RequestBin Database Service

A simple TypeScript database service for your RequestBin clone using PostgreSQL + MongoDB.

Setup

1. Install dependencies:

npm install

2. Set up environment variables (copy .env.example to .env and fill in your values):

cp .env.example .env

3. Make sure PostgreSQL and MongoDB are running.

4. Create the PostgreSQL database (MongoDB creates its database automatically):

createdb requestbin
# If you get a permission error, try: createdb -U <your_username> requestbin

Note: If your PostgreSQL user isn't postgres, update PG_USER in your .env file. On macOS with Homebrew, it's usually your system username.

5. Build the TypeScript:

npm run build

6. Run the test script to verify everything works:

npm test

Usage

import db from './db';

// Initialize connections and create tables
await db.init();

// Create a bin
const bin = await db.bins.create('abc123', 'secret-token-xyz');

// Create a request (body goes to MongoDB, rest goes to Postgres)
const request = await db.requests.create(bin.id, {
  method: 'POST',
  parameters: { foo: 'bar' },              // query parameters
  headers: { 'content-type': 'application/json' },  // headers
  body: { message: 'Hello!' }               // body (stored in MongoDB)
});

// Get all requests for a bin (bodies automatically fetched from MongoDB)
const requests = await db.requests.getByBinId(bin.id);

// Clean up
await db.close();

API Reference

db.init()

Connects to both databases and creates tables if they don't exist.

db.close()

Closes all database connections.

db.bins

create(bin_route: string, token: string): Promise<Bin>

Creates a new bin with the given route and token.

getByRoute(bin_route: string): Promise<Bin | null>

Gets a bin by its route (e.g., "abc123").

getById(id: string): Promise<Bin | null>

Gets a bin by its UUID.

delete(id: string): Promise<boolean>

Deletes a bin and all its requests (cascades in Postgres).

db.requests

create(bin_id, data: RequestData): Promise<RequestWithBody>

Creates a new request. The body is stored in MongoDB, everything else in PostgreSQL.

RequestData interface:

interface RequestData {
  method: string;
  parameters: Record<string, unknown>;
  headers: Record<string, unknown>;
  body: unknown;
}

getByBinId(bin_id: string): Promise<RequestWithBody[]>

Gets all requests for a bin by its ID, automatically fetching bodies from MongoDB.

getByBinRoute(bin_route: string): Promise<RequestWithBody[]>

Gets all requests for a bin by its route (e.g., "abc123"). Returns empty array if bin not found.

getById(id: string): Promise<RequestWithBody | null>

Gets a single request by ID with its body.

delete(id: string): Promise<boolean>

Deletes a request and its body from MongoDB.

Data Flow

1. Creating a request: Body → MongoDB → get body_id → Rest → PostgreSQL with body_id
2. Reading requests: Fetch from PostgreSQL → Use body_id to fetch from MongoDB → Combine
3. Deleting: Delete from PostgreSQL → Delete body from MongoDB by body_id

Troubleshooting

role "postgres" does not exist

Update PG_USER in your .env to match your system username (run whoami to find it).

database "requestbin" does not exist

Run createdb requestbin to create the database.

MongoDB authentication errors

Make sure your MONGODB_URI includes credentials if your MongoDB requires auth:

MONGODB_URI=mongodb://username:password@localhost:27017/requestbin

Test fails with "duplicate key value"

The previous test run didn't clean up. Reset the database:

dropdb requestbin && createdb requestbin

Types

interface Bin {
  id: string;
  bin_route: string;
  created_at: Date;
  token: string;
}

interface RequestData {
  method: string;
  parameters: Record<string, unknown>;
  headers: Record<string, unknown>;
  body: unknown;
}

interface RequestWithBody {
  id: string;
  bin_id: string;
  method: string;
  parameters: Record<string, unknown>;
  headers: Record<string, unknown>;
  body_id: string;
  created_at: Date;
  body: unknown;  // from MongoDB
}