Alpha Chats V2

A real-time chat platform for coders, built with GitHub-only authentication, team channels, and Telegram-style UI.

🚀 Features

• GitHub OAuth Authentication - Secure sign-in with GitHub only
• 8 Pre-configured Channels - Web Dev, App Dev, CP, AI/ML, Cyber Security, OS, System Design, Beginners
• Direct Messages - Private conversations with any user
• Role-based Access - Co-founders/Core team get admin privileges
• Real-time Messaging - Socket.IO powered instant delivery
• Code Sharing - Syntax-highlighted code blocks
• File Attachments - Share images and documents
• Typing Indicators - See when others are typing
• Online Status - Know who's online

🛠 Tech Stack

Layer	Technology
Frontend	React 19, Vite, Tailwind CSS
State	Redux Toolkit
Backend	Express 5, Node.js
Database	MongoDB with Mongoose
Auth	Passport.js + GitHub OAuth 2.0
Real-time	Socket.IO 4.x
File Storage	Cloudinary

👥 Team Members

Co-founders (Full Admin Access)

• Vikash - @Vortex-16
• Archisman - @Dealer-09
• Rajbeer - @PixelPioneer404
• Rouvik - @Rouvik

Core Team (Elevated Access)

• Ayush - @AyushChowdhuryCSE
• Ayan - @AyanAlikhan11
• Rajdeep - @yourajdeep
• Nikhil - @nikhil-chourasia
• Shoaib - @luckym-crypto
• Jeet - @Jeet-Pathak

📦 Setup

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+
• MongoDB (local or Atlas)
• GitHub OAuth App (create at https://github.com/settings/developers)
• Cloudinary account (for file uploads)

1. Clone & Install

cd Version-2

# Install backend dependencies
cd backend
npm install

# Install frontend dependencies
cd ../frontend
npm install

2. Environment Setup

Backend (backend/.env):

PORT=4000
NODE_ENV=development
CLIENT_URL=http://localhost:5173
MONGO_URL=mongodb://localhost:27017/alpha-chats-v2
GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=your_github_client_id
GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET=your_github_client_secret
GITHUB_CALLBACK_URL=http://localhost:4000/api/auth/github/callback
SESSION_SECRET=your_session_secret
JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_secret
CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=your_cloudinary_name
CLOUDINARY_API_KEY=your_cloudinary_key
CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET=your_cloudinary_secret

Frontend (frontend/.env):

VITE_API_URL=http://localhost:4000
VITE_SOCKET_URL=http://localhost:4000
VITE_GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=your_github_client_id

3. Create GitHub OAuth App

1. Go to https://github.com/settings/developers
2. Click "New OAuth App"
3. Fill in:
   • Application name: Alpha Chats V2
   • Homepage URL: http://localhost:5173
   • Authorization callback URL: http://localhost:4000/api/auth/github/callback
4. Copy Client ID and Client Secret to your .env files

4. Run Development Servers

# Terminal 1 - Backend
cd backend
npm run dev

# Terminal 2 - Frontend
cd frontend
npm run dev

5. Access the App

• Frontend: http://localhost:5173
• Backend API: http://localhost:4000
• Health Check: http://localhost:4000/api/health

📁 Project Structure

Version-2/
├── backend/
│   ├── config/           # Database, Passport, Cloudinary, Team config
│   ├── controllers/      # Auth, Channel, Message, User controllers
│   ├── middlewares/      # Auth, Role, Multer middlewares
│   ├── models/           # User, Channel, Message models
│   ├── routes/           # API routes
│   ├── scripts/          # Database seeding
│   └── index.js          # Main server
├── frontend/
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── components/   # Sidebar, Chat components
│   │   ├── pages/        # Welcome, Login, Chat, Profile
│   │   ├── redux/        # User and Chat state
│   │   ├── hooks/        # Socket, Auth hooks
│   │   └── config/       # API, Axios config
│   └── index.html
└── README.md

🔐 Security

• GitHub OAuth only - No password storage
• Session-based auth with HTTP-only cookies
• Role-based access control
• Co-founders have full admin access to all channels
• Core team has elevated privileges

📢 Channels

Channel	Description
🌐 Web Dev	Backend + Frontend development
📱 App Dev	Mobile and desktop apps
🏆 Competitive Programming	CP, contests, problem solving
🤖 AI/ML	Machine learning, AI
🔐 Cyber Security	Security, CTFs, pentesting
💻 Operating System	OS, Linux, kernel
🏗️ System Design	Architecture, scalability
🌱 Beginners	C, Python, Java basics

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Built with ❤️ by Alpha Coders Team