JWT Authentication System

Overview

This project is a secure authentication system using JSON Web Tokens (JWT). It allows users to log in and access a protected dashboard only if they have a valid token.

Features

• User authentication with JWT
• Secure login system
• Middleware-based token verification
• Protected dashboard route
• Express.js backend for API handling
• Custom error handling

Tech Stack

• Backend: Node.js, Express.js
• Authentication: JWT (JSON Web Token)
• Dependencies:
  • dotenv (^8.2.0)
  • express (^4.17.1)
  • express-async-errors (^3.1.1)
  • http-status-codes (^2.1.4)
  • jsonwebtoken (^8.5.1)

Project Structure

project-folder/
│── node_modules/            # Installed dependencies
│── src/
│   ├── middleware/
│   │   ├── auth.js                # JWT authentication middleware
│   │   ├── errorHandlerMiddleware.js # Handles application errors
│   │   ├── notFound.js             # Handles 404 errors
│   ├── errors/
│   │   ├── BadRequest.js          # Handles bad request errors
│   │   ├── CustomAPIError.js      # Base class for custom API errors
│   │   ├── UnauthenticatedError.js # Handles authentication errors
│   │   ├── index.js               # Centralized error exports
│   ├── routes/
│   │   ├── authRoutes.js          # Authentication routes
│   ├── controllers/
│   │   ├── authController.js      # Login and authentication logic
│   ├── app.js                     # Main application file
│── .env                            # Environment variables
│── .gitignore                      # Git ignore file
│── package.json                    # Project metadata and dependencies
│── package-lock.json               # Locked versions of dependencies
│── README.md                        # Documentation

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone <https://github.com/bhanuudhay/SimpleJWT>
   cd <SimpleJWT>

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

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

   PORT=5000
   JWT_SECRET=your_secret_key
   

4. Start the server:

   npm start
   

API Endpoints

• POST / login - Authenticates the user and returns a JWT token.

• GET / dashboard - Protected route, accessible only with a valid token.

Usage

• Send a POST request to /login with valid credentials.

• Receive a JWT token upon successful login.

• Include the token in the Authorization header when accessing the /dashboard route.

Created By Bhanu Udhay Singh