A Basic Example of using Node.js, Express, and MongoDB

A basic example of using Node.js, Express, and MongoDB to provide a member list from a MongoDB in a JSON format.

Steps

Before we start, install brew if you don't already have it installed.

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

1. Using a terminal, create a package.json file:

   npm init -y
   

2. Install Express, Body-Parser, Cores, and Mongoose:

   npm install express body-parser cors mongoose
   

3. Install nodemon:

   npm install -g nodemon
   

   nodemon is a NPM package that basically prevents you from having to restart your Node.js. Each time you make a change, nodemon will restart your Node.js.

4. Create index.js and add the following code:

   const express = require('express');
   const app = express();
   const bodyParser = require('body-parser');
   const cors = require('cors');
   const PORT = 4000;
   
   app.use(cors());
   app.use(bodyParser.json());
   
   app.listen(PORT, function() {
       console.log("Server is running on Port: " + PORT);
   });

5. Start nodemon:

   nodemon server
   

6. MondgDB removed it from the Homebrew core; however, there is a community version available:

   brew tap mongodb/brew
   brew install mongodb-community
   brew services start mongodb-community
   

7. Make a folder for the database to save content in:

   sudo mkdir -p /data/db
   

   Then make sure that the /data/db directory has the right permissions:

   sudo chown -R `id -un` /data/db
   

8. Start MongoDB by opening a terminal and running the following command:

   mongod --port 27018
   

   The above port can be any port not in use, but we will need to use the same number in our Node/js file.

9. To add some test data, open up a secon terminal and start the MongoDB shell:

   mongo
   

   Creata new database called sandbox:

   use sandbox
   

   Add some record to a membrs collection:

   db.members.insertOne({"first":"Jane","last":"Doe","email":"jane.doe@address.com","admin":false});
   db.members.insertOne({"first":"John","last":"Smith","email":"john.smith@address.com","admin":true});
   db.members.insertOne({"first":"Isaiah","last":"Johnson","email":"isaiah.johnson@address.com","admin":true});

10. Create a file called member.model.js and place it in the root of the project folder. Add the following code:

    const mongoose = require('mongoose');
    const Schema = mongoose.Schema;
    let Member = new Schema({
        first: {type: String},
        last: {type: String},
        email: {type: String},
        admin: {type: Boolean}
    });
    module.exports = mongoose.model('Member', Member);

11. After app.use(bodyParser.json()); add the following code:

    const MONGO_PORT = 27017;
    
    let Member = require('./member.model');
    
    mongoose.connect('mongodb://127.0.0.1:' + MONGO_PORT + '/sandbox', { useNewUrlParser: true });
    const connection = mongoose.connection;
    connection.once('open', function() {
        console.log("MongoDB database connection established successfully");
    })
    
    memberRoutes.route('/').get(function(req, res) {
        Member.find(function(err, todos) {
            if (err) {
                console.log(err);
            } else {
                res.json(todos);
            }
        });
    });
    
    app.use('/members', memberRoutes);

In a browser you will now be able to view the members list in a JSON format at the URL http://localhost:4000/members.

Note

You may need to use sudo when making the db folder.

Full tutorial URL:
https://codeadam.ca/learning/nodejs-api.html

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Repo Resources

• Visual Studio Code or Brackets (or any code editor)
• brew