Linko

Linko is a real-time chat application built with React.js, Node.js, and MongoDB.
It enables users to send and receive messages instantly, supports user authentication, and stores chat history persistently.

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Table of Contents

1. Features
2. Tech Stack
3. Architecture
4. Getting Started
   • Prerequisites
   • Installation
   • Running
5. Environment Variables
6. Usage
7. Project Structure

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Features

• Real-time messaging between users
• User registration and login (authentication)
• Persistent storage of messages
• Online/offline status indicator
• Basic UI for chat interface (rooms or direct messages)

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Tech Stack

• Frontend: React.js, (optionally Redux or Context)
• Backend: Node.js (Express)
• Database: MongoDB
• WebSocket / real-time: Socket.io (or similar)
• Others: bcrypt (for password hashing), JWT (for authentication), etc.

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Architecture

The application follows a client–server architecture:

• The client connects to the server via HTTP for REST APIs (signup, login, fetching history) and via WebSocket for real-time messaging.
• The server handles authentication, message persistence in the DB, and broadcasts real-time events to clients.
• MongoDB stores users, chat rooms (or conversations), and message documents.

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Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js v14 or later
• npm or yarn
• MongoDB (local or Atlas)

Installation

git clone https://github.com/AHMED1CB/Linko.git
cd Linko

Backend

cd server
npm install

# Frontend
cd ../client
npm install

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Start backend

cd server
npm start

Start frontend

cd ../client
npm run dev