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https://github.com/raofin/topictalks

ASP.NET Core full-stack application - An educational discussion platform for students and teachers, featuring many beautiful features.
https://github.com/raofin/topictalks

asp-net-core-mvc asp-net-core-web-api bootstrap-5 clean-architecture clean-code discussion-platform dotnet-8 entity-framework-core full-stack-application jquery ms-sql-server repository-pattern rnd

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ASP.NET Core full-stack application - An educational discussion platform for students and teachers, featuring many beautiful features.

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README

        


TopicTalks Logo


Talk about it. Learn about it.

## πŸ”΄ Live Demo

- **Web:** https://projects.rawfin.net/TopicTalks
- **Api:** https://projects.rawfin.net/TopicTalks/api

## πŸ“š Table of Contents

- πŸ’Ž [Features](#-features)
- πŸš€ [Getting Started](#-getting-started)
- I. πŸ“ [Requirements](#i-requirements-)
- II. βš™οΈ [Installation](#ii-installation-%EF%B8%8F)
- [Clone the Repository](#1-clone-the-repository)
- [Setup Google Cloud API Credentials (Optional)️](#2-setup-google-cloud-api-credentials-optional-%EF%B8%8F)
- [Database Migration](#3-database-migration)
- [Configure Email Settings](#4-configure-email-settings-via-user-secrets-)
- [Build the Projects](#5-build-the-projects)
- [Run the Projects](#6-run-the-projects-seperately)
- [Access the Projects](#7-access-the-projects-)
- πŸ› οΈ [Technologies and Design Patterns](#%EF%B8%8F-technologies-and-design-patterns)
- πŸ“¦ [Nuget Packages](#-nuget-packages)
- πŸ“Š [ER Diagram](#-er-diagram)
- πŸ“Έ [Screenshots](#-screenshots)
- πŸͺͺ [License](#-license)

## ⭐ Give It a Star

If you find this project useful or interesting, please consider giving it a star. Thank you! πŸ€—

[![GitHub stars](https://img.shields.io/github/stars/Raofin/TopicTalks?style=social)](https://github.com/Raofin/TopicTalks/stargazers)

## πŸ’Ž Features
TopicTalks is an educational discussion platform designed to foster knowledge sharing between students and teachers. Here's a look at its key features:

* **Q&A at its finest:** Ask questions, receive answers from teachers or peers, and engage in threaded discussions for in-depth exploration.
* **Always informed:** Stay up-to-date with email notifications for new replies and discussion thread activity.
* **Offline access:** Export discussions with question and user details as PDFs for easy offline reference.
* **Data in your hands:** Export user lists with details in Excel format.
* **Secured and permissioned:** Role-based authorization ensures a safe and controlled environment for all users.
* **A joy to use:** Experience a user-friendly interface with a pixel-perfect design that prioritizes both form and function.

And much more! Explore additional functionalities designed to enrich educational discussions and learning experience.

## πŸš€ Getting Started

### I. Requirements πŸ“

* [.NET 8 SDK](https://dotnet.microsoft.com/en-us/download/dotnet/8.0) (or higher)
* [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/sql-server/sql-server-downloads#:~:text=Download%20now-,Express,-SQL%20Server%202022)
* [JetBrains Rider](https://www.jetbrains.com/community/education/#students) (edu), [Visual Studio](https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/vs/community), or [VS Code](https://code.visualstudio.com)

### II. Installation βš™οΈ

#### 1. Clone the Repository
```powershell
gh repo clone Raofin/TopicTalks
```

#### 2. Setup Google Cloud API Credentials (Optional) ☁️

βœ… Free forever.

After researching free cloud storage options, Google Drive storage through Google Cloud seemed to be the best fit for this project. Given the limited resources available on the internet for interacting with the Google Drive APIs, it took me a while to understand andΒ [implement the functionalities](src/TopicTalks.Infrastructure/Services/Cloud/GoogleCloud.cs).

However, in order for the project to run with full functionality, you'll need to have your own Google Drive API credentials inserted in the [GoogleCredentials.json](src/TopicTalks.Api/GoogleCredentials.json).Β Here are the steps to follow to create a free Google Cloud project and get the credentials πŸ”½

1. Create a project in the [Google Cloud Console](https://console.cloud.google.com/projectcreate)
2. Enable [Google Drive API](https://console.cloud.google.com/apis/library/drive.googleapis.com) for the project



3. Select `Create Credentials`



4. Select `Application Data` -> Click `Next`



5. Fill out the details -> Select `Owner` in Role -> Click `Done`



6. Go to [Service Accounts](https://console.cloud.google.com/iam-admin/serviceaccounts) -> Select the newly created service account
7. Select `Keys` -> Click `Add Key` -> Choose JSON -> Click `Create`
(The credentials `json` file should be automatically downloaded)



8. Open the file and copy the value of `client_email`
9. Go to [Google Drive](https://drive.google.com/drive) -> Create a folder named `TopicTalks`
10. Share the folder with the `client_email`



11. Finally, paste everything from the downloaded `json` file into [GoogleCredentials.json](src/TopicTalks.Api/GoogleCredentials.json)
12. [Star this project](https://github.com/Raofin/TopicTalks)

#### 3. Database Migration
The project is configured to automatically apply migrations with some seed data on its **first run**. To create a database with more data, including the beautiful [user portraits](assets/portraits) and question covers, execute the [TopicTalks.sql](src/TopicTalks.Infrastructure/Persistence/DatabaseScripts/TopicTalks.sql) script. You can manually apply migrations using the following commands:
* For Package Manager πŸ‘‡
```powershell
Update-Database -Context AppDbContext -Project TopicTalks.Infrastructure -StartupProject TopicTalks.Api
```
* For CLI πŸ‘‡
```powershell
dotnet ef database update --project TopicTalks.Infrastructure/TopicTalks.Infrastructure.csproj --startup-project TopicTalks.Api/TopicTalks.Api.csproj
```

🌻 Useful Commands

```powershell
Add-Migration Init -Context AppDbContext -Project TopicTalks.Infrastructure -StartupProject TopicTalks.Api
```
```powershell
Remove-Migration -Project TopicTalks.Infrastructure -StartupProject TopicTalks.Api -Force
```
```powershell
Update-Database -Context AppDbContext -Project TopicTalks.Infrastructure -StartupProject TopicTalks.Api
```
```powershell
Update-Database -Migration Init -Context AppDbContext -Project TopicTalks.Infrastructure -StartupProject TopicTalks.Api
```

#### 4. Configure Email Settings via User Secrets πŸ“¬
To use Gmail's smtp server, you will need to use an [app password](https://myaccount.google.com/apppasswords). Note that this requires having [2-step verification](https://myaccount.google.com/signinoptions/two-step-verification/enroll-welcome) enabled in your account.

Use the following Commands to store the credentials in user secrets πŸ‘‡

```powershell
dotnet user-secrets --project src/TopicTalks.Api set EmailSettings:Email [email protected]
dotnet user-secrets --project src/TopicTalks.Api set EmailSettings:Password your-password
```

> If you are using a different server, set the [server and port](src/TopicTalks.Api/appsettings.json#L11-L17) as well accordingly.

#### 5. Build the Projects
```powershell
cd TopicTalks/src
dotnet build TopicTalks.Api/TopicTalks.Api.csproj
dotnet build TopicTalks.Web/TopicTalks.Web.csproj

```

#### 6. Run the Projects (Seperately)
```powershell
dotnet run --project TopicTalks.Api/TopicTalks.Api.csproj --urls "https://localhost:9998"
```
```powershell
dotnet run --project TopicTalks.Web/TopicTalks.Web.csproj --urls "https://localhost:9999"
```




#### 7. Access the Projects 🌐
* API: https://localhost:9998
* Web: https://localhost:9999

## πŸ› οΈ Technologies and Design Patterns

### Frameworks πŸ”§
* ASP.NET Core 8.0 Web API
* ASP.NET Core 8.0 MVC
* Entity Framework Core 8.0
### Database πŸ›’
* Microsoft SQL Server
### Frontend Library πŸ“‘
* jQuery
* jQuery Validate
* Bootstrap 5
* Popper.js
* Tippy.js
* FontFace Observer
### Architectural and Design Patterns πŸ“
* Clean Architecture 🦾
* Result Pattern
* Database Code First Approach with Fluent API
* Repository Pattern
* Unit of Work (UoW)

## πŸ“¦ Nuget Packages

| Package Name | Used to πŸ‘‡ |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------|
| [Swashbuckle](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Swashbuckle.AspNetCore/) | Generate API documentation from Web API controllers |
| [ErrorOr](https://www.nuget.org/packages/ErrorOr) | Handle errors and return results efficiently |
| [Serilog](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Serilog) | Log events in a very structured way |
| [FluentValidation](https://www.nuget.org/packages/FluentValidation.AspNetCore) | Apply server-side data validation rules |
| [FluentEmail](https://www.nuget.org/packages/FluentEmail.Smtp) | Send emails using SMTP servers |
| [Google Apis](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Google.Apis.Drive.v3) | Interact with cloud storage |
| [RazorTemplating](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Razor.Templating.Core) | Render `.cshtml` files into `string` |
| [DinkToPdf](https://www.nuget.org/packages/DinkToPdf) | Generate beautiful PDFs from HTML |
| [ClosedXML](https://www.nuget.org/packages/ClosedXML) | Generate Excel (`.xlsx`) files |
| [WebOptimizer](https://www.nuget.org/packages/LigerShark.WebOptimizer.Core) | Bundle and minify CSS & JavaScript files for faster loading |
| [WebMarkupMin](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WebMarkupMin.AspNetCore8) | Minify MVC HTML content to reduce file size for improved performance |

## πŸ“Š ER Diagram

TopicTalks Logo

## πŸ“Έ Screenshots

View at πŸ‘‰ [be.net/TopicTalks](https://www.be.net/gallery/195808869/TopicTalks)



















## πŸͺͺ License

Distributed under the BSD 3-Clause License. See [LICENSE](LICENSE) for more information.