Contribution Guidelines for benhall/express-demo

The benhall/express-demo project is an intriguing Node.js web application built using Express.js. As a developer, you might be eager to contribute to this project. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the steps to get started.

Prerequisites

Before diving into the contribution process, ensure you have the following prerequisites installed:

Node.js: Download and install the latest version of Node.js from the official website.
Docker: Install Docker Desktop for your operating system from the official website.
Git: If you don’t have Git installed, download it from the official website.

Forking the Repository

To contribute to the project, you’ll first need to create a copy of the repository on your own GitHub account. Follow these steps:

Navigate to the benhall/express-demo repository on GitHub.
Click the “Fork” button located in the upper right corner of the page.
Select your GitHub account to create a forked repository.

Cloning the Repository

Now that you have a forked repository, you’ll need to clone it to your local machine.

Open a terminal or command prompt and navigate to the directory where you want to store the project.
Run the following command to clone the repository:

git clone <your-github-username>/express-demo.git

Replace <your-github-username> with your GitHub username.

Setting Up the Project

Before you can start contributing, you’ll need to set up the project on your local machine.

Navigate to the cloned repository:

cd express-demo

Install the project dependencies:

npm install

Understanding the CI/CD Configuration

The benhall/express-demo project uses Docker for its CI/CD pipeline. Let’s take a closer look at the configuration files.

Dockerfile

The Dockerfile is used to build the Docker image for the application. It installs the necessary dependencies and copies the application code into the image.

docker-compose.yml

The docker-compose.yml file defines the services and their configurations. In this case, it includes the Express.js application and a database service.

Making Changes

Now that you’ve set up the project and understand the CI/CD configuration, you can start making changes.

Create a new branch for your changes:

git checkout -b <your-branch-name>

Replace <your-branch-name> with a descriptive name for your branch.

Make your changes in the codebase.
Commit your changes:

git add .
git commit -m "Your commit message"

Replace "Your commit message" with a brief description of the changes you made.

Push your changes to your forked repository:

git push origin <your-branch-name>

Create a pull request to submit your changes to the original repository.

Conclusion

By following the steps outlined in this guide, you’ll be able to contribute to the benhall/express-demo project. Remember to always create a new branch for your changes, commit your work, and submit a pull request to merge your contributions back into the main repository. Happy coding!

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