alex-mngt/quote-invoice-generator

WeAreStudio99 - Quote & invoice generator

This README outlines the necessary steps to get the quote-invoice-generator development environment up and running. Please follow the instructions carefully to ensure compatibility across different work environments.

Manifesto

This project starts as a POC for running Puppeteer in NextJS Server Actions (for PDF generation) and a first attempt at storing all state in the URL. It's also used as a sandbox to research the best way to configure and structure a NextJS App for a fluid development and a robust software. Finally, it tries to be a showcase for the state of MY art with these technologies. PS : I may really need to generate invoices & quotes but I prefer to spend my time coding this rather than opening Acrobat like any sane person.

Disclaimer

This project leverages NextJS's new server actions feature in conjunction with Puppeteer. Current deployment on Vercel involves a serverless environment which poses compatibility issues with Puppeteer, preventing it from functioning correctly when deployed. As such, please be aware that the current intended use-case for this program is strictly for local development and execution. Future updates may address this deployment limitation, but for now, ensure to run and test the application locally.

Prerequisites

Node.js

We use NVM (Node Version Manager) to ensure a consistent Node.js version. Install NVM and set the Node.js version for this project with :

$ nvm install

Pnpm

Pnpm is the package manager of choice for this project. Make sure you are using at least Node.js 14 (lts/fermium) and then activate it through corepack :

$ corepack enable pnpm

To ensure consistent behaviour across all development environments, they should all use the same version of pnpm. That's why an explicit pnpm version is specified in the package.json. Check if your pnpm version is matching the one under the packageManager property :

$ pnpm -v

If it is not the case, install the corresponding version :

$ corepack install

Visual Studio Code

Consistency in TypeScript versions is crucial. For VSCode users, ensure that you use the workspace version of TypeScript and not the built-in version provided by VSCode.

Optional: Optimized VSCode Configuration

For an enhanced development experience with project-specific editor settings, duplicate .vscode.sample as .vscode :

$ cp -R .vscode.sample .vscode

Getting Started

Ensure that you follow the sections below in sequence to set up your development environment without issues. Documentation is provided to guide you through the major setup steps.

Environment Configuration

Initiate by setting up environment variables. Duplicate .env.local.sample as .env.local:

$ cp .env.local.sample .env.local

Amend .env.local with your specific configurations.

Dependency Installation

Install necessary project dependencies :

$ pnpm install

Dependency Addition & Update (Optional)

To precisely keep track of the dependencies of this application, each dependency should be added with a specific version number.:

$ pnpm add <pkg> -E

Also, for easier dependency updating, you should use the pnpm interactive mode :

$ pnpm up -i -L

Running the Application

Execute the app in various modes using :

# Development mode
$ pnpm dev

# Production mode
$ pnpm start