Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) System

This document outlines the development of a basic RBAC system in a Node.js application using Express.js. The system will manage user roles and restrict access to certain routes based on those roles.

Requirements

1. Setup

• Initialize a new Node.js project with Express.js.
• Install necessary dependencies:
  • express
  • jsonwebtoken (JWT)
  • bcryptjs

2. Define Roles and Permissions

• Create three roles: Admin, User, and Guest.
• Assign permissions as follows:
  • Admin: Access all routes.
  • User: Access user-specific routes.
  • Guest: Access public routes.

3. User Authentication

• Implement user registration and login endpoints.
• Use JWT (JSON Web Tokens) for authentication.
• Include the user's role in the token.

4. Role-Based Authorization

• Create middleware to enforce role-based access control.
• Implement three routes:
  • Public Route (/public): Accessible by everyone.
  • User Route (/user): Accessible by User and Admin roles.
  • Admin Route (/admin): Accessible only by the Admin role.

5. Error Handling

• Handle unauthorized access with HTTP status codes:
  • 401 Unauthorized for invalid or missing tokens.
  • 403 Forbidden for insufficient permissions.

6. Logging

• Log each request to the protected routes, including user role and access status.

Bonus

• Implement a feature to update user roles.
• Add input validation and sanitation for the registration and login endpoints.

Getting Started

1. Clone this repository.
2. Install the required dependencies:

npm install express jsonwebtoken bcryptjs

3. Run the application:

node app.js

API Reference

• POST /auth/register
  • Create a new user account.
  • Request body:
    • username (string)
    • password (string)
    • role (string)
• POST /auth/login
  • Login a user and obtain a JWT.
  • Request body:
    • username (string)
    • password (string)
• (protected) GET /protected/user
  • Retrieve user information.
  • Requires User or Admin role.
• (protected) GET /protected/admin
  • Access admin-specific data.
  • Requires Admin role only.

Additional Notes

• This is a basic implementation of RBAC and can be extended to include more complex permission schemes.
• Remember to implement proper security measures to protect user data and tokens.