Express.js boilerplate cheatsheet

This is the bare minimum cheatsheet to get express.js up and running.

• Download and install node.js from https://nodejs.org/en/download/
• Open terminal or commandline
• Creat a project directory and change to it
• Run terminal command: npm init (accept all defaults by pressing enter)
  • This will create package.json file, which has basic project configuration
• Run terminal command: npm i express
  • This installs express.js
• Run terminal command: npm i -g nodemon
  • Installs node monitor, which will make sure server is restared on file saves
• Create new file index.js (which is referenced in the package.json file created above)
• Add the following starter code to index.js, which is the bare minimum to get it going:

    const express = require('express')
    const app = express()
    const port = 3000

    app.get('/', (req, res) => res.send('Hello World!'))

    app.listen(port, () => console.log(`Example app listening on port ${port}!`))

• Run terminal command: node index.js to run it
• or run terminal command: nodemon index.js to run it via nodemon - this will ensure that server is restarted automatically whenever there is a file change
• Open localhost:3000 to view in browser - should show: Hello World!

Comments

[Mohammed Samgan Khan]

hi, nice article.
but going through this much hustle, everytime you create a new setup is a headache.
create-express-boilerplate.com/ helps you out here for the same.
it provides you quick start with everything you need.check it out.