kcjonson/server-backend

Home Dashboard and Automation Controls

Home Server

Core Features

• REST API to interact with home automation suite
• User accounts and authentication
• Resident location tracking (Home or Away)
• Device control

Technologies

• Node
• Express
• MongoDB & Mongoose (Schema, Model)
• Gulp
• Nodemon

Integrations

• Indigo Home Automation Server to manage Insteon Hardware Devices
• Geohopper for iOS geofencing
• Foursquare (Swarm technically) to increase user geo awareness
• Forecast.io for current weather conditions
• Applescript for control of iTunes, Airfoil, and Spoken Alerts

Organization

/app - Core application, sets up the express server and starts up all the various controllers. This single backend application creates functionality for multiple font end Javascript applications.

/app/controllers - Endpoints, public API, all of the URL mapping for REST like communication happens here. Most of these are pretty thin and pass the work to the related library.

/app/lib - backend libraries and utilities. These do not have any endpoints themselves, but many have a corresponding controller to handle public communication.

/app/models - Mongoose models and schema. Mongo is not queried directly, all database transactions go through Mongoose models.

/app/util - General Utilities

/app/middleware - Express middleware for auth and logging

server-backend's Issues

Add ability to see logs in app

Cordova app has white flash on launch

App has server address hard coded

• Should first try and use the js origin for url source (web)
• If not origin (Cordova) the app should redirect to a view where the user can enter the server address. This address should be stored locally (local storage?)
• Remove all hard coded addresses from code.

Add ability to create triggers

The app should have the ability to create triggers. e.g. If this light turns off then turn that one one.

1. Support triggers in lib
2. Add triggers to db
3. Build trigger admin view to show and edit triggers.

App does not notify user of server issues.

• All data calls should have a reasonable timeout
• The app should notify the user when the server cannot be found in a timely manner.
• Should redirect to error page when the server is not found.