iGotha: A Simple and Scalable Chat Application

iGotha is an open-source chat application designed for seamless communication. It supports user registration, authentication, and chat functionality, making it ideal for personal or collaborative use. Whether you're a developer looking to contribute or a user exploring its features, iGotha is easy to set up and use.

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Table of Contents
• Structure
• Key features
• Frontend
  • Component
  • Frontend Installation
• Backend

  • Structure

  • Route Overview

  • Routes Test

  • Authentication Routes (auth.route.js)

  • User Routes (user.route.js)

• License

Structure

iGotcha/
  └── frontend/
  └── backend/
  └── CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
  └── CONTRIBUTING.md
  └── LICENSE
  └── README.md
  └── .gitignore
  └── .github/

Key Features

• Real-time Messaging: Chat with users or groups in real-time.
• User Authentication: Secure login and registration system.
• Group Chats: Create and manage group conversations effortlessly.
• Scalability: Built using modern technologies like React, Redux, Node.js, and Sequelize for scalability and performance.

Frontend

The frontend is built using React and Redux. It provides a user interface for user registration, login, and chat functionality. The frontend is organized into the following components:

Components

The frontend components are organized as follows:

iGotcha/
  └── frontend/
  ├── src/
  │   ├── components/
  │   │   ├── Chat.js
  │   │   ├── ChatInput.js
  │   │   ├── ChatList.js
  │   │   ├── LoginForm.js
  │   │   ├── RegisterForm.js

Frontend Installation

1. Clone the repository and Navigate to directory:

   git clone <https://github.com/rohteemie/iGotha.git>
   
   cd <frontend>

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

3. Create a .env file in the root directory and add the following environment variables:

API_ENDPOINT=localhost:8000

npx dev start

You can now access the iGotha page at http://localhost:8000

Backend

This backend is built using node.js. It provides a user interface for user registration, login, and chat functionality. The frontend is organized into the following components:

Backend Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone <https://github.com/rohteemie/iGotha.git>
   
   cd <backend>

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

3. Start MySQL:

# First check to see if mysql is installed on your local machine.

  mysql --version

If mysql is not installed, Kindly reference the following link to install mysql on your local machine: Install MySQL

# If mysql is installed,
# Start MySQL on your local machine using the following command:

sudo service mysql start

# sign in to mysql

mysql -u root -p

# Enter your MySQL password when prompted.

mysql> SHOW DATABASES;

You should see a list of databases and select the preferable one to use, otherwise you will have to create a new one using the command below assuming you want to name the database testDB

/* Command to create the database. */

CREATE DATABASE testDB;

 /* Exit the MySQL shell. */

 mysql> exit;

---

1. Set the environment variables:

Create a .env file in the iGotha/backend directory and add the following environment variables:

DB, DB_USER, DB_PASSWORD, DB_HOST, and DB_DIALECT environment variables in the .env file.

DB=testDB
DB_USER=dbUser
DB_PASSWORD=dbPassword
DB_HOST=localhost
DB_DIALECT=mysql

JWT_SECRET=secret
EXPIRE_IN=1h

Replace testDB, dbUser, and dbPassword with your MySQL database name, username, and password respectively.

2. Run the migrations:

   Run the migrations to create the necessary tables in the database.

   npx sequelize-cli db:migrate

3. Start the server:

   npm start

4. Access the API:

   You can now access the API at http://localhost:3000.

---

Structure

The backend routes are organized as follows:

iGotcha/
    └── backend/
        ├── models/
        ├── services/
        ├── routes/
        ├── middleware/
        ├── config/
        ├── helper/
        ├── tests/
        ├── websocket/

Route Overview

This backend provides the following routes:

Route Path	HTTP Method	Description
/auth/login	POST	Logs in a user
/user	GET	Fetches all users
/user/create	POST	Registers a new user
/user/:username	GET	Fetches a user by username
/user/:username	PUT	Updates a user by username
/chat/	GET	Fetches all chats by users
/chat/create	POST	Create a new chat
/chat/:chatId	GET	Fetches a chat using it ID
/group/	POST	Create a new group
/group/	GET	Fetches all the group info
/group/:groupId	GET	Fetches group info using it ID
/group/:groupId	POST	Post messages to a group by ID
/group/add	PUT	Use to add a user to a group

Routes Test

Authentication Routes (auth.route.js) File Path: /home/fin/backend/routes/auth.route.js

Description: This file contains routes for user authentication. Endpoints

Login User URL: /auth/login Method: POST Description: Authenticates a user and returns an access token upon successful login. Controller Function: auth.login Example: json Copy code { "email": user@example.com, "password": "password123" }

User Routes (user.route.js) File Path: /home/fin/backend/routes/user.route.js Description: This file contains routes for user operations such as fetching, creating, and updating user information. Endpoints

Get All Users URL: /user Method: GET Description: Retrieves a list of all registered users. Controller Function: user_service.getAllUsers

Create a New User URL: /user/create Method: POST Description: Registers a new user in the system. Controller Function: user_service.registerUser Example: json Copy code

{
"username": "newuser",
"email": <newuser@example.com>,
"password": "securePassword123"
}

Get User by Username URL: /user/:username Method: GET Description: Fetches a specific user's details using their username. Controller Function: user_service.getUserName

Update User by Username URL: /user/:username Method: PUT Description: Updates information for a specific user identified by their username. Controller Function: user_service.updateUser Example: json Copy code

{
"email": <updatedemail@example.com>
}

Notes Middleware: Authentication and validation middlewares should be implemented as needed. Error Handling: All routes should have error handling to manage invalid input and server errors. License This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

LICENSE

Kinldy refer to the license page here: LICENSE

CONTRIBUTION