Reddit-Or-Not - A Reddit-like ASP.NET Web Application

A Reddit-like community platform built with ASP.NET Web Forms and Microsoft SQL Server. Users can create communities, share posts, comment, and vote on content.

Features

• User registration and authentication
• Create and join communities
• Post creation (text, images)
• Commenting system
• Upvote/downvote functionality
• User profiles
• Search functionality
• Community management
• Notifications

Requirements

• Visual Studio 2019 or later
• Microsoft SQL Server 2016+ (or SQL Server Express)
• SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
• .NET Framework 4.7.2 or later
• Windows 10/11

Installation

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/reddit-clone-aspnet.git

2. Open in Visual Studio

• Open Visual Studio
• File → Open → Project/Solution
• Select the .sln file

3. Restore NuGet Packages

Visual Studio will automatically restore packages. If not:

• Right-click Solution → Restore NuGet Packages

4. Setup Database

Create Database in SSMS:

1. Open SQL Server Management Studio
2. Connect to your SQL Server instance
3. Create new database named RedditCloneDB

Update Connection String:

Open Web.config and update the connection string:

<connectionStrings>
  <add name="DefaultConnection" 
       connectionString="Data Source=YOUR_SERVER_NAME;Initial Catalog=RedditCloneDB;Integrated Security=True" 
       providerName="System.Data.SqlClient" />
</connectionStrings>

Common server names:

• localhost or . - Local SQL Server
• .\SQLEXPRESS - SQL Server Express
• (localdb)\MSSQLLocalDB - LocalDB

5. Run the Application

• Press F5 or click Start
• Application opens at http://localhost:[port]/

Usage

Register/Login

1. Click "Sign Up" to create an account
2. Login with your credentials

Create a Community

1. Click "Create Community"
2. Enter community name
3. Submit

Create a Post

1. Select a community
2. Click "Create Post"

Comment and Vote

• Click on any post to view and comment
• Use arrows to upvote/downvote

Project Structure

RedditClone/
├── Avatars/              # User avatar uploads
├── CommunityImages/      # Community images
├── CSS/                  # Stylesheets
├── Images/               # Static images
├── Login.aspx            # Login page
├── Registration.aspx     # Registration page
├── CommunityPage.aspx    # Community view
├── PostDetails.aspx      # Post details
├── Profile.aspx          # User profile
├── Web.config            # Configuration
└── *.cs                  # Code-behind files

Database Tables

Main tables:

• Users - User accounts
• Communities - Community information
• Posts - User posts
• Comments - Post comments
• CommunityMembers - Community memberships
• Votes - User votes

Technologies

• Backend: ASP.NET Web Forms, C#
• Database: Microsoft SQL Server
• Frontend: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Bootstrap
• Authentication: ASP.NET Forms Authentication

Troubleshooting

Database Connection Failed

• Check SQL Server is running (Services → SQL Server)
• Verify connection string in Web.config
• Test connection in SSMS first

Login Issues

• Clear browser cache and cookies
• Check database has Users table with data
• Verify Web.config authentication settings

Images Not Uploading

• Check folder permissions for Avatars and CommunityImages
• Verify file size limits in Web.config

License

This project is open source and available under the MIT License.

⭐ If you find this project useful, please give it a star!

Reddit-Or-Not