Building a REST API and Journal App

Objectives:

• Learn about REST APIs
• Connect with MongoDB
• Understand Spring Security
• Create a project (Journal App)
• Add API, database connection, and user login/logout to the project

Project Initiation:

• Create a Spring Boot project
• Delete the previous project and start a new one
• Project name: Journal App

Using Spring Initializr:

• Select Java Maven
• Choose an older version for more support and resources
• Set group and artifact IDs

Project Setup:

• Add Spring Web dependency
• Download and extract the project

Understanding REST API:

• REST stands for Representational State Transfer
• API stands for Application Programming Interface
• HTTP Verbs: GET, POST, PUT, DELETE

Structuring Endpoints:

• Use controllers and REST controllers
• Map the endpoints

Journal Entry Class:

• Create a class for Journal Entry
• Private variables for ID, title, and content

API Routes:

• Create routes for GET, POST, PUT, DELETE
• Processes to map, store, and retrieve data

Using Postman:

• Use Postman to hit the API
• Test various operations (GET, POST, etc.)

Error Handling and Debugging:

• Focus on resolving different errors
• Run and test the project correctly

At the end of this lecture, a journaling app has been prepared using Spring Boot that supports various REST API operations. The next steps will involve integrating the database and security.