URL Shortener

A URL shortener backend built with Node.js, Express, and MongoDB. This project enables users to shorten URLs, track usage statistics, enforce daily request limits, and more.

Features

• Shorten URLs: Convert long URLs into short, shareable links.
• Redirection: Automatically redirect to the original URL when a short link is accessed.
• Daily Request Limits: Enforce a configurable daily request limit for individual short URLs. (Note: The daily hit count resets every day at UTC.)
• Analytics:
  • Total and daily hit counts for each URL.
  • Track the most accessed URLs.
• Ad Redirection: Redirect to an ad every 10th visit to a short URL.
• Top URLs: Retrieve the top N most accessed URLs.
• URL Details: View detailed statistics for any URL.

Tech Stack

• Backend: Node.js, Express.js
• Database: MongoDB
• Utilities: Environment variables with dotenv, async error handling with wrapAsync

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone "https://github.com/rithvikm007/URL-Shortener.git"
   cd URL-Shortener

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

3. Create a .env file in the root directory and configure the following variables:

   BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8080  # Can adjust the port by changing its value in app.js
   DAILY_REQUEST_LIMIT=100           # Adjust as needed
   MONGO_URI=mongodb://localhost:27017/urlShortener
   SESSION_SECRET=your_secret_key    # Secret key for session management

4. Start the server:

   npm start

5. Access the application at http://localhost:8080.

Endpoints

GET /shorten

Render the page for creating a shortened URL.

POST /shorten

Create a new shortened URL.

• Request Body:

  {
    "longUrl": "<URL to shorten>"
  }

• Response:

  {
    "shortUrl": "<Generated short URL>"
  }

GET /show

Render a page displaying all shortened URLs.

GET /redirect/:shortUrl or GET /:shortUrl

Redirect to the original URL for a given short URL.

GET /details/:url

Get details (long URL, short URL, hit counts) for a specific URL.

• Response:

  {
    "longUrl": "<Original URL>",
    "shortUrl": "<Short URL>",
    "hitCount": <Total hit count>
  }

GET /top/:number

Retrieve the top N most accessed URLs.

• Response:

  [
    {
      "longUrl": "<Original URL>",
      "shortUrl": "<Short URL>",
      "hitCount": <Hit count>
    }
  ]

Project Structure

├── models/
│   └── url.js           # Mongoose schema for URL data
├── routes/
│   └── urls.js          # All URL-related routes
├── utils/
│   ├── generateShortUrl.js # Logic for generating unique short URLs
│   └── wrapAsync.js        # Async error handling utility
├── views/
│   ├── url/             # Templates for URL pages
├── app.js               # Express app setup
├── package.json         # Dependencies and scripts
├── .env                 # Environment variables
└── README.md            # Project documentation

Future Enhancements

• User Authentication: Allow users to manage their own shortened URLs.
• Custom Short URLs: Enable users to specify custom short URLs.
• Admin Dashboard: Provide an interface to monitor and manage URLs.
• Advanced Analytics: Include geolocation and device-based usage stats.

License

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

Acknowledgments

• Express.js
• MongoDB
• dotenv