Node.js Server with MySQL Template

Table of Contents

• Dependencies
• Installation
• API Specification
• Environment Configuration

Dependencies

This project requires the following npm packages:

• dotenv - For managing environment variables.
• express - A web application framework for Node.js.
• mysql2 - MySQL client for Node.js, providing both callbacks and Promises API.

Installation

Follow these steps to set up the project on your local machine:

1. Clone the Repository:
   Run the following command to clone the repository to your local machine:

   git clone <repository-url>

2. Install Dependencies:
   Navigate to the project directory and install the required dependencies using npm:

   npm install

3. Configure Environment Variables:
   Create a .env file in the root directory of the project. Set up the following environment variables according to your Azure MySQL Database resource:

   MYSQL_HOST=HostIPAddress/Domain
   MYSQL_USER=Username
   MYSQL_PASSWORD=YourPassword
   MYSQL_DATABASE=DatabaseName
   PORT=4000
   

   • MYSQL_HOST: The IP address or domain name of your MySQL server.
   • MYSQL_USER: The username for accessing the MySQL server.
   • MYSQL_PASSWORD: The password for the above user.
   • MYSQL_DATABASE: The name of the database you are connecting to.
   • PORT: The port on which the Node.js server will listen.

4. Obtain SSL Certificate:
   Download the DigiCertGlobalRootCA.crt.pem SSL certificate from your Azure Database resource and place it in the project directory.

5. Start the Server:
   Run the following command to start the server in development mode:

   npm run dev

   The server should now be running and accessible at http://localhost:4000.

Environment Configuration

Using .env and .env.example Files

• .env File: The .env file is used to store environment-specific configurations such as database credentials, API keys, and other sensitive information. It should never be committed to the version control system (e.g., Git) for security reasons. Make sure to add .env to your .gitignore file.

• .env.example File: The .env.example file is a template version of the .env file. It should contain placeholders for all the environment variables used in the project but without actual sensitive values. This file can be safely committed to your repository and shared with your team to provide guidance on the required environment variables.

  Example of .env.example:

  MYSQL_HOST=your_host_here
  MYSQL_USER=your_username_here
  MYSQL_PASSWORD=your_password_here
  MYSQL_DATABASE=your_database_name_here
  PORT=4000
  

  Each developer can copy the .env.example file to create their own .env file and fill in the actual values specific to their environment.

API Specification

Your API should conform to the following specifications:

1. Show Countries

Retrieve a list of all countries in the database.

• URL : /
• Method : GET
• Response Format : JSON

Example Response:

[
  {
    "Code": "ABW",
    "Name": "Aruba",
    "Continent": "North America",
    "Region": "Caribbean",
    "SurfaceArea": 193,
    "IndepYear": null,
    "Population": 103000,
    "LifeExpectancy": 78.4,
    "GNP": 828,
    "GNPOld": 793,
    "LocalName": "Aruba",
    "GovernmentForm": "Nonmetropolitan Territory of The Netherlands",
    "HeadOfState": "Beatrix",
    "Capital": 129,
    "Code2": "AW"
  },
  ...
]

2. Show Information About a Specific Country

Retrieve information about a single country based on its name.

• URL : /country/:countryname
• Method : GET
• Path Parameter :
  • countryname: The name of the country you want to retrieve information for.

Example Request:

GET /country/new%20zealand

Example Response:

[{
  "Code": "NZL",
  "Name": "New Zealand",
  "Continent": "Oceania",
  "Region": "Australia and New Zealand",
  "SurfaceArea": 270534,
  "IndepYear": 1907,
  "Population": 3862000,
  "LifeExpectancy": 77.8,
  "GNP": 54669,
  "GNPOld": 64960,
  "LocalName": "New Zealand/Aotearoa",
  "GovernmentForm": "Constitutional Monarchy",
  "HeadOfState": "Elisabeth II",
  "Capital": 3499,
  "Code2": "NZ"
}]

3. Find the Total Population of a Continent

Return the total population of a specified continent.

• URL : /population/:continent
• Method : GET
• Path Parameter :
  • continent: The name of the continent you want the population for.

Example Request:

GET /population/asia

Example Response:

The total population of Asia is 3,705,025,700