CSC260-FINAL - Social Media Site

Ethan Townsend's Social Site — A modern social media platform built with Blazor Server and .NET 8.

A comprehensive C#/Blazor dynamic web application that simulates a full-featured social media site, including user authentication, profile management, photo sharing, messaging, and administrative tools.

Features

User Management

• Secure Authentication: Registration and login with ASP.NET Core Identity
• Strong Password Requirements: 10+ characters with uppercase, lowercase, digits, and special characters
• Role-based Authorization: User and Admin role management

Profile Features

• Customizable Profiles: Personal information including display name, bio, age, likes, and favorite food
• Profile Photos: Upload and display profile pictures
• Public Profile Views: View other users' profiles and information

Social Interaction

• Photo Sharing: Upload and view photos with captions
• Messaging System: Leave messages on other users' profiles
• User Search: Find and connect with other users
• Activity Tracking: View messages received and sent

Administrative Tools

• Admin Dashboard: Manage users and roles (admin privileges required)
• User Management: Administrative oversight of user accounts

Technology Stack

• Framework: .NET 8.0
• Web Framework: ASP.NET Core with Blazor Server
• Database: SQL Server with Entity Framework Core
• Authentication: ASP.NET Core Identity
• UI Components: Razor Components with interactive server rendering
• Styling: Custom CSS with modern responsive design
• Development Tools: Visual Studio 2022

Prerequisites

Before running this application, make sure you have:

• .NET 8.0 SDK or later
• SQL Server (LocalDB is sufficient for development)
• Visual Studio 2022 (recommended) or any compatible IDE

Getting Started

Installation

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/snxethan/CSC260-FINAL.git
   cd CSC260-FINAL

2. Navigate to the project directory

   cd Social_Media

3. Restore dependencies

   dotnet restore

4. Update the database

   dotnet ef database update

5. Run the application

   dotnet run

6. Open your browser and navigate to https://localhost:7021 or http://localhost:5021

First Time Setup

1. Create an account using the "Create account" button on the home page
2. Complete your profile by navigating to your profile page and editing your information
3. Upload a profile photo to personalize your account
4. Explore other users and start interacting!

Project Structure

Social_Media/
├── Components/
│   ├── Layout/          # Layout components (NavBar, MainLayout)
│   ├── Pages/           # Page components
│   │   ├── Admin/       # Admin-specific pages
│   │   ├── Index.razor  # Home page
│   │   ├── Me.razor     # User's own profile
│   │   ├── UserProfile.razor
│   │   ├── EditProfile.razor
│   │   ├── UserSearch.razor
│   │   └── About.razor
│   ├── MessageList.razor
│   ├── MessageForm.razor
│   └── PhotoCard.razor
├── Data/
│   ├── ApplicationDbContext.cs
│   └── Seed.cs          # Database seeding
├── Models/
│   ├── ApplicationUser.cs
│   ├── Message.cs
│   └── Photo.cs
├── Migrations/          # Entity Framework migrations
├── wwwroot/            # Static files (CSS, JS, images)
├── Program.cs          # Application entry point
└── appsettings.json    # Configuration settings

Key Features Overview

Authentication & Security

• Secure user registration and login
• Password strength requirements
• User session management
• Role-based access control

User Profiles

• Editable user profiles with personal information
• Profile photo upload and display
• Public profile viewing
• User discovery and search

Social Features

• Photo sharing with captions
• Profile messaging system
• User-to-user communication
• Activity feeds

Administration

• User role management
• Administrative dashboards
• User account oversight

Contributing

This is a student project for CSC260 (Cohort 39). If you'd like to contribute:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
5. Open a Pull Request

Development Notes

• This application uses Blazor Server for real-time interactivity
• Database migrations are automatically applied on startup in development
• Default admin user and roles are seeded on first run
• The application is configured for HTTPS by default

About This Project

This social media platform was developed as part of CSC260 coursework to demonstrate proficiency with:

• Modern web development with .NET 8 and Blazor
• Database design and Entity Framework Core
• User authentication and security
• Component-based UI development
• Real-time web applications

Author(s)

• Ethan Townsend (snxethan)