MERN Authentication System with Docker

A full-stack MERN (MongoDB, Express, React, Node.js) application implementing secure authentication, including email-based OTP verification and forgot password functionality, with the backend containerized using Docker.

Features-- Authentication & Security: User Sign Up & Login Two-Step Authentication (2FA) using Email OTP OTP is sent to the registered email address Login completes only after OTP verification Forgot Password Secure password reset link sent to email User can set a new password using the link Passwords stored securely using hashing JWT-based authentication

Docker Support: Backend fully containerized using Docker docker-compose.yml for simplified setup Ensures consistent environment across systems

Tech Stack-- Frontend: React.js CSS Axios

Backend: Node.js Express.js MongoDB JWT (Authentication) Nodemailer (Email & OTP service) DevOps Docker Docker Compose

Environment Variables:

Create a .env file inside the backend folder:

PORT=5000 MONGO_URI=your_mongodb_connection_string JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_secret EMAIL_USER=your_email@gmail.com EMAIL_PASS=your_email_app_password

Running the Project Option 1: Run Backend using Docker (Recommended) cd backend docker-compose up --build

Option 2: Run Locally (Without Docker) Backend cd backend npm install npm start

Frontend cd sstudize_task npm install npm start

Frontend runs at: http://localhost:3000

Authentication Flow: User registers with email and password On login: OTP is sent to the registered email User verifies OTP to complete login

Forgot Password: Reset link is sent to email User sets a new password securely

Security Practices Followed: Environment variables hidden using .gitignore Password hashing Token-based authentication Email-based verification Dockerized backend for isolated execution