FlaskWebAPI

Description

FlaskWebAPI is a straightforward Flask-based API connected to a PostgreSQL database, designed to be easily containerized using Docker.

Setup

Environment Variables

To configure FlaskWebAPI, follow these steps:

1. Duplicate the example.env file as .env.
2. Populate the .env file with your specific environment variable values. Default values will be used if not provided.

All database configuration settings are managed within the .env file.

Running the App Locally

You can run FlaskWebAPI in your local environment in two ways:

1. Using Docker Container

Running FlaskWebAPI in a Docker container is the recommended approach, aligning with production deployment standards:

Setup Steps:

1. Set DB_HOST=docker-db in the .env file.
2. Define TEST_HOST=0.0.0.0 and choose TEST_PORT for the app's listening port.
3. Launch the Flask app in debug mode:
   • Execute docker compose up.
   • For rebuilding images and removing orphaned containers: docker compose up --build --remove-orphans.
   • Docker will build two images and start containers named docker-db (Postgres instance) and docker-webapi (the app) respectively.
   • Access the app at localhost:TEST_PORT.

Container Manipulation:

• The Postgres database initializes with default data (refer to the sql folder).
• Persistent database data is stored in postgres_data (new data persists across app restarts).
• To reset the database, delete postgres_data: sudo rm -rf postgres_data and rerun docker compose up --build.
• Inspect the docker-db container: docker exec -it docker-db psql -d mydatabase -U user.

2. Running Directly in Local Environment

For local development outside Docker:

Steps:

1. Ensure Python 3.8+ is installed.
2. Create and activate a virtual environment.
3. Use the existing .env file with modified DB_HOST (x.x.x.x for remote database) and TEST_HOST=localhost.
4. Install dependencies: pip install -r requirements.txt.
5. Start the app: python3 run.py.

Swagger UI

Explore the API documentation via Swagger UI at http://localhost:5000/swagger-ui.

Logging

Log files are located in logs/flaskwebapi.log.

Error Handling

Custom error handling ensures consistent error responses.

Contributing

Contributions such as issues or pull requests are welcome.