This mini-project is a chat application built using Node.js, Express.js, and MongoDB, inspired by WhatsApp's chat functionality. The primary goal was to gain hands-on experience with database integration, backend development, and RESTful API creation. While the project does not include real-time messaging and user validation, it effectively implements CRUD operations to manage chat functionalities.

Create, Read, Update, Delete (CRUD) Operations: The application supports basic CRUD operations for managing chat messages between users.

RESTful APIs: Utilizes Express.js to build RESTful APIs for handling chat-related operations.

MongoDB Integration: MongoDB serves as the database for storing user messages.

Error Handling: Robust error handling mechanisms to ensure the application provides appropriate feedback and handles exceptions gracefully.

Node.js: JavaScript runtime for building server-side applications.

Express.js: Web framework for Node.js to create RESTful APIs.

MongoDB: NoSQL database for storing chat data.

Mongoose: ODM (Object Data Modeling) library for MongoDB and Node.js

The project structure is organized to separate concerns and enhance maintainability:

chat-app/
│
├── config/
│   └── database.js      # MongoDB connection configuration
│
├── controllers/
│   └── chatController.js # Logic for handling chat-related operations
│
├── models/
│   └── chatModel.js     # Mongoose schema and model for chat messages
│
├── routes/
│   └── chatRoutes.js    # API routes for chat operations
│
├── app.js               # Main application file
├── package.json         # Project dependencies and scripts
└── README.md            # Project documentation

config/database.js Handles the MongoDB connection using Mongoose.

models/chatModel.js Defines the Mongoose schema and model for chat messages.

controllers/chatController.js Contains the logic for handling chat-related CRUD operations.

routes/chatRoutes.js Defines the API routes for chat operations.

app.js Main application file to set up the server and routes.

Clone the repository:

 

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/chat-app.git
cd chat-app

Install dependencies:

npm install

Set up environment variables: Create a .env file in the root directory and add the following:

makefile

MONGO_URI=your_mongodb_connection_string

Run the application:

npm start