📱 MEAN Stack with Docker (Sample Contacts Application)

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A modern, full-stack TypeScript contact management system built with the MEAN stack (MongoDB, Express.js, Angular, Node.js) and containerized with Docker. Perfect for learning full-stack development or as a starting point for your own projects!

🌟 What You’ll Learn

• TypeScript throughout the entire stack
• Angular 19 with reactive forms, guards, and SSR
• Express.js with TypeScript for a robust API
• MongoDB integration with Mongoose
• JWT Authentication for secure user management
• Docker containerization for development and production
• Nginx as a load balancer and API gateway
• CI/CD with GitHub Actions

🚀 Getting Started in 30 Seconds

Prerequisites

• Docker and Docker Compose
• Git

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/nitin27may/mean-docker.git
cd mean-docker

# Create environment file
cp .env.example .env
# Start the application
docker-compose -f docker-compose.nginx.yml up

API Configuration

The application supports two deployment modes:

1. Direct API Access: When using docker-compose.yml, the frontend connects directly to the Express API at http://localhost:3000/api

2. Nginx Proxy: When using docker-compose.nginx.yml, the frontend uses a relative path /api which Nginx routes to the Express service

This configuration is automatically set during the Docker build process.
That’s it! Visit http://localhost in your browser.

Login with:

• Username: [email protected]
• Password: P@ssword#321

🏗️ System Architecture

Single Entry Point Architecture

When using the docker-compose.nginx.yml configuration, all traffic flows through a single port (80):

• Single Exposed Port: Only port 80 is exposed to the outside world
• Unified Access Point: Both UI and API requests enter through Nginx
• Intelligent Routing:
  • Requests to /api/* are proxied to the Express.js service
  • All other requests are served by the Angular frontend
• Simplified Deployment: No need to manage multiple public endpoints
• Enhanced Security: Internal services remain isolated from direct external access

The application uses a microservices architecture with four main components:

1. Angular Frontend - Modern UI with TypeScript and Bootstrap 5
2. Express.js API - RESTful API with TypeScript and JWT authentication
3. MongoDB Database - NoSQL database for flexible data storage
4. Nginx - Load balancer and reverse proxy for seamless integration

💻 Key Features

User Authentication

• JWT-based secure login and registration
• Protected routes with Angular guards
• Token-based API authorization
• Password change functionality

Contact Management

• Create, read, update, and delete contacts
• Responsive design for mobile and desktop
• Form validation with custom error messages
• Search, sort, and paginate contacts

Developer Experience

• Hot reloading in development mode
• TypeScript type safety throughout
• Comprehensive error handling
• Swagger API documentation

Production Mode (3 Containers)

MongoDb, API and UI running on different ports.

docker-compose up

• Api : http://localhost:3000
• UI:

Production Mode (4 Containers)

Full microservices architecture with Nginx:

docker-compose -f docker-compose.nginx.yml up

• Application: http://localhost
• MongoDB: localhost:27017

📚 Documentation

Component	Documentation
Frontend	Angular application with TypeScript
Backend	Express.js API with TypeScript
Database	MongoDB configuration and data models
Load Balancer	Nginx configuration and routing
Local Development	Running without Docker

🗺️ Roadmap

We’re constantly improving! Here’s what’s coming:

Phase 1: TypeScript Migration (Completed ✅)

• Express.js API fully converted to TypeScript
• Type-safe models and controllers
• Enhanced API documentation with Swagger

Phase 2: UI Enhancement (Coming Soon)

• Angular Material and Tailwind CSS integration
• Dark/light theme support
• Enhanced mobile experience

Phase 3: Role-Based Access Control

• Admin, Manager, and User roles
• Permission-based UI components
• Secure API endpoints based on roles

For details, see the complete roadmap.

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guide for details.

Reporting Issues

When reporting issues, please use our issue templates:

• Bug Report
• Feature Request

📝 Learn More

This project demonstrates several modern web development best practices:

• TypeScript for type safety across the stack
• Angular reactive forms and component architecture
• Express.js middleware and REST API design
• MongoDB with Mongoose schemas
• JWT authentication flow
• Docker containerization and multi-container applications
• Nginx reverse proxy configuration

Explore the codebase to learn how these technologies work together in a real-world application!

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🔗 Contact

Nitin Singh - @nitin27may
Project Link: https://github.com/nitin27may/mean-docker

🌟 Star the Repository

If you find this project useful, please consider giving it a star on GitHub to show your support!