Task Management API

A Laravel 11 RESTful API for managing tasks with secure user authentication using Laravel Sanctum.

Project Overview

This API provides a complete task management system where users can register, authenticate, and manage their personal tasks. Each user has isolated access to only their own tasks, ensuring data privacy and security.

Requirements Met

1. Entities

✅ User - name, email, password
✅ Task - title, description, status (pending/in-progress/completed), user_id

2. Core Functionality

✅ User registration and login with Laravel Sanctum authentication
✅ Complete CRUD operations for tasks
✅ Task access restricted to authenticated users only
✅ Comprehensive input validation
✅ Proper error handling with meaningful messages

3. Bonus Features Implemented

✅ Filter tasks by status (pending, in-progress, completed)
✅ Pagination on task listings (10 items per page)

Technology Stack

• Framework: Laravel 11
• Authentication: Laravel Sanctum (Token-based)
• Database: MySQL
• PHP: 8.2+

Installation Instructions

Prerequisites

• PHP 8.2 or higher
• Composer
• MySQL database
• Git

Setup Steps

1. Clone the repository

   git clone <your-repository-url>
   cd task-api

2. Install dependencies

   composer install

3. Configure environment

   cp .env.example .env

4. Update database credentials in .env

   DB_CONNECTION=mysql
   DB_HOST=127.0.0.1
   DB_PORT=3306
   DB_DATABASE=task_api
   DB_USERNAME=root
   DB_PASSWORD=

5. Generate application key

   php artisan key:generate

6. Create the database

   Create a MySQL database named task_api

7. Run database migrations

   php artisan migrate

8. Start the development server

   php artisan serve

The API will be accessible at http://127.0.0.1:8000

API Endpoints

Base URL

http://127.0.0.1:8000/api

Authentication Endpoints

Register User

POST /api/register
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "John Doe",
  "email": "john@example.com",
  "password": "password123",
  "password_confirmation": "password123"
}

Response (201):

{
  "access_token": "4|w5IB1CkX7Bv07RD85rTfEZouz6j3LaRnUaYX7ET853e168f5",
  "token_type": "Bearer",
  "user": {
    "id": 4,
    "name": "John Doe",
    "email": "john@example.com",
    "created_at": "2025-11-08T04:29:53.000000Z",
    "updated_at": "2025-11-08T04:29:53.000000Z"
  }
}

Login

POST /api/login
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "email": "john@example.com",
  "password": "password123"
}

Response (200):

{
  "access_token": "5|zZO9BJ0rokUrkUNcmGuZgP7WX4qSFrU2eUoAcnlH7dde06ea",
  "token_type": "Bearer",
  "user": {
    "id": 4,
    "name": "John Doe",
    "email": "john@example.com"
  }
}

Logout

POST /api/logout
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Response (200):

{
  "message": "Logged out successfully"
}

Task Endpoints (Protected)

All task endpoints require authentication. Include the Bearer token in the Authorization header.

Get All Tasks (with pagination)

GET /api/tasks
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Response (200):

{
  "current_page": 1,
  "data": [
    {
      "id": 1,
      "user_id": 4,
      "title": "Complete Laravel Assessment",
      "description": "Build task management API",
      "status": "in-progress",
      "created_at": "2025-11-08T04:12:01.000000Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-11-08T04:12:01.000000Z"
    }
  ],
  "per_page": 10,
  "total": 1
}

Filter Tasks by Status (Bonus Feature)

GET /api/tasks?status=pending
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Available status values: pending, in-progress, completed

Create Task

POST /api/tasks
Authorization: Bearer {token}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "title": "Complete project documentation",
  "description": "Write comprehensive API docs",
  "status": "pending"
}

Response (201):

{
  "id": 1,
  "user_id": 4,
  "title": "Complete project documentation",
  "description": "Write comprehensive API docs",
  "status": "pending",
  "created_at": "2025-11-08T04:12:01.000000Z",
  "updated_at": "2025-11-08T04:12:01.000000Z"
}

Get Single Task

GET /api/tasks/{id}
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Update Task

PUT /api/tasks/{id}
Authorization: Bearer {token}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "status": "completed"
}

Delete Task

DELETE /api/tasks/{id}
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Response (200):

{
  "message": "Task deleted successfully"
}

Validation & Error Handling

Validation Errors (422)

{
  "message": "The given data was invalid.",
  "errors": {
    "email": ["The email field is required."],
    "password": ["The password must be at least 8 characters."]
  }
}

Authentication Errors (401)

{
  "message": "Unauthenticated."
}

Authorization Errors (403)

{
  "message": "Unauthorized"
}

Database Schema

Users Table

• id (Primary Key)
• name (varchar)
• email (varchar, unique)
• password (varchar, hashed)
• created_at, updated_at (timestamps)

Tasks Table

• id (Primary Key)
• user_id (Foreign Key → users.id, cascade on delete)
• title (varchar, required)
• description (text, nullable)
• status (enum: pending, in-progress, completed)
• created_at, updated_at (timestamps)
• Indexes: user_id, status, composite(user_id, status)

Development Approach

Architecture

• MVC Pattern: Clear separation between Models, Controllers, and business logic
• RESTful Design: Follows REST principles for intuitive API structure
• Policy-Based Authorization: Users can only access their own tasks

Security Measures

• Password hashing using bcrypt
• Token-based authentication with Laravel Sanctum
• SQL injection protection via Eloquent ORM
• Input validation on all endpoints
• User-specific data isolation

Code Quality

• Followed Laravel coding standards and best practices
• Clean, readable code with proper naming conventions
• Comprehensive error handling
• Proper HTTP status codes for all responses

Testing the API

Using Postman

1. Register a new user via POST /api/register
2. Copy the access_token from the response
3. Add Authorization header to all task requests:

   Authorization: Bearer {your_access_token}

4. Test all CRUD operations on tasks

Using cURL

Register:

curl -X POST http://127.0.0.1:8000/api/register \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name":"Test User","email":"test@example.com","password":"password123","password_confirmation":"password123"}'

Login:

curl -X POST http://127.0.0.1:8000/api/login \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email":"test@example.com","password":"password123"}'

Get Tasks:

curl -X GET http://127.0.0.1:8000/api/tasks \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer {your_token}"

Project Structure

task-api/
├── app/
│   ├── Http/Controllers/Api/
│   │   ├── AuthController.php
│   │   └── TaskController.php
│   ├── Models/
│   │   ├── User.php
│   │   └── Task.php
│   └── Policies/
│       └── TaskPolicy.php
├── database/migrations/
├── routes/api.php
└── README.md

Key Features

✅ User registration with email validation
✅ Secure login with credential verification
✅ Token-based authentication (stateless)
✅ Complete task CRUD operations
✅ Task filtering by status (Bonus)
✅ Pagination support (Bonus)
✅ User-specific task access
✅ Comprehensive validation
✅ Proper error handling
✅ Clean, maintainable code

Conclusion

This API demonstrates proficiency in:

• Laravel framework fundamentals
• RESTful API design principles
• Authentication and authorization
• Database design and relationships
• Input validation and error handling
• Security best practices

The implementation is production-ready with proper validation, error handling, and security measures in place.

License

MIT License

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Developed by holyprof for Afrifounders Startup Studio - Laravel Developer Assessment