Development Environment Setup

This guide provides detailed instructions on setting up your development environment for SparkyFitness. A well-configured environment is crucial for efficient development and testing.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

  • Docker & Docker Compose: Essential for running SparkyFitness in containerized environments.
  • Git: For cloning the SparkyFitness repository.

For Local Development (without Docker)

  • Node.js 18+ and npm: The JavaScript runtime and package manager.
  • PostgreSQL 15+: The database server.
  • Git: For version control.

The fastest way to get SparkyFitness running is using our Docker helper script:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/CodeWithCJ/SparkyFitness.git
cd SparkyFitness

# Copy environment template
cp docker/.env.example .env

# Start development environment (with live reloading)
./docker/docker-helper.sh dev up

# Access the application at http://localhost:8080

Installation Options

Choose the deployment method that best fits your needs:

🔧 Development Setup (Docker)

For local development with live reloading using Docker:

  1. Configure Environment: 
    cp docker/.env.example .env
# Edit .env with your development settings
  2. Start Development Environment: 
    # Start all services with live reloading
./docker/docker-helper.sh dev up
  3. Access Services:
    • Frontend: http://localhost:8080 (live reloading)
    • Backend API: http://localhost:3010
    • Database: localhost:5432

🖥️ Local Development (No Docker)

For pure local development without containers:

  1. Setup Environment: 
    # Copy environment file
cp docker/.env.example .env

# Install dependencies
npm install
cd SparkyFitnessServer && npm install && cd ..
  2. Start Services: 
    # Terminal 1: Start backend
npm run start-backend

# Terminal 2: Start frontend
npm run dev
  3. Access Application:
    • Frontend: http://localhost:8080
    • Backend: http://localhost:3010

Environment Configuration

Required Variables

Copy docker/.env.example to .env and configure these essential variables:

# Database Configuration
SPARKY_FITNESS_DB_NAME=sparkyfitness_db
SPARKY_FITNESS_DB_USER=sparky
SPARKY_FITNESS_DB_PASSWORD=your_secure_password

# Backend Configuration
SPARKY_FITNESS_SERVER_HOST=sparkyfitness-server
SPARKY_FITNESS_SERVER_PORT=3010
SPARKY_FITNESS_FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:8080

# Security (Generate secure keys!)
SPARKY_FITNESS_API_ENCRYPTION_KEY=your_64_character_hex_encryption_key
JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_signing_secret

# Admin Setup
SPARKY_FITNESS_ADMIN_EMAIL=admin@example.com
SPARKY_FITNESS_FORCE_EMAIL_LOGIN=true

Generating Secure Keys

# Generate encryption key (64-char hex)
openssl rand -hex 32

# Generate JWT secret
openssl rand -base64 32

# Or use Node.js
node -e "console.log(require('crypto').randomBytes(32).toString('hex'))"
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