Getting Started with Contributing

Learn how to set up your development environment and start contributing to Horse Trust

Welcome Contributors

Thank you for your interest in contributing to Horse Trust! This guide will help you get started with setting up your development environment and understanding our contribution process.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

• Node.js v24.13.0 or higher
• Git 2.43.0 or higher
• npm (comes with Node.js)

Project Structure

Horse Trust is a full-stack application with two main components:

Horse Trust/
├── client/          # Next.js frontend application
├── server/          # Express.js backend API
└── CONTRIBUTING.md  # Contribution guidelines

Setting Up Your Development Environment

1. Clone the Repository

git clone [e-mail]:No-Country-simulation/S02-26-Equipo-33-Web-App.git
cd S02-26-Equipo-33-Web-App/

2. Backend Setup

The backend is built with Express.js and TypeScript:

cd server

# Install dependencies
npm i

# Set up environment variables
# Copy .env.example to .env and configure your settings

# Start development server
npm run dev

Test the backend:

curl http://localhost:8031/test

Expected response:

{
  "success": true,
  "message": "response Ok!",
  "data": {
    "team": "S02-26-Equipo-33-Web-App",
    "status": "Development"
  }
}

3. Frontend Setup

The frontend is built with Next.js and TypeScript:

cd client

# Install dependencies
npm i

# Set up environment variables
# Configure your .env.local file

# Start development server
npm run dev

The application will be available at http://localhost:8030

Tech Stack

Backend

• Node.js - JavaScript Runtime
• Express.js - Backend Framework
• TypeScript - Type Safety
• MongoDB (Mongoose) - Database
• Socket.io - Real-time Communication
• JWT - Authentication
• Helmet - Security

Frontend

• Next.js 16.1.6 - React Framework
• React 19.2.3 - UI Library
• TypeScript - Type Safety
• Tailwind CSS - Styling
• ESLint - Code Linting

Development Commands

Backend (/server)

npm run dev    # Start development server with hot reload
npm run build  # Compile TypeScript to JavaScript
npm start      # Run production build

Frontend (/client)

npm run dev    # Start Next.js development server
npm run build  # Build for production
npm start      # Start production server
npm run lint   # Run ESLint

Next Steps

Now that you have your environment set up:

1. Read the Git Workflow guide to understand our branching strategy
2. Review our Code Standards to ensure your code follows our conventions
3. Pick an issue from our GitHub repository and start coding!

Getting Help

If you encounter any issues during setup:

• Check the README files in /server and /client directories
• Contact the repository maintainer
• Reach out to the team: S02-26-Equipo-33-Web-App

Make sure all tests pass before creating a pull request. This ensures code quality and makes the review process smoother.