8byte - Social & Professional Networking Platform

A powerful, feature-rich social networking application built with Django and Vanilla JS. It combines professional networking features (portfolios, education, skills) with rich social interaction (real-time chat, video calls, media sharing).

🚀 Key Features

🔐 Advanced Authentication

• Secure Sign Up/Sign In: Username/Password authentication with JWT (JSON Web Tokens).
• Email Verification: OTP (One-Time Password) verification via Gmail SMTP.
• Google OAuth: One-click login with Google.
• Security: HttpOnly cookies for token storage and automatic whitespace handling for credentials.

💬 Real-Time Communication

• Direct Messages (1:1): End-to-end encrypted messaging with real-time updates.
• Video & Voice Calls: High-quality in-browser calls powered by Agora SDK.
• Rich Chat Features:
  • Emoji picker & WhatsApp-style quick reactions.
  • Message deletion.
  • Read receipts & Unread counts.
  • Online status indicators (Active Now / Last Seen).
• Global & Community Chat: Public chat rooms and private community groups.

👤 Profile & Portfolio

• Professional Profile: Showcase Education, Experience, and Skills.
• Social Links: Integrated Instagram, LinkedIn, and GitHub links.
• Dynamic Avatar: Upload custom avatars or use generated fallbacks.
• Activity Status: Real-time tracking of user presence.

📸 Media & Gallery

• Photo Gallery: Upload and share photos with captions.
• Interactions: Like and Comment on user photos.
• Cloud Storage: Fast and secure media storage using Supabase (S3-compatible).

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🛠️ Tech Stack

• Backend: Django 5, Django REST Framework (DRF)
• Frontend: HTML5, Tailwind CSS (via CDN/custom), Vanilla JavaScript (ES6+)
• Database: PostgreSQL (via Supabase)
• Storage: Supabase Storage
• Real-Time Video: Agora RTC SDK
• Encryption: Cryptography (Fernet) for DMs
• Deployment: Vercel (Serverless)

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⚙️ Local Development Setup

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/your-username/your-repo.git
cd User-Auth

2. Create Virtual Environment

python -m venv .venv
# Windows
.venv\Scripts\activate
# Mac/Linux
source .venv/bin/activate

3. Install Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

4. Configure Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the root directory and add the following:

# --- Django Core ---
DJANGO_SECRET_KEY=your_secret_key
DEBUG=True

# --- Database (Supabase/Postgres) ---
DATABASE_URL=postgres://user:pass@host:port/db

# --- Authentication (Google OAuth) ---
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your_google_client_id

# --- Email (Gmail SMTP) ---
EMAIL_HOST=smtp.gmail.com
EMAIL_PORT=465
EMAIL_USE_SSL=True
EMAIL_HOST_USER=your_email@gmail.com
EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD=your_16_char_app_password
DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL=your_email@gmail.com

# --- Storage (Supabase S3) ---
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=your_supabase_access_key
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=your_supabase_secret_key

# --- Real-Time Video (Agora) ---
AGORA_APP_ID=your_agora_app_id
AGORA_APP_CERTIFICATE=your_agora_certificate

# --- Security ---
# Generate a new key: python -c "from cryptography.fernet import Fernet; print(Fernet.generate_key().decode())"
MESSAGE_ENCRYPTION_KEY=your_generated_key_here

5. Run Migrations

python manage.py migrate

6. Run Server

python manage.py runserver

Visit http://localhost:8000 to view the app.

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☁️ Deployment

This project is configured for Vercel deployment.

1. Install Vercel CLI: npm i -g vercel
2. Run vercel in the project root.
3. Add all the Environment Variables from your .env to the Vercel Project Settings.
4. Important: For email to work, ensure you use EMAIL_PORT=465 and EMAIL_USE_SSL=True.

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🤝 Contributing

Pull requests are welcome. For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss what you would like to change.

📄 License

MIT