Simpl Dashboard API

Simpl Dashboard API is a RESTful service designed to display production information in a dashboard panel. It leverages a range of technologies for robust, scalable, and secure operations.

Technologies

• Express.js: A web application framework for Node.js, designed for building web applications and APIs.
• Sequelize: A promise-based Node.js ORM for Postgres, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite, and Microsoft SQL Server.
• SQL Server Node.js Driver: Used for database connectivity.
• Joi: A powerful schema description language and data validator for JavaScript.
• PM2: A production process manager for Node.js applications with a built-in load balancer.
• Docker: A platform for developing, shipping, and running applications.
• Winston: A logger for just about everything.
• Winston Daily Rotate File: A transport for winston which logs to a rotating file each day.

Authentication

The API uses an external Identity Provider (IdP) for authentication, implementing a custom middleware to facilitate communication with the authentication service through a dedicated HTTP client.

Development Environment

The project uses an .env file for environment-specific configurations, leveraging the config and dotenv node modules to load settings accordingly. A Dockerfile is included to simplify the process of running the API in a containerized environment.

Logging

Logging is handled by Winston, configured with a daily rotate mechanism via the winston-daily-rotate-file module to ensure efficient log management.

Database

Database access is facilitated through Sequelize and the tedious driver, providing a streamlined interface for SQL Server interactions.

Setup

Prerequisites

• Node.js (version as specified in package.json)
• Docker (optional, for containerized deployment)

Installing Dependencies

Run npm install to install the project dependencies.

Environment Variables

Create an .env file at the root of the project and define the following variables to match your development, testing, or production environments:

MSSQL_DATABASE_HOST=<your_sql_server_host>
MSSQL_DATABASE_PORT=<your_sql_server_port>
MSSQL_DATABASE_NAME=<your_database_name>
MSSQL_DATABASE_USER=<your_database_user>
MSSQL_DATABASE_PASSWORD=<your_database_password>
IDP_HOST=<your_idp_host>

Running the Application

• Development Mode: npm run dev
• Production Mode: Using PM2, run pm2 start pm2.json for optimized performance and load balancing.
• Docker: Build and run the container using the provided Dockerfile.

PM2 Configuration

The application is configured to run with 3 instances, balancing the load across them to ensure high availability and better resource management. This configuration can be adjusted in pm2.json as necessary.

Docker Support

Dockerfiles for both development (Dockerfile-dev) and production (Dockerfile) are included, enabling easy deployment in containerized environments.

Versioning

The current version of the project is 1.0.7 as specified in package.json, reflecting its readiness for production use.