# RESTful API with Authentication - Tasks

> Implementation plan for the task management API

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**Version**: 1.42.0  
**Last Updated**: 2026-02-11  
**Spec Type**: Example - API Feature

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## Overview

This tasks document breaks down the implementation into logical phases. Each task is specific enough for an AI assistant to implement while maintaining flexibility for different approaches.

**Estimated Total Time:** 12-16 hours  
**Complexity:** Medium  
**Prerequisites:** Node.js 14+, PostgreSQL 13+

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## Phase 1: Project Setup

**Estimated Time:** 1-2 hours

- [ ] 1.1 Initialize Node.js project
  - Create package.json with npm init
  - Set up project structure (src/, tests/, config/)
  - Create .gitignore file
  - Create .env.example file

- [ ] 1.2 Install dependencies
  - Install express, pg, jsonwebtoken, bcrypt, express-validator, dotenv, uuid
  - Install dev dependencies: jest, supertest, nodemon
  - Configure package.json scripts (start, dev, test)

- [ ] 1.3 Set up database
  - Create PostgreSQL database
  - Create users table with schema from design.md
  - Create tasks table with schema from design.md
  - Create indexes for performance

- [ ] 1.4 Configure environment
  - Create .env file with database credentials
  - Create config/database.js for database connection
  - Create config/jwt.js for JWT configuration
  - Test database connection

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## Phase 2: Core Infrastructure

**Estimated Time:** 2-3 hours

- [ ] 2.1 Create error handling system
  - Implement custom error classes (AppError, ValidationError, etc.)
  - Create error handler middleware
  - Add error logging utility
  - Test error handling

- [ ] 2.2 Create Express app structure
  - Create src/app.js with Express setup
  - Configure middleware (json parser, cors, etc.)
  - Set up route mounting
  - Add error handler middleware

- [ ] 2.3 Create database connection pool
  - Implement connection pool in config/database.js
  - Add connection health check
  - Handle connection errors gracefully
  - Test connection pool

- [ ] 2.4 Create validation utilities
  - Set up express-validator
  - Create reusable validation middleware
  - Test validation error formatting

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## Phase 3: Authentication System

**Estimated Time:** 3-4 hours

- [ ] 3.1 Implement UserRepository
  - Create src/repositories/user.repository.js
  - Implement create() method
  - Implement findByEmail() method
  - Implement findById() method
  - Write unit tests for repository

- [ ] 3.2 Implement AuthService
  - Create src/services/auth.service.js
  - Implement register() method with password hashing
  - Implement login() method with password verification
  - Implement generateToken() method
  - Write unit tests for service

- [ ] 3.3 Implement AuthController
  - Create src/controllers/auth.controller.js
  - Implement register() endpoint handler
  - Implement login() endpoint handler
  - Handle validation errors
  - Write unit tests for controller

- [ ] 3.4 Create authentication middleware
  - Create src/middleware/auth.middleware.js
  - Implement JWT token verification
  - Extract user from token and attach to request
  - Handle authentication errors
  - Write unit tests for middleware

- [ ] 3.5 Create auth validators
  - Create src/validators/auth.validator.js
  - Implement registration validation rules
  - Implement login validation rules
  - Test validation rules

- [ ] 3.6 Create auth routes
  - Create src/routes/auth.routes.js
  - Define POST /api/v1/auth/register route
  - Define POST /api/v1/auth/login route
  - Mount routes in app.js
  - Write integration tests for auth endpoints

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## Phase 4: Task Management System

**Estimated Time:** 3-4 hours

- [ ] 4.1 Implement TaskRepository
  - Create src/repositories/task.repository.js
  - Implement create() method
  - Implement findByUserId() method
  - Implement findById() method
  - Implement update() method
  - Implement delete() method
  - Write unit tests for repository

- [ ] 4.2 Implement TaskService
  - Create src/services/task.service.js
  - Implement create() method
  - Implement findByUserId() method with sorting
  - Implement findById() method
  - Implement update() method
  - Implement delete() method
  - Write unit tests for service

- [ ] 4.3 Implement TaskController
  - Create src/controllers/task.controller.js
  - Implement create() endpoint handler
  - Implement list() endpoint handler
  - Implement getById() endpoint handler with ownership check
  - Implement update() endpoint handler with ownership check
  - Implement delete() endpoint handler with ownership check
  - Write unit tests for controller

- [ ] 4.4 Create task validators
  - Create src/validators/task.validator.js
  - Implement task creation validation rules
  - Implement task update validation rules
  - Test validation rules

- [ ] 4.5 Create task routes
  - Create src/routes/task.routes.js
  - Apply authentication middleware to all routes
  - Define POST /api/v1/tasks route
  - Define GET /api/v1/tasks route
  - Define GET /api/v1/tasks/:id route
  - Define PUT /api/v1/tasks/:id route
  - Define DELETE /api/v1/tasks/:id route
  - Mount routes in app.js
  - Write integration tests for task endpoints

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## Phase 5: Security & Performance

**Estimated Time:** 2-3 hours

- [ ] 5.1 Implement rate limiting
  - Create src/middleware/rate-limit.middleware.js
  - Configure rate limiting (100 requests per minute)
  - Apply to all routes
  - Test rate limiting

- [ ] 5.2 Add input sanitization
  - Add sanitization to validators
  - Prevent SQL injection
  - Prevent XSS attacks
  - Test sanitization

- [ ] 5.3 Optimize database queries
  - Add database indexes (already in schema)
  - Implement connection pooling (already done)
  - Add query logging for debugging
  - Test query performance

- [ ] 5.4 Add security headers
  - Install helmet middleware
  - Configure security headers
  - Test security headers

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## Phase 6: Testing & Documentation

**Estimated Time:** 2-3 hours

- [ ] 6.1 Write comprehensive unit tests
  - Test all repository methods
  - Test all service methods
  - Test all controller methods
  - Test all middleware
  - Achieve > 80% code coverage

- [ ] 6.2 Write integration tests
  - Test complete registration flow
  - Test complete login flow
  - Test complete task CRUD flow
  - Test authentication failures
  - Test authorization failures
  - Test validation errors

- [ ] 6.3 Create API documentation
  - Document all endpoints with examples
  - Document request/response formats
  - Document error responses
  - Document authentication flow
  - Create Postman collection or OpenAPI spec

- [ ] 6.4 Add code comments
  - Add JSDoc comments to all functions
  - Document complex logic
  - Add usage examples in comments

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## Phase 7: Deployment Preparation

**Estimated Time:** 1-2 hours

- [ ] 7.1 Create production configuration
  - Create production .env template
  - Configure production database settings
  - Set up HTTPS requirements
  - Configure logging for production

- [ ] 7.2 Add health check endpoint
  - Create GET /api/v1/health endpoint
  - Check database connection
  - Return system status
  - Test health check

- [ ] 7.3 Create deployment scripts
  - Create database migration scripts
  - Create seed data scripts (optional)
  - Create deployment documentation
  - Test deployment process

- [ ] 7.4 Final testing
  - Run all unit tests
  - Run all integration tests
  - Test with production-like data
  - Verify all acceptance criteria

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## Verification Checklist

Before marking this Spec as complete, verify:

### Functionality
- [ ] All 7 API endpoints work correctly
- [ ] Authentication works (register, login, token verification)
- [ ] Authorization works (users can only access their own tasks)
- [ ] Input validation works for all endpoints
- [ ] Error handling works for all error cases

### Testing
- [ ] Unit test coverage > 80%
- [ ] All integration tests pass
- [ ] All acceptance criteria from requirements.md pass
- [ ] Manual testing completed

### Security
- [ ] Passwords are hashed with bcrypt
- [ ] JWT tokens are properly signed and verified
- [ ] Rate limiting is active
- [ ] Input sanitization prevents injection attacks
- [ ] Security headers are configured

### Performance
- [ ] API response time < 200ms for 95% of requests
- [ ] Database queries are optimized with indexes
- [ ] Connection pooling is configured

### Documentation
- [ ] API documentation is complete
- [ ] Code has JSDoc comments
- [ ] README has setup instructions
- [ ] Environment variables are documented

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## Notes for AI Implementation

**When implementing this Spec:**

1. **Follow the phase order** - Each phase builds on the previous one
2. **Test as you go** - Write tests for each component before moving on
3. **Use the design document** - Refer to design.md for exact method signatures and logic
4. **Handle errors properly** - Use the custom error classes from design.md
5. **Validate all inputs** - Use express-validator as specified
6. **Check ownership** - Always verify users can only access their own tasks
7. **Keep it simple** - Don't add features not in requirements.md

**Common pitfalls to avoid:**

- ❌ Don't skip error handling
- ❌ Don't forget to hash passwords
- ❌ Don't skip input validation
- ❌ Don't forget ownership checks on task operations
- ❌ Don't hardcode configuration values
- ❌ Don't skip tests

**Example AI prompt:**

```
I'm implementing a RESTful API with authentication. Please implement Phase 3, Task 3.2: AuthService.

Requirements:
- See requirements.md for user stories and acceptance criteria
- See design.md for exact method signatures and logic
- Use bcrypt for password hashing (10 rounds)
- Use jsonwebtoken for token generation (24-hour expiration)
- Throw appropriate custom errors (UnauthorizedError, ConflictError)

Please implement the complete AuthService class with all methods and error handling.
```

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## Related Documentation

- [Requirements Document](requirements.md) - Feature requirements and acceptance criteria
- [Design Document](design.md) - Technical design and architecture
- [Spec Workflow Guide](../../spec-workflow.md) - Understanding Specs

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**Version**: 1.42.0  
**Last Updated**: 2026-02-11  
**Status**: Example Spec