Kin Circle

Private family social network — no ads, algorithms, or strangers

A secure, private platform designed for families to share memories, connect, and stay organized. Built with privacy and simplicity at its core.

Features

Core Functionality

• Photo Sharing - Upload and organize family photos with tagging and albums
• Recipe Collection - Create, share, and preserve family recipes with modifications
• Events Calendar - Coordinate family gatherings and important dates
• Family Directory - Maintain contact information for all family members
• Messaging - Private inbox for family communications
• Memorials - Honor and remember departed family members
• Media Library - Share videos and documents
• Moments Board - Share quick updates and thoughts

Administrative Features

• User registration and approval system
• Admin dashboard for family management
• Moderation tools for photos, media, and events
• User status management

Storage Options

• Local Storage - Works out of the box with standard PHP hosting
• Cloudflare R2 - Optional cloud storage for larger files (up to 2GB videos)

Tech Stack

• Backend: PHP 8.x
• Database: MySQL/MariaDB
• Real-time Features: Node.js (Socket.io) - optional
• Frontend: HTML, CSS, JavaScript

Installation

1. Requirements

• PHP 8.0+ with PDO MySQL extension
• MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.3+
• Web server (Apache/Nginx)
• Node.js 16+ (optional, for real-time features)

2. Database Setup

# Create database and run setup script
mysql -u root -p -e "CREATE DATABASE kincircle CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;"
mysql -u root -p kincircle < setup_database.sql

3. Configuration

Edit config.php with your database credentials:

$host = 'localhost';
$dbname = 'kincircle';
$username = 'your_db_user';
$password = 'your_db_password';

4. File Permissions

chmod 775 uploads/
chmod 775 upload/
chmod 664 config.php
chmod 664 r2-config.php

5. Web Server Configuration

Point your web server to the project root. Example for Apache .htaccess is included.

6. Create First Admin User

Register through the web interface, then manually update the database:

UPDATE users SET is_admin = 1 WHERE username = 'your_username';

7. Real-time Features (Optional)

npm install
node server.js

Cloudflare R2 Setup (Optional)

R2 enables direct browser uploads, bypassing PHP upload limits. This is optional - the system works fine with local storage.

Why Use R2?

• Upload files up to 2GB (videos, large photo batches)
• Free egress bandwidth
• Reliable cloud storage
• Bypass shared hosting upload limits

Setup Steps

1. Create R2 Bucket

   • Log into Cloudflare Dashboard
   • Go to R2 > Create Bucket
   • Name it (e.g., familyname-media)

2. Create API Token

   • R2 > Manage R2 API Tokens
   • Create token with "Object Read & Write" permissions
   • Specify your bucket
   • Save the Access Key ID and Secret Access Key

3. Configure CORS on Bucket In bucket settings, add CORS rules:

   [
     {
       "AllowedOrigins": ["https://yourdomain.com"],
       "AllowedMethods": ["GET", "PUT", "POST", "HEAD"],
       "AllowedHeaders": ["*"],
       "MaxAgeSeconds": 3600
     }
   ]

4. Update r2-config.php

   define('R2_ENABLED', true);
   define('R2_ACCESS_KEY_ID', 'your_access_key');
   define('R2_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY', 'your_secret_key');
   define('R2_ACCOUNT_ID', 'your_account_id');
   define('R2_BUCKET', 'your-bucket-name');

5. Protect Config File Add to .htaccess:

   <Files "r2-config.php">
       Require all denied
   </Files>

R2 Cost Estimate

• Storage: $0.015/GB/month
• Class A ops (writes): $4.50/million
• Class B ops (reads): $0.36/million
• Egress: FREE

For a family site with 100GB storage: ~$1.50-2/month

Project Structure

/kincircle/
├── index.php              # Homepage
├── login.php              # Authentication
├── register.php           # New user registration
├── config.php             # Database configuration
├── r2-config.php          # R2 storage configuration (optional)
├── setup_database.sql     # Database schema
├── server.js              # Node.js real-time server
├── api/                   # API endpoints
├── css/                   # Stylesheets
├── js/                    # JavaScript files
├── lib/                   # PHP libraries (R2 helper)
├── images/                # Static images
├── uploads/               # Approved user content
├── upload/                # Upload handling
├── templates/             # Email/page templates
└── private/               # Private configuration

Key Pages

• photos.php - Photo gallery and upload
• recipes.php - Recipe management
• events.php - Event calendar
• directory.php - Family directory
• inbox.php - Private messaging
• memorials.php - Memorial pages
• calendar.php - Shared calendar view
• admin.php - Administrative dashboard

Security Features

• User approval system (admin must approve new registrations)
• Session-based authentication with secure cookies
• Three-field password system (name|beverage|number) for memorable security
• Private content restrictions
• Secure file upload handling with type validation
• CSRF protection
• XSS prevention through input sanitization

Philosophy

Kin Circle is built on the principle that family connections should be private, ad-free, and algorithm-free. No data harvesting, no external tracking, no strangers. Just family.

To add

Add, more chat features and fix the dark web UI issue. Also start testing.

License: MIT Created: 2025 Last Update: 2026