SARC Backend

Overview

The SARC backend is designed for the CSE Society website of IIT (ISM) Dhanbad. All backend logic is implemented within the SERVER folder. The system is built using Node.js, Express.js, and MongoDB for database management. Additionally, Redis is used for caching, Cloudinary handles cloud storage for images and PDFs, and the application is containerized using Docker for seamless deployment.

User Roles & Authentication

User Types

The system supports three types of users:

• Professors
• Students
• Alumni

Authentication

Currently, user data is stored in MongoDB, with sample datasets available in the randomdata folder. Authentication is handled through a middleware called setUser, which can be replaced with a robust authentication mechanism using CSES authentication and LinkedIn verification.

Features

Events

• Created by: Professors (Admins)
• Professors can publish events by providing:
  • Title
  • Description
  • Registration URL
  • Person-in-Charge (FIC)
  • Optional event background image
• Each event is assigned a unique event ID (not MongoDB’s ObjectId).
• Supported operations:
  • Create an event
  • Retrieve all events
  • Get event details by ID
  • Delete an event

Referrals

• Created by: Alumni
• Alumni can publish job referrals with:
  • Job profile
  • Company
  • Application deadline
  • Eligibility criteria
• Supported operations:
  • List all referrals
  • Apply for referrals (students only)
  • Get referral details (for publisher)
  • Fetch publisher’s referrals
  • Delete referral (for publisher)

Publications

• Created by: Professors
• Professors can upload PDF publications, specifying the number of pages to be displayed.
• The frontend extracts the specified pages using PDF-lib, generates a new PDF, and sends it to the backend.
• Supported operations:
  • Upload a publication
  • List all publications
  • Retrieve a publication
  • Delete a publication

Error Handling & Custom Response Classes

ApiError

• A custom error-handling class extending JavaScript's built-in Error class.
• Works with a centralized Error Handler Middleware, which catches and formats all errors before sending responses.

ApiResponse

• A structured response format to ensure consistency across API responses.

AsyncHandler

• A higher-order function to handle asynchronous operations without the need for repetitive try-catch blocks in controllers.

Publication API Endpoints

1. Create a Publication

Endpoint: POST /api/publications/create-publication

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Body Parameters (Form-Data):

• publication_pdf (File, Required): The PDF file to upload.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": {
    "publicationID": "...",
    "publication-cloudinaryURL": "...",
    "publisher-details": "..."
  },
  "message": "Publication created successfully"
}

---

2. Get All Publications

Endpoint: GET /api/publications/publication-list

Description: Fetches a list of all available publications.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": [
    { 
      "publicationID": "...",
      "publication-cloudinaryURL": "...",
      "publisher-details": "..."
    }
  ],
  "message": "All publications fetched successfully"
}

---

3. Get Publication Details

Endpoint: GET /api/publications/:publicationid

Description: Fetches details of a specific publication.

Path Parameters:

• publicationid (String, Required): The unique ID of the publication.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": { 
    "publicationID": "...",
    "publication-cloudinaryURL": "...",
    "publisher-details": "..."
  },
  "message": "Publication details fetched successfully"
}

---

4. Delete a Publication

Endpoint: DELETE /api/publications/delete/:publicationid

Description: Allows a professor to delete their own publication.

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Path Parameters:

• publicationid (String, Required): The unique ID of the publication.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": null,
  "message": "Publication deleted successfully"
}

---

5. Get My Publications

Endpoint: POST /api/publications/get-my-publications

Description: Fetches all publications uploaded by the logged-in professor.

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": [
    { 
      "publicationID": "...",
      "publication-cloudinaryURL": "..."
    }
  ],
  "message": "Publication details fetched successfully"
}

Referral API Endpoints

Create a Referral

Endpoint: POST /api/referrals/create-referral

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Body Parameters (JSON):

• company_name (String, Required): Name of the company.
• deadline (Date, Required): Application deadline.
• eligibility (String, Required): Eligibility criteria.
• job_profile (String, Required): Job profile for the referral.

Response:

{
  "status": 201,
  "data": {
    "company_name": "...",
    "job_profile": "...",
    "deadline": "...",
    "eligibility": "...",
    "referral_id": "..."
  },
  "message": "Referral created successfully"
}

---

Get All Referrals

Endpoint: GET /api/referrals/referral-list

Description: Fetches a list of all available referrals.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": [
    { 
      "company_name": "...",
      "job_profile": "...",
      "deadline": "...",
      "eligibility": "...",
      "referral_id": "..."
    }
  ],
  "message": "List of all referrals"
}

---

Apply for a Referral

Endpoint: POST /api/referrals/apply/:referralId

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Path Parameters:

• referralId (String, Required): The unique ID of the referral.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": null,
  "message": "Applied successfully"
}

---

Get Referral Details

Endpoint: GET /api/referrals/:referralId

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Path Parameters:

• referralId (String, Required): The unique ID of the referral.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": {
    "referral_id": "...",
    "company_name": "...",
    "job_profile": "...",
    "deadline": "...",
    "applicants": [
      {
        "full_name": "...",
        "linkedIn": "...",
        "email": "...",
        "grad_yr": "..."
      }
    ]
  },
  "message": "Data fetched successfully"
}

---

Get My Referrals

Endpoint: GET /api/referrals/get-my-referral

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": [
    { 
      "job_profile": "...",
      "deadline": "...",
      "company_name": "...",
      "eligibility": "...",
      "referral_id": "..."
    }
  ],
  "message": "Referral details fetched successfully"
}

---

Delete a Referral

Endpoint: DELETE /api/referrals/delete/:refid

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Path Parameters:

• refid (String, Required): The unique ID of the referral.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": null,
  "message": "Referral deleted successfully"
}

Event API Endpoints

Create an Event

Endpoint: POST /api/events/create-event

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)
• Content-Type: multipart/form-data

Body Parameters (Form Data):

• title (String, Required): Title of the event.
• eventDate (Date, Required): Date of the event.
• reg_url (String, Required): Registration URL.
• description (String, Required): Description of the event.
• event_img (File, Optional): Event image.

Response:

{
  "status": 201,
  "data": {
    "title": "...",
    "eventId": "...",
    "eventDate": "...",
    "reg_url": "...",
    "description": "...",
    "FIC": "...",
    "img_url": "..."
  },
  "message": "Event created successfully"
}

---

Get All Events

Endpoint: GET /api/events/event-list

Description: Fetches a list of all available events.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": [
    { 
      "title": "...",
      "eventDate": "...",
      "description": "...",
      "img_url": "...",
      "reg_url": "...",
      "eventId": "...",
      "FIC": {
        "full_name": "...",
        "email": "...",
        "linkedIn": "..."
      }
    }
  ],
  "message": "List of all events"
}

---

Get Event Details

Endpoint: GET /api/events/get-event-data/:eventid

Path Parameters:

• eventid (String, Required): The unique ID of the event.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": {
    "title": "...",
    "eventDate": "...",
    "description": "...",
    "img_url": "...",
    "reg_url": "...",
    "eventId": "...",
    "FIC": {
      "full_name": "...",
      "email": "...",
      "linkedIn": "..."
    }
  },
  "message": "Event details fetched successfully"
}

---

Delete an Event

Endpoint: DELETE /api/events/delete-event/:eventid

Headers:

• Authorization: Bearer <token> (Required)

Path Parameters:

• eventid (String, Required): The unique ID of the event.

Response:

{
  "status": 200,
  "data": null,
  "message": "Event deleted successfully"
}