Project Name

Overview

Brief description of what this project does and what problem it solves.

Table of Contents

• Local Development Setup
• Pull Request Guidelines
• Troubleshooting Guide
• Contributing
• License

Local Development Setup

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v18 or higher)
• npm (v8 or higher)
• Git

Installation Steps

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/username/project-name.git
   cd project-name

2. Install dependencies

   npm install

3. Set up environment variables

   cp .env.example .env

   Edit the .env file with your local configuration values.

4. Run database migrations

   npm run migrate

5. Start the development server

   npm run dev

   The application will be available at http://localhost:3000

Running Tests

# Run all tests
npm test

# Run unit tests only
npm run test:unit

# Run integration tests only
npm run test:integration

Pull Request Guidelines

Before Creating a PR

1. Make sure your code follows the project's style guide
2. Write or update tests for the changes you've made
3. Ensure all tests pass locally
4. Update documentation if necessary

PR Process

1. Branch Naming Convention

   • Feature: feature/short-description
   • Bug fix: fix/issue-short-description
   • Documentation: docs/what-changed
   • Refactoring: refactor/what-changed

2. Create a Pull Request

   • Use the PR template provided
   • Provide a clear, descriptive title
   • Reference any related issues with #issue-number
   • Include a detailed description of changes

3. Code Review Process

   • At least one approval is required before merging
   • Address all comments and suggestions from reviewers
   • Ensure CI checks pass

4. Merging Strategy

   • We use squash merging to maintain a clean commit history
   • PR titles will be used as the squashed commit message

Troubleshooting Guide

Common Issues

Installation Problems

• Issue: npm install fails with dependency errors
  • Solution: Try clearing npm cache with npm cache clean --force and retry installation
  • Solution: Check node version with node -v and update if necessary

Development Server Issues

• Issue: Server fails to start with port already in use
  • Solution: Kill the process using the port: lsof -i :3000 then kill -9 PID
  • Solution: Change the port in your .env file

Database Connection Problems

• Issue: "Connection refused" when connecting to database
  • Solution: Ensure database service is running
  • Solution: Verify connection credentials in .env file

Test Failures

• Issue: Tests timeout or fail inconsistently
  • Solution: Increase timeout value in test configuration
  • Solution: Check for race conditions in asynchronous tests

Build Errors

• Issue: TypeScript compilation errors
  • Solution: Run npm run lint:fix to fix auto-fixable issues
  • Solution: Check for type definition updates with npm update @types/*

Debugging Tips

1. Enable debug logs by setting DEBUG=app:* in your .env file
2. Use browser developer tools to inspect network requests and console errors
3. For API debugging, use tools like Postman or cURL to test endpoints directly