URL Shortener Project

This is a URL Shortener web application that allows users to shorten long URLs, track their visits, and analyze the visit statistics, such as daily visits and country-based visits. The project is built using Node.js, Express, MongoDB, and EJS templating.

Table of Contents

• Installation
• Environment Variables
• Project Structure
• Usage
• Features
• Middleware
• License

Installation

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v14+ recommended)
• MongoDB (local or Atlas)
• npm (usually comes with Node.js)

Steps

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/your-username/url-shortener.git
   cd url-shortener

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

3. Create a .env file in the root of your project and configure your environment variables. Refer to the Environment Variables section.

4. Start the development server:

   npm run dev

5. Visit http://localhost:3000 in your browser.

Environment Variables

You need to set up the following environment variables in your .env file:

PORT=3000
MONGO_URI=your_mongo_uri
SECRET=your_session_secret
PORT: The port on which the server will run.
MONGO_URI: The MongoDB connection string.
SECRET: A secret key used for session management.

Project Structure

Here's an overview of the project structure:

├── config.json           # Configuration file for the app
├── middleware/           # Middleware files
│   ├── errorLogger.js    # Logs errors and handles them
│   ├── requireLogin.js   # Middleware to protect routes
│   └── prank.js          # Middleware for prank endpoint
├── models/               # Mongoose models
│   ├── Link.js           # Schema for storing link information
│   └── User.js           # Schema for user authentication
├── routes/               # Express routes
│   ├── analyse.js        # Route for analysis page
│   ├── dashboard.js      # Route for dashboard page
│   ├── index.js          # Main route
│   ├── login.js          # Route for login page
│   ├── signup.js         # Route for signup page
│   └── api/              # API-related routes
├── public/               # Static files
├── views/                # EJS templates
│   ├── index.ejs         # Homepage template
│   ├── dashboard.ejs     # Dashboard template
│   ├── analyse.ejs       # Analysis page template
│   ├── login.ejs         # Login page template
│   ├── signup.ejs        # Signup page template
│   ├── 404.ejs           # 404 error page template
│   └── 500.ejs           # 500 error page template
├── app.js                # Main application file
├── .env                  # Environment variables
├── package.json          # Project dependencies and scripts
└── README.md             # Project documentation

Usage

Authentication

• Signup: Navigate to /signup to create a new user account.
• Login: Navigate to /login to log in with an existing account.
• URL Shortening Create Short URL: After logging in, use the homepage form to submit a long URL and generate a shortened version. You can also specify an expiration date or custom keyword.
• Dashboard: View and manage all your shortened URLs, sort them by date, visits, etc.

Analysis

• Analyse Links: Navigate to /analyse/:redirectString to view visit statistics for a specific shortened URL, including daily visits and country-based visits.

Features

• User Authentication: Secure user login and registration with hashed passwords.
• Shorten URLs: Convert long URLs into short, easily shareable links.
• Tracking & Analytics: Track visits by country and date, and analyze usage patterns.
• QR Code Generation: Generate QR codes for shortened URLs.
• Link Management: Edit, delete, and toggle the active status of shortened URLs.
• Error Handling: Custom 404 and 500 error pages.
• Middleware: Prank middleware for fun, error logging, and user authentication.

Middleware

errorLogger.js

• logError: Logs errors into a file for debugging purposes.
• errorHandler: Handles errors and sends appropriate responses to the client. requireLogin.js
• Protects routes by ensuring that only logged-in users can access them. prank.js
• A fun middleware that could be used to play pranks on users.

Youtube Overview

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.