Chat app

This is a simple chat app using React for the frontend and Node.js with Express for the backend. The app uses MongoDB as the database and Mongoose as the ODM. The app uses JWT for authentication and bcrypt for password hashing. Tailwind CSS is used for responsive design. The app uses websockets to allow for real-time communication between users.

Installation

1. Clone the repository
2. Run npm install in the /backend directory
3. Run npm install in the /frontend directory
4. Run node initialize.js in the /backend directory to initialize the backend and API.
5. Fill the .ENV file in the /backend directory with your MongoDB connection string and a secret key for JWT
6. Run node . in the /backend directory
7. Run npm start in the /frontend directory

Usage

The app will be running on http://localhost:3000. To simulate the communication between users, open the app in two different browsers, use two different devices or use the incognito mode in your browser.

Features

• Real-time communication between users
• User authentication using JWT
• Password hashing using bcrypt
• Profile picture upload
• Message attachments
• Message editing
• Message deletion
• Message count in chat information
• List of all users available for chat
• Group chat support
• Responsive design

Important

When deleting users collection, ensure the /backend/profile-pictures directory is empty. This is because the app saves the profile pictures in this directory and the database only stores the file name.

Same applies to the messages collection, ensure the /backend/attachments directory is empty.

Notes

The app is still in development and is not yet ready for production and may never be. It is a learning project and is not intended to be used in a production environment for now.

License

MIT