🛠️ Talkora Server - Backend for MERN Forum Platform

The Talkora Server is a secure and scalable backend API for the Talkora Forum Platform. Built with Node.js, Express.js, MongoDB, and JWT Authentication, it supports user management, post creation, comments, announcements, Stripe payment, role-based access, and more.

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🔗 Live Website

🌐 https://b11a12-talkora.web.app

🧾 Repositories

• 🗂️ Client GitHub: https://github.com/arifuddincoder/talkora-forum-client
• ⚙️ Server GitHub: https://github.com/arifuddincoder/talkora-forum-server
• 🌐 Main API: https://b11a12-talkora-server.vercel.app/

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🔐 Key Backend Features

• ✅ JWT-based Authentication & Cookie Token Storage
• ✅ Role-based Authorization (User / Admin)
• ✅ RESTful API for Posts, Comments, Tags, Reports, Announcements
• ✅ Stripe Payment Integration for Membership
• ✅ Post Visibility & Voting (Upvote/Downvote)
• ✅ User Profile & Membership Tracking
• ✅ Aggregation Pipelines for Popularity Sorting & Tag Counts
• ✅ Search Logging & Popular Searches API
• ✅ Reported Comments Moderation with Feedback

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📁 Project Structure

/index.js               → Main Express App
/vercel.json            → Vercel Deployment Config
.env                    → Environment Variables (not uploaded)
/node_modules           → Node Dependencies

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📦 Dependencies Used

Package	Purpose
express	Web server routing
cors	Cross-Origin Resource Sharing
dotenv	Environment variable loader
mongodb	Database driver
jsonwebtoken	Authentication & Authorization
cookie-parser	Parse cookies from HTTP requests
stripe	Stripe payment integration

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🧪 Environment Variables

PORT=3000
MONGODB_URI=your_mongo_uri
ACCESS_TOKEN_SECRET=your_jwt_secret
STRIPE_SECRET_KEY=your_stripe_key

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🔐 Authentication & Security

• JWT token is generated on login and stored in cookies (HttpOnly, SameSite, Secure)
• Middleware verifyToken validates user token
• Middleware verifyAdmin protects admin-only routes
• User role managed via users collection

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📊 Admin API Highlights

• /admin/overview → Total posts, comments, users
• /users → Paginated + searchable user list
• /users/role/:id → Make Admin
• /announcements → Create, List, Delete
• /tags → Add and fetch tags
• /reported-comments → Fetch, Delete, Ignore reported comments

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📝 Post & Comment Features

• GET /posts → Filter by tags, sort by popularity, pagination
• GET /posts/:id → Post details with comment count
• POST /posts → Add new post (limit handled by client)
• PATCH /posts/:id/vote → Upvote/Downvote logic with toggle
• DELETE /posts/:id → Delete post (only if owner)
• GET /comments?postId=... → Public comment list
• POST /comments → Add a comment
• PATCH /report-comment/:id → Report comment with feedback
• GET /secure-comments/:postId → Protected comment fetch

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💳 Payment Integration

• POST /create-payment-intent → Stripe payment intent
• POST /payments → Save payment record
• PATCH /users/membership/:email → Grant membership & badge

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🔍 Search & Analytics

• POST /searches → Log user search
• GET /popular-searches → Top 3 search keywords
• GET /tags-with-counts → Popular tags with post counts

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🛡️ Deployment

• ✅ Hosted on Vercel using vercel.json
• ✅ CORS configured for frontend domain
• ✅ Refresh-safe routing enabled
• ✅ Secure token handling in cookies

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👑 Admin Access

• Email: rafiq.ahmed@mailinator.com
• Password: Pa$$w0rd!

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👤 General User Access

• Email: david.kim@mailinator.com
• Password: Pa$$w0rd!

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🔗 Project Links

• 🌐 Live URL: https://b11a12-talkora.web.app
• 🧾 Client GitHub: https://github.com/arifuddincoder/talkora-forum-client
• 🧾 Server GitHub: https://github.com/arifuddincoder/talkora-forum-server

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👨‍💻 Developer Info

Md Arif Uddin
📧 arifuddincoder@gmail.com
🌐 https://codebyarif.web.app
🔗 GitHub | LinkedIn