Chatly

A real-time, full-stack chat application built with React, Node.js, Express, and Prisma.

🚀 Features

• Real-time Messaging: Instant message delivery using WebSockets (Socket.io).
• User Authentication: Secure user login and registration using Passport.js.
• RESTful API: Robust backend API built with Express.js.
• Database Management: Prisma ORM with structured data models.
• Modern UI: Clean and responsive client application built with Vite and React.

💻 Tech Stack

Client (Frontend)

• React (with Vite)
• Socket.io-client for real-time connection
• Axios / Fetch API for HTTP requests

Server (Backend)

• Node.js & Express.js
• Prisma (ORM)
• Socket.io for real-time bidirectional event-based communication
• Passport.js for Authentication Middleware

🛠️ Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have met the following requirements:

• Node.js (v16.x or later installed)
• Database supported by Prisma (e.g., PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite)

⚙️ Installation & Setup

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone <repository-url>
   cd Chatly

2. Set up the Server: Open your terminal and navigate to the Server directory.

   cd Server
   npm install

   Note: Make sure to create a .env file in the /Server folder containing your DATABASE_URL and any required secrets (e.g., JWT secret, Session secret).

   Run Prisma database migrations:

   npx prisma migrate dev

   Start the Node.js server:

   npm run dev
   # or
   npm start

3. Set up the Client: Open a new terminal window and navigate to the Client directory.

   cd Client
   npm install

   Start the Vite development frontend server:

   npm run dev

📂 Project Structure

• /Client: Frontend application containing React components (Chatarea, Chatbox, Users), Contexts (AuthContext), React hooks, and Socket setups.
• /Server: Backend application containing API Routes, Express Middleware, Database queries via Prisma, Controllers, and utility functions (ApiError.js, ApiResponse.js).

🤝 Contributing

Contributions, issues, and feature requests are welcome!