Authentication API

A secure REST API demonstrating user authentication and authorization using Node.js, Express, MongoDB, JWT, and bcrypt.

This project showcases modern backend authentication practices including password hashing, JSON Web Tokens, middleware-based route protection, and RESTful API development.

---

Features

• User Registration
• User Login
• Password Hashing (bcrypt)
• JWT Authentication
• Protected Routes
• MongoDB Integration
• Express Middleware
• Environment Variable Support

---

Technologies

• Node.js
• Express.js
• MongoDB
• Mongoose
• JWT
• bcrypt
• dotenv

---

Project Structure

cohort-2-auth_last/
│
├── controllers/
├── middleware/
├── models/
├── routes/
├── server.js
├── package.json
└── README.md

---

Installation

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/RhemaGreat/cohort-2-auth_last.git

Install dependencies

npm install

Create a .env file

PORT=5000
MONGODB_URI=your_database_connection

ACCESS_TOKEN_SECRET=your_access_secret
REFRESH_TOKEN_SECRET=your_refresh_secret

Start the server

npm start

or

npm run dev

---

API Endpoints

Authentication

Method	Endpoint	Description
POST	/register	Register a new user
POST	/login	Authenticate a user
POST	/logout	Logout a user
GET	/profile	Protected user profile

---

Authentication

After successful login, include your access token:

Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

---

Security Features

• Password hashing using bcrypt
• JWT Authentication
• Protected routes
• Environment variables
• Middleware-based authorization

---

Learning Objectives

This project demonstrates:

• REST API Development
• Authentication
• Authorization
• JWT
• Password Security
• Express Middleware
• MongoDB Integration
• Backend Architecture

---

Future Improvements

• Email Verification
• Password Reset
• Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)
• Rate Limiting
• Refresh Token Rotation
• Swagger Documentation
• Unit Testing
• Docker Support
• GitHub Actions
• Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

---

Contributing

Pull requests are welcome.

---

Roadmap

• API Documentation
• Unit Tests
• Docker
• CI/CD
• RBAC
• Refresh Token Rotation
• Password Reset
• Email Verification

---

Author

Rhema Great

GitHub: https://github.com/RhemaGreat

---

License

Licensed under the MIT License.