GuidWay Backend

Backend service for GuidWay, a mentoring marketplace platform where users can discover mentors, book sessions, communicate in real-time, and manage mentoring workflows.

Built with TypeScript, Express.js, Prisma, and a scalable clean architecture approach.

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Overview

GuidWay is designed as a marketplace platform connecting mentors and learners.

This backend handles:

• Authentication & authorization
• Mentor and user management
• Session booking workflows
• Real-time communication support
• Video session integration
• Chat management
• Secure API handling
• Scalable database operations
• File storage integrations
• Email notifications

The project follows a modular and maintainable architecture focused on scalability and separation of concerns.

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Tech Stack

Core Technologies

• Node.js
• TypeScript
• Express.js
• Prisma ORM
• PostgreSQL
• Redis

Authentication & Security

• JWT Authentication
• Passport.js
• Google OAuth 2.0
• Argon2 / Bcrypt
• Helmet
• Cookie-based authentication

Infrastructure & Utilities

• AWS S3
• Nodemailer
• Winston Logger
• Zod Validation
• InversifyJS (Dependency Injection)
• Biome (Linting & Formatting)

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Features

Authentication System

• User signup & login
• JWT-based authentication
• Refresh token handling
• Google OAuth authentication
• Secure password hashing
• Cookie-based session management

Mentor Marketplace

• Mentor profile management
• Mentor discovery system
• Session scheduling
• Booking management
• Availability handling

Communication

• Real-time chat support
• Video session support
• Email notifications

Platform Management

• Role-based access control
• Validation & error handling
• Logging system
• Scalable architecture

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Project Structure

Guidway-backend/
│
├── prisma/                # Prisma schema & database configuration
├── src/
│   ├── application/       # Application services/use cases
│   ├── domain/            # Core business logic & entities
│   ├── infrastructure/    # External services & implementations
│   ├── presentation/      # Controllers, routes, middleware
│   ├── shared/            # Shared utilities & helpers
│   └── main.ts            # Application entry point
│
├── .husky/                # Git hooks
├── package.json
├── tsconfig.json
└── biome.json

The structure may evolve as the project grows.

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Architecture

This project follows a clean and scalable backend architecture.

Main Principles

• Separation of concerns
• Dependency injection
• Modular service organization
• Maintainable business logic
• Testable architecture
• Scalable API structure

Architectural Layers

Layer	Responsibility
Domain	Business entities and core rules
Application	Use cases and business workflows
Infrastructure	Database, external APIs, services
Presentation	Routes, controllers, middleware

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Installation

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/Aswinkl1/Guidway-backend.git

2. Move Into the Project

cd Guidway-backend

3. Install Dependencies

Using pnpm:

pnpm install

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Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the root directory.

Example:

PORT=5000
DATABASE_URL=
JWT_SECRET=
REFRESH_TOKEN_SECRET=
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=
REDIS_URL=
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=
AWS_REGION=
AWS_BUCKET_NAME=
EMAIL_USER=
EMAIL_PASS=

Add all required environment variables based on your local setup.

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Database Setup

Generate Prisma Client

pnpm prisma generate

Run Database Migrations

pnpm prisma migrate dev

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Running the Project

Development Mode

pnpm dev

Production Build

pnpm build

Start Production Server

pnpm start

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Available Scripts

Script	Description
pnpm dev	Run development server
pnpm build	Build TypeScript project
pnpm start	Start production server
pnpm lint	Run Biome checks
pnpm lint:fix	Fix linting issues
pnpm type-check	Run TypeScript type checking

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API Design

The backend is designed around RESTful API principles.

Typical modules include:

• Authentication
• Users
• Mentors
• Sessions
• Bookings
• Messaging
• Notifications

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Security Practices

• Password hashing with Argon2/Bcrypt
• Secure JWT authentication
• Protected routes
• Input validation using Zod
• HTTP security using Helmet
• Cookie protection
• Environment variable isolation

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Scalability Considerations

This backend is structured to support future scaling requirements:

• Modular architecture
• Redis caching support
• Dependency injection
• External storage support (AWS S3)
• Centralized logging
• Strong validation layer
• Type-safe development

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Development Tools

Code Quality

• Biome
• TypeScript strict typing
• Husky Git hooks
• Lint-staged

Logging

• Winston logger integration

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Future Improvements

Potential future enhancements:

• WebSocket-based real-time communication
• Payment gateway integration
• Advanced search & filtering
• Admin analytics dashboard
• Recommendation system
• Docker support
• CI/CD pipeline
• Automated testing suite

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Repository

GuidWay Backend Repository

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Author

Developed by urlAswinkl1 GitHub Profilehttps://github.com/Aswink