       # Request validators and schemas
├── views/             # EJS templates and static assets
├── app.js             # Express app setup and configuration
└── server.js          # Server entry point and Socket.io setup

Environment Variables

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

# Server Configuration
PORT=3000
NODE_ENV=development

# Database Configuration
DB_HOST=localhost
DB_USER=root
DB_PASS=
DB_NAME=your_database
DB_PORT=3306

# Authentication
JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_secret
JWT_EXPIRES_IN=7d

# Session Configuration
SESSION_SECRET=your_session_secret
SESSION_EXPIRES=24h

# Mail Configuration (Optional)
MAIL_HOST=smtp.example.com
MAIL_PORT=587
[email protected]
MAIL_PASS=your_email_password

# OAuth Configuration (Optional)
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your_google_client_id
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=your_google_client_secret

API Documentation

Detailed API documentation is available at /api-playground when running the development server. The documentation includes:

• Authentication endpoints
• User management
• Business logic APIs
• WebSocket events
• Request/Response examples
• Schema validation rules

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request. For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss what you would like to change.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
5. Open a Pull Request

License

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

Author

Khokon M. (khokon.dev)

Support

For support and questions, please use the GitHub Issues page.

Acknowledgments

• Express.js team for the excellent web framework
• Sequelize team for the robust ORM
• Socket.io team for real-time capabilities
• The open-source community for various packages and inspirations