Express + TypeScript Backend Boilerplate

Node.js + Express + TypeScript boilerplate for building REST APIs.

If you're interested in using MongoDB, check out the MongoDB branch.

Getting Started

1. Clone the Repository: Begin by cloning the repository to your local machine:

   git clone [email protected]:dazfz/backend-express-ts.git
   cd backend-express-ts

2. Install Dependencies: Install the required dependencies using npm:

   npm install

3. Run Development Server: Start the development server:

   npm run dev

4. Production Build: To create a production build, run:

   npm run tsc

   This will generate a production build in the build directory.

5. Start Production Server: Start the production server:

   npm start

Packages

Production:

• express: Backend framework.
• cors: Cross-origin resource sharing. Required if the frontend and backend run on different ports.
• dotenv: Loads environment variables from a .env file.

Development:

• ts-node: TypeScript execution environment for Node.js. Not strictly required, but useful for running TypeScript code directly.
• typescript: TypeScript language support.
• ts-node-dev: Auto-reloading for TypeScript files, similar to nodemon.
• eslint: Linting tool for identifying and enforcing code style. Not required.
• @typescript-eslint/eslint-plugin: TypeScript-specific ESLint rules.
• @typescript-eslint/parser: Parser that allows ESLint to lint TypeScript code.
• morgan: HTTP request logger middleware. Useful for development and debugging, not required in all cases.
• @types/express: Type definitions for Express.js.
• @types/cors: Type definitions for the cors package.
• @types/morgan: Type definitions for the morgan logger.

Project Directories

• build: This directory contains the production build of the backend.

• dist: Here, you can find the production build of the frontend.

• requests: This directory includes request files that are used for testing the API with the Visual Studio Code (VSCode) Rest Client extension.

• src:

  • models: Contains the models related to the objects.
  • routes: Defines the API routes for the objects.
  • services: Houses the object-related services.
  • tests: This directory is intended for storing test-related files.
  • utils: Provides utility modules such as configurations, middleware, and more.