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https://github.com/softenrj/bricks-backend

Bricks Backend is the secure, cloud-ready service layer that powers Bricks AI – an AI-powered IDE that transforms ideas into functional applications directly in your browser.
https://github.com/softenrj/bricks-backend

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Bricks Backend is the secure, cloud-ready service layer that powers Bricks AI – an AI-powered IDE that transforms ideas into functional applications directly in your browser.

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## 🚀 Bricks Backend



**Bricks Backend** is the secure, cloud-ready service layer that powers **[Bricks AI](https://github.com/softenrj/Bricks)** – an AI-powered IDE that transforms ideas into functional applications directly in your browser.



This backend was scaffolded with the [`create-rjx`](https://www.npmjs.com/package/create-rjx) tool.



This repository contains the backend services that handle:



- **Project & workspace orchestration**

- **AI code generation and execution pipelines**

- **Authentication, authorization & user/session management**

- **Realtime collaboration & messaging** _(in active development)_

- **Secure communication with the browser-based IDE**



> **Feature status**  

> - **Voice** and **image-based** interactions are **under active development** and not yet considered production-ready.  

> - **Realtime collaboration** capabilities exposed by this backend are also **evolving** and may be experimental or incomplete depending on your deployment.



> **Note**  

> The public Bricks frontend lives at **[`softenrj/Bricks`](https://github.com/softenrj/Bricks)**.  

> This repository provides the backend APIs consumed by that UI.



---



## ✨ High‑Level Overview



- **Domain**: Backend for the Bricks AI IDE and project workspace

- **Role**: Acts as the single source of truth for projects, sessions, files, and AI operations

- **Clients**:  

  - Bricks web IDE (`https://bricks-three-rose.vercel.app`)  

  - Internal services / automations  

- **Focus**: Reliability, security, observability, and performance under AI-heavy workloads



At a high level, Bricks Backend is responsible for:



- **Orchestrating AI requests** (code generation, refactors, explanations, etc.)

- **Managing project state** (files, versions, snapshots, metadata)

- **Coordinating real-time collaboration & events** _(designed, with some features in development)_

- **Enforcing access control and limits**



---



## 🧱 Core Responsibilities



- **Project Management**

  - Create, read, update, delete projects and workspaces

  - Maintain metadata for files, tabs, and editor state

- **AI Operations**

  - Handle prompts from the Bricks IDE (text in production; voice and image metadata in development)

  - Route and track model requests and responses

  - Persist relevant context for future interactions

- **Execution & Preview**

  - Manage build / run tasks sent from the browser

  - Stream logs and results back to the client

- **Collaboration**

  - Session presence & document events _(in development)_

  - Notifications for changes, builds, and AI actions

- **Security**

  - User auth & session validation

  - Rate limiting and abuse protection



---



## 🏗️ Architecture (Conceptual)



Bricks Backend is designed around a **modular, service-oriented architecture**:



- **API Layer**

  - Exposes REST/JSON (and optionally WebSocket) endpoints

  - Handles auth, validation, and request shaping

- **Domain / Application Layer**

  - Encodes all business rules (projects, sessions, AI workflows)

  - Orchestrates calls to models, storage, and queues

- **Infrastructure Layer**

  - Database & cache integration

  - Queueing / background jobs

  - Logging, metrics, and tracing



This separation keeps:



- **Domain logic** independent from frameworks

- **Integrations** (DB, model providers, queues) swappable

- **Scaling** straightforward when traffic grows



---



## 🔌 API Surface (Typical Patterns)



> **Important**: Exact endpoints and payloads may differ from this description if your local implementation has evolved. Use this section as a conceptual guide.



- **Auth & Users**

  - `POST /auth/login`

  - `POST /auth/logout`

  - `GET /me`

- **Projects**

  - `GET /projects`

  - `POST /projects`

  - `GET /projects/:id`

  - `PATCH /projects/:id`

  - `DELETE /projects/:id`

- **Files**

  - `GET /projects/:id/files`

  - `PUT /projects/:id/files/:path`

  - `DELETE /projects/:id/files/:path`

- **AI / Chat / Actions**

  - `POST /projects/:id/ai/chat`

  - `POST /projects/:id/ai/generate`

  - `POST /projects/:id/ai/refactor`

- **Execution**

  - `POST /projects/:id/run`

  - `GET /projects/:id/logs`



Wherever possible:



- Requests are **JSON**.

- Responses are **JSON**, with consistent shapes for `data`, `error`, and `meta`.



---



## ⚙️ Local Development



### 1. Prerequisites



- **Node.js** (LTS recommended)

- **npm** or **yarn** (depending on your project setup)

- Access to any required **API keys**, **database instances**, or **model providers**



### 2. Installation



In the repository root:



```bash

npm install

# or

yarn install

```



### 3. Environment Variables



Create a `.env` (or `.env.local`) file based on the template (if present), and fill in required values:



- **Authentication**

  - `JWT_SECRET` or relevant key

  - Provider secrets (e.g., OAuth, Firebase, etc.)

- **Database / Storage**

  - `DATABASE_URL`

  - `REDIS_URL` or cache connection

- **AI / Model Providers**

  - `OPENAI_API_KEY` or equivalent

  - Any other provider keys

- **Bricks Frontend Integration**

  - `BRICKS_FRONTEND_URL` (e.g. `https://bricks-three-rose.vercel.app`)



> **Security reminder**: Never commit `.env` files or secrets to version control.



### 4. Running the Server



```bash

npm run dev

# or

yarn dev

```



By default, the API will be available on something like:



- `http://localhost:PORT` (consult your `package.json` / config for the exact port)



### 5. Running Tests (If Configured)



```bash

npm test

# or

yarn test

```



### 6. Docker container Run

 ```bash

 docker run --rm -p 8000:8000 --env-file ./.env.dev bricks-backend:1.0.0

```



---



## 🔐 Security & Best Practices



- **Secrets Management**

  - Use environment variables for all secrets.

  - Prefer a secrets manager in production (e.g. Vault, cloud provider services).

- **Auth & Sessions**

  - Validate tokens on every request.

  - Avoid storing sensitive data in JWT payloads.

- **Input Validation**

  - Validate request bodies, query params, and headers.

  - Enforce strict types between frontend and backend.

- **Rate Limiting**

  - Apply per-IP and per-user limits for sensitive / AI-heavy endpoints.

  - Protect login, AI actions, and project write operations.



---



## 🧩 Relation to Bricks Frontend



This backend is designed to be consumed by the **Bricks** web IDE:



- Frontend repository: **[`softenrj/Bricks`](https://github.com/softenrj/Bricks)**

- Production app: `https://bricks-three-rose.vercel.app`



Typical frontend → backend flows:



- User signs in → frontend obtains auth token → calls backend APIs

- User creates or opens a project → backend returns project structure & metadata

- User interacts with AI (chat, refactor, generate) → backend orchestrates model calls

- User runs the project → backend triggers build/run, streams logs and results



---



## 🧪 Environments



Typical environment layout (may vary by deployment):



- **Local** – developer machines

- **Staging** – for pre-production testing

- **Production** – live traffic from Bricks users



Suggested practices:



- Use separate databases and credentials per environment.

- Enable more verbose logging in non-production environments.

- Keep schema migrations automated and version-controlled.



---



## 🤝 Contributing



If you are working on Bricks Backend internally or in a trusted environment:



- **Open an issue** (or internal task) before large changes.

- **Discuss architecture** for significant features or refactors.

- **Keep documentation up-to-date** when introducing new APIs or breaking changes.



For the public Bricks frontend, see the contribution guidelines in **[`softenrj/Bricks`](https://github.com/softenrj/Bricks)**.



---



## 📄 License



This project is licensed under the **Apache License 2.0**.



- **Commercial use**: allowed under the terms of the license.

- **Modification & redistribution**: permitted, provided you comply with the license conditions.

- **Patent rights**: explicitly granted as described in Section 3 of the license.



See the full license text in the `LICENSE` file or online at **[Apache License 2.0][Apache-2.0]**.



---



## 🧭 Roadmap (Conceptual)



Planned or potential enhancements:



- **Richer AI workflows**

  - Multi-step agents and workflows orchestrated server-side

  - Deeper context windows and project-wide awareness

- **Enhanced Observability**

  - Detailed traces for AI calls and project events

  - Dashboards for performance and error rates

- **Advanced Collaboration**

  - Presence, cursors, comments, and review workflows

  - Time-travel and replay of project history



---



## 💬 Support & Contact



For general information about Bricks, visit the main repo:



- **Bricks Frontend & Project Overview**: **[`softenrj/Bricks`](https://github.com/softenrj/Bricks)**



For internal teams, follow your usual channels (Slack/Teams/email) to reach the maintainers of this backend.



---



## ❤️ Acknowledgements



Bricks Backend is part of the broader **Bricks AI** vision:  

**Transform ideas → code — instantly**, with a beautiful, collaborative, AI-native developer experience.



[Apache-2.0]: https://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0