# SSAP Backend Node.js/Express backend for SSAP application with PostgreSQL database. ## Prerequisites - Node.js (v14 or higher) - PostgreSQL database - npm or yarn ## Setup 1. Install dependencies: ```bash npm install ``` 2. Create a `.env` file based on `.env.example`: ```bash cp .env.example .env ``` 3. Update the `.env` file with your database credentials: ``` PORT=8080 DATABASE_URL=postgresql://username:password@localhost:5432/database_name ``` ## Running the Application ### Development mode (with auto-reload): ```bash npm run dev ``` ### Production mode: ```bash npm start ``` The server will start on the port specified in your `.env` file (default: 8080). ## Project Structure ``` backend/ ├── src/ # Source code ├── .env # Environment variables (not committed) ├── .env.example # Environment variables template ├── package.json # Project dependencies └── README.md # This file ``` ## Technologies - **Express.js** - Web framework - **PostgreSQL** - Database - **dotenv** - Environment variable management - **CORS** - Cross-origin resource sharing - **express-rate-limit** - API rate limiting