Full-Stack Foundations

Master modern full-stack development from frontend to backend, databases to deployment. Build production-ready web applications using React, Node.js, and cloud technologies. This comprehensive course takes you from beginner to professional full-stack developer.

Prerequisites & Setup

# Quick Development Environment Setup

# Install Node.js (using Node Version Manager)
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.39.0/install.sh | bash
nvm install 18
nvm use 18

# Verify installations
node --version  # Should be v18.x.x
npm --version   # Should be 9.x.x

# Install global development tools
npm install -g create-react-app @types/node typescript

# Database setup (macOS with Homebrew)
brew install mongodb-community postgresql
brew services start mongodb-community
brew services start postgresql

# Create project directory
mkdir fullstack-projects && cd fullstack-projects
      

Module 1: Frontend Mastery

React & Modern JavaScript

Modern React development has evolved significantly with hooks, concurrent features, and server components. This lesson covers the essential patterns and practices that define professional React development in 2024.

Advanced React Component Patterns

// Modern React component with TypeScript and advanced patterns

import React, { useState, useEffect, useMemo, useCallback, Suspense } from 'react';
import { ErrorBoundary } from 'react-error-boundary';

// Type definitions
interface User {
  id: string;
  name: string;
  email: string;
  avatar?: string;
}

interface UserProfileProps {
  userId: string;
  onUserUpdate?: (user: User) => void;
}

// Custom hooks for data fetching and state management
function useUser(userId: string) {
  const [user, setUser] = useState<User | null>(null);
  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(true);
  const [error, setError] = useState<Error | null>(null);

  useEffect(() => {
    let cancelled = false;

    const fetchUser = async () => {
      try {
        setLoading(true);
        setError(null);
        
        const response = await fetch(\`/api/users/\${userId}\`);
        if (!response.ok) throw new Error('Failed to fetch user');
        
        const userData = await response.json();
        
        if (!cancelled) {
          setUser(userData);
        }
      } catch (err) {
        if (!cancelled) {
          setError(err instanceof Error ? err : new Error('Unknown error'));
        }
      } finally {
        if (!cancelled) {
          setLoading(false);
        }
      }
    };

    fetchUser();

    return () => {
      cancelled = true;
    };
  }, [userId]);

  const updateUser = useCallback(async (updates: Partial<User>) => {
    if (!user) return;

    try {
      const response = await fetch(\`/api/users/\${userId}\`, {
        method: 'PATCH',
        headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
        body: JSON.stringify(updates),
      });

      if (!response.ok) throw new Error('Failed to update user');
      
      const updatedUser = await response.json();
      setUser(updatedUser);
      
      return updatedUser;
    } catch (err) {
      setError(err instanceof Error ? err : new Error('Update failed'));
      throw err;
    }
  }, [user, userId]);

  return { user, loading, error, updateUser };
}

// Error fallback component
function ErrorFallback({ error, resetErrorBoundary }: any) {
  return (
    <div className="error-fallback">
      <h2>Something went wrong:</h2>
      <pre style={{ color: 'red' }}>{error.message}</pre>
      <button onClick={resetErrorBoundary}>Try again</button>
    </div>
  );
}

// Loading component with skeleton
function UserProfileSkeleton() {
  return (
    <div className="user-profile-skeleton">
      <div className="skeleton-avatar" />
      <div className="skeleton-text skeleton-name" />
      <div className="skeleton-text skeleton-email" />
    </div>
  );
}

// Main component with advanced patterns
const UserProfile: React.FC<UserProfileProps> = ({ userId, onUserUpdate }) => {
  const { user, loading, error, updateUser } = useUser(userId);
  
  // Memoized computed values
  const displayName = useMemo(() => {
    if (!user) return '';
    return user.name || user.email.split('@')[0];
  }, [user]);

  // Optimized event handlers
  const handleNameUpdate = useCallback(async (newName: string) => {
    try {
      const updatedUser = await updateUser({ name: newName });
      onUserUpdate?.(updatedUser);
    } catch (err) {
      console.error('Failed to update name:', err);
    }
  }, [updateUser, onUserUpdate]);

  if (loading) return <UserProfileSkeleton />;
  
  if (error) {
    throw error; // Will be caught by ErrorBoundary
  }
  
  if (!user) return <div>User not found</div>;

  return (
    <div className="user-profile">
      <div className="user-avatar">
        <img 
          src={user.avatar || '/default-avatar.png'} 
          alt={\`\${displayName}'s avatar\`}
          loading="lazy"
        />
      </div>
      
      <div className="user-info">
        <h2>{displayName}</h2>
        <p>{user.email}</p>
        
        <EditableField
          value={user.name}
          onSave={handleNameUpdate}
          placeholder="Enter name"
        />
      </div>
    </div>
  );
};

// Reusable editable field component
interface EditableFieldProps {
  value: string;
  onSave: (value: string) => Promise<void>;
  placeholder?: string;
}

const EditableField: React.FC<EditableFieldProps> = ({ value, onSave, placeholder }) => {
  const [isEditing, setIsEditing] = useState(false);
  const [editValue, setEditValue] = useState(value);
  const [saving, setSaving] = useState(false);

  const handleSave = async () => {
    if (editValue.trim() === value) {
      setIsEditing(false);
      return;
    }

    setSaving(true);
    try {
      await onSave(editValue.trim());
      setIsEditing(false);
    } catch (err) {
      setEditValue(value); // Reset on error
    } finally {
      setSaving(false);
    }
  };

  if (isEditing) {
    return (
      <div className="editable-field editing">
        <input
          value={editValue}
          onChange={(e) => setEditValue(e.target.value)}
          placeholder={placeholder}
          disabled={saving}
          autoFocus
        />
        <button onClick={handleSave} disabled={saving}>
          {saving ? 'Saving...' : 'Save'}
        </button>
        <button onClick={() => setIsEditing(false)} disabled={saving}>
          Cancel
        </button>
      </div>
    );
  }

  return (
    <div className="editable-field" onClick={() => setIsEditing(true)}>
      {value || <span className="placeholder">{placeholder}</span>}
    </div>
  );
};

// App component with error boundary and suspense
export default function App() {
  return (
    <ErrorBoundary FallbackComponent={ErrorFallback}>
      <Suspense fallback={<UserProfileSkeleton />}>
        <UserProfile 
          userId="123" 
          onUserUpdate={(user) => console.log('User updated:', user)}
        />
      </Suspense>
    </ErrorBoundary>
  );
}
      

State Management & Architecture

Modern applications require sophisticated state management strategies. Learn when to use local state, context, and external state management libraries like Zustand or Redux Toolkit.

Component Design Systems

Build scalable, maintainable component libraries with consistent design patterns, accessibility features, and comprehensive documentation.

Performance & Optimization

Optimize React applications for production with code splitting, lazy loading, memoization, and performance monitoring tools.

🛠️ Frontend Application Build

Module 2: Backend Development

Node.js & Express Mastery

API Design & RESTful Services

Authentication & Security

Real-time Features & WebSockets

🛠️ Backend API Development

Module 3: Database Integration

Database Design & Modeling

SQL vs NoSQL Strategies

ORM/ODM Implementation

Performance & Optimization

🛠️ Database Integration Project

Module 4: Full-Stack Integration

Frontend-Backend Communication

State Synchronization

Error Handling & Resilience

Testing Full-Stack Applications

🛠️ Full-Stack Integration

Module 5: Deployment & Production

Production Architecture

Cloud Deployment Strategies

Monitoring & Observability

Scaling & Performance

🎓 Capstone: Social Media Platform

🏆 Certification & Career Paths

As applications grow in complexity, managing state becomes crucial. We'll explore different approaches to state management, from local component state to global state solutions.

State Management Strategies:

1. Local State: Using useState for component-level state
2. Lifting State Up: Sharing state between components
3. Context API: Global state without external libraries
4. Redux/Zustand: Advanced state management patterns

Component Architecture

Good component architecture is the foundation of maintainable React applications. Learn how to structure your components for reusability, testability, and long-term maintenance.

Architecture Principles:

• Single Responsibility: Each component should have one clear purpose
• Composition over Inheritance: Build complex UIs from simple components
• Container vs Presentational: Separate logic from presentation
• Custom Hooks: Extract and reuse stateful logic

Module 2: Backend Development

A solid backend is essential for any full-stack application. This module covers building robust, scalable server-side applications using Node.js and Express.

Node.js and Express

Node.js brings JavaScript to the server, enabling full-stack JavaScript development. Express provides a minimal, flexible framework for building web applications and APIs.

Core Concepts:

• Event Loop: Understanding Node.js's non-blocking I/O model
• Middleware: Express middleware for request processing
• Routing: Organizing API endpoints and route handlers
• Error Handling: Proper error handling and logging strategies

// Example: Express server with middleware
const express = require('express');
const cors = require('cors');
const helmet = require('helmet');
const rateLimit = require('express-rate-limit');

const app = express();

// Security middleware
app.use(helmet());
app.use(cors({
  origin: process.env.FRONTEND_URL,
  credentials: true
}));

// Rate limiting
const limiter = rateLimit({
  windowMs: 15 * 60 * 1000, // 15 minutes
  max: 100 // limit each IP to 100 requests per windowMs
});
app.use(limiter);

// Body parsing
app.use(express.json({ limit: '10mb' }));
app.use(express.urlencoded({ extended: true }));

// Routes
app.use('/api/auth', require('./routes/auth'));
app.use('/api/users', require('./routes/users'));
app.use('/api/posts', require('./routes/posts'));

// Error handling middleware
app.use((error, req, res, next) => {
  console.error(error.stack);
  res.status(500).json({ 
    message: 'Something went wrong!',
    error: process.env.NODE_ENV === 'development' ? error.message : {}
  });
});

const PORT = process.env.PORT || 3000;
app.listen(PORT, () => {
  console.log(\`Server running on port \${PORT}\`);
});
      

API Design and RESTful Services

Well-designed APIs are the backbone of modern web applications. Learn how to create intuitive, consistent, and maintainable REST APIs that follow industry best practices.

RESTful Design Principles:

1. Resource-Based URLs: Use nouns, not verbs in endpoint paths
2. HTTP Methods: Proper use of GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, PATCH
3. Status Codes: Meaningful HTTP status codes for different scenarios
4. Consistent Response Format: Standardized JSON response structure

Authentication and Security

Security is paramount in web applications. This lesson covers implementing robust authentication systems and essential security practices for protecting your application and users.

Security Topics:

• JWT Authentication: Implementing secure token-based auth
• Password Hashing: Using bcrypt for secure password storage
• Input Validation: Preventing injection attacks and data corruption
• HTTPS and CORS: Securing data in transit and cross-origin requests

Module 3: Database Integration

Data persistence is crucial for any meaningful application. This module covers both SQL and NoSQL databases, helping you choose the right solution for your needs.

SQL vs NoSQL

Understanding when to use relational databases versus document stores is crucial for making informed architectural decisions. We'll compare PostgreSQL and MongoDB as representative examples.

Decision Factors:

• Data Structure: Structured vs flexible schema requirements
• Relationships: Complex joins vs embedded documents
• Scalability: Vertical vs horizontal scaling patterns
• Consistency: ACID compliance vs eventual consistency