README

URL shortening service ☀️

• This service is a built using Rails in API mode. It's designed to provide quick and reliable URL shortening functionality, transforming lengthy URLs into shorter ones.

Getting Started

1. Clone the repository
2. Install dependencies and run bundle install
3. Start the server with rails s

Dependencies

• Ruby 3.2.2
• MongoDB 6.0.0
• Rails 7.1.3.2

Requriments

• Users can submit a valid URL to generate a shorter and unique alias.
• Short links are no more than 10 characters, hard to guess, and non-sequential.
• Accessing the short link redirects users to the original URL.
• Provides two endpoints: one for generating the short link and another for redirection.

Database

MongoDB, a NoSQL database, is used due to its flexibility and scalability, suitable for the service's non-relational data model.

• ShortenedUrl Document: Stores the original link and its corresponding short ID.
• Indexing: An index on the short_id attribute optimizes read operations, enhancing the service's performance for redirection.
• Future Considerations: Adding user authentication could introduce a User model with a one-to-many relationship to the Url document.

Development

1. Authentication (Planned)

   • API key-based access for public endpoints.
   • JWT authentication for user-specific operations.

2. Generating Short Links

   • Utilizes NanoId to generate secure, URL-friendly unique strings, minimizing collision probability.
   • Handles collision by regenerating the NanoId, with considerations for optimizing performance through pre-generated keys.

3. JSON Responses

• it's a good practice to follow [JSON API specification] so any consumer can expect how the results will look like while the development of the APIs is happening.
• fast_jsonapi or active_model_serializers can be added to the service.

Running the tests

# Rspec
 rspec

Usage

1. Generate a short Url
 
- POST: `http://localhost:3000/api/v1/urls`
- Format `JSON`
- Params: required
 - `original_url` : `https://www.google.com/`
 
- Response
 - Status code: `201`
 - `` {"short_url": "localhost:3000/CRlJZLtxUI"}``
- Errors
 - Status code: `[422]`
 -  ``{ "errors": "The following errors were found: Original Url can not be empty }``
1. Access a short url
 
- Get: `http://localhost:3000/short_id`
 
- Response: the service will redirect the client to the original URL
 - Status code: `302`
 - Header: "location": `original_url`
```shell