Express Setup

Because starting a new Express project shouldn't feel like reinventing the wheel. Unless you're into that kind of thing.

Installation

npx vynk add express-setup

yarn vynk add express-setup

pnpm dlx vynk add express-setup

bunx --bun vynk add express-setup

A battle-tested Express setup that includes all the middleware you'll actually need (and none of the ones you won't). Think of it as a pre-configured Express app that's ready to handle your API requests faster than you can say "middleware".

Features

CORS Configuration: Because we're not savages who let anyone access our API
Body Parsing: For when your frontend sends more than just "Hello World"
Static File Serving: For serving those assets that make your app look pretty
Cookie Parsing: Because cookies are not just for eating (though we won't judge if you are)

Usage

// app.ts
import express, { Express } from 'express'
import cors from 'cors'
import cookieParser from 'cookie-parser'

const app: Express = express();

// Configure CORS middleware
app.use(cors({
  origin: process.env.CORS_ORIGIN,
  credentials: true
}));

// JSON body parser middleware
app.use(express.json({limit: '16kb'}));

// URL-encoded body parser middleware
app.use(express.urlencoded({
  extended: true,
  limit: '16kb'
}));

// Static file serving middleware
app.use(express.static('public'));

// Cookie parser middleware
app.use(cookieParser());

// Your routes go here
// app.use('/api/v1/users', userRouter);

export { app }

// index.ts
import { app } from './app'
import dotenv from 'dotenv'

dotenv.config()

const PORT = process.env.PORT || 3000

app.listen(PORT, () => {
  console.log(`Server is running on port ${PORT}`)
})

Configuration

Environment Variables

Create a .env file in your project root:

PORT=3000
CORS_ORIGIN=http://localhost:3000

Dependencies

This setup includes:

express: The web framework that makes Node.js actually useful
cors: For when you need to share your API with the world (or at least your frontend)
cookie-parser: Because parsing cookies manually is about as fun as debugging production issues
dotenv: For loading environment variables (because hardcoding is so 2010)

Best Practices

Security First: Always configure CORS properly (unless you enjoy security breaches)
Body Limits: Keep those request bodies in check (16kb is usually enough for anyone)
Environment Variables: Use them, love them, never hardcode them
Static Files: Keep your public assets organized (your future self will thank you)

Why Use This?

Time Saving: Because life's too short to configure Express from scratch
Best Practices: Includes all the middleware you actually need
Type Safety: Full TypeScript support (because we're not animals)
Production Ready: Configured with security and performance in mind

Remember: A well-configured Express app is like a good cup of coffee - it makes everything else better! ☕

Vynk