💬 Real-Time Chat Application

A fast, clean, and responsive real-time chat application built with Next.js (frontend) and Express.js (backend).
Stay connected with friends instantly through real-time messaging, typing indicators, and smooth UI.

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✨ Features

• 🔥 Instant Messaging — Send and receive messages in real-time with zero delay.
• ✍️ Typing Indicator — See when your friend is typing (three dots animation).
• 🟢 Online/Offline Status — Know who's available to chat.
• 🧼 Clean UI — Simple, minimal, and modern user experience.
• 🛡️ Secure Communication — Built with best practices (HTTP-only cookies, WebSocket security).
• ⚡ Socket.IO Powered — Real-time communication under the hood.

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🛠 Tech Stack

Frontend	Backend	Real-time	Database (Optional)
Next.js (App Router)	Express.js (Node.js)	Socket.IO	(Postgres)

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🚀 Getting Started Locally

1. Clone the repository

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/giorgi225/chatify.git

2. Navigate into the project

cd chatify

3. Install frontend dependencies

cd client
npm install

4. Set frontend environment variables

Create a .env.local file inside the client/ folder:

NEXT_PUBLIC_FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:3000
NEXT_PUBLIC_BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8000

5. Start the frontend server

npm run dev

6. Install backend dependencies

cd server
npm install

7. Set backend environment variables

Create a .env file inside the server/ folder:

# Application URLs
FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:3000
BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8000

# Database Configuration
DATABASE_URL="postgresql://username:password@localhost:5432/db_name"

# Authentication Settings
ACCESS_SECRET="your_jwt_access_token_secret"
ACCESS_SECRET_EXPIRES_IN="10m"
REFRESH_SECRET="your_jwt_refresh_token_secret"
REFRESH_SECRET_EXPIRES_IN="1d"

# Email Settings
EMAIL_HOST="smtp.gmail.com"
EMAIL_PORT="587"
EMAIL_SECURE="false"
EMAIL_USER="your-email@gmail.com"
EMAIL_PASS="your-app-password"
EMAIL_VERIFICATION_EXPIRES_IN="5m"
EMAIL_VERIFICATION_MAX_ATTEMPTS="1"
EMAIL_VERIFICATION_COOLDOWN="30s"

# OAuth Settings (Google)
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID="your-google-client-id"
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET="your-google-client-secret"
GOOGLE_CALLBACK_URL="http://localhost:3000/api/auth/google/callback"

8. Start the backend server

npm run dev

9. Ready!

Visit http://localhost:3000 and start chatting!