update documentation

README.md

@@ -2,32 +2,45 @@
 
 [![Backend API - CI Tests](https://github.com/pakeku/backend-api/actions/workflows/tests.yml/badge.svg)](https://github.com/pakeku/backend-api/actions/workflows/tests.yml)
 [![Known Vulnerabilities](https://snyk.io/test/github/pakeku/backend-api/badge.svg)](https://snyk.io/test/github/pakeku/backend-api)
-
-## Requirements
-
-Identify your MongoDB URL. Visit MongoDB to sign up and get started.
-
-Environmental Variables:
-
-1. MONGO_URL
-2. PORT (optional)
-3. ALLOWED_ORIGINS (optional)
-4. ALLOWED_METHODS (optional)
-5. ALLOWED_HEADERS (optional)
-6. NODE_ENV=test --- When set to "test", a `mongodb-memory-server` test URI is used, and no `MONGO_URL` is required. This allows for out-of-the-box testing without a live database.
-7. JWT_SECRET --- A cryptographically secure secret used to sign and verify JSON Web Tokens (JWTs). This is required for authentication to work correctly.
-   Use a long, random string—at least 32 characters, ideally generated using a password manager or Node.js: `bash node -e "console.log(require('crypto').randomBytes(64).toString('hex'))"`
-8.
+[![code Style: Prettier](https://img.shields.io/badge/code_style-prettier-ff69b4.svg?style=flat&logo=prettier)](https://prettier.io/)
+[![ESLint](https://img.shields.io/badge/linting-eslint-blue.svg?style=flat&logo=eslint)](https://eslint.org/)
+[![TypeScript](https://img.shields.io/badge/language-typescript-blue.svg?style=flat&logo=typescript)](https://www.typescriptlang.org/)
+
+## Configuration
+
+This backend API is configured using environment variables. You can set these variables in a `.env` file in the root of the project (copy `.env.sample` to `.env` and modify the values). **Important: Ensure your `.env` file is not committed to your version control system.**
+
+The following environment variables are used:
+
+- `MONGO_URL`: **Required.** The connection string for your MongoDB database. You can obtain this from your MongoDB provider (e.g., MongoDB Atlas). Example: `mongodb+srv://<username>:<password>@<cluster-url>/<database-name>?retryWrites=true&w=majority`
+- `PORT`: **Optional.** The port number that the Express server will listen on. If not specified, it defaults to `3000`. Example: `8080`
+- `ALLOWED_ORIGINS`: **Optional.** A comma-separated list of allowed origins for Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS). This controls which websites can make requests to your API. Example: `http://localhost:3000,https://your-frontend.com`
+- `ALLOWED_METHODS`: **Optional.** A comma-separated list of allowed HTTP methods for CORS. Example: `GET,POST,PUT,DELETE`
+- `ALLOWED_HEADERS`: **Optional.** A comma-separated list of allowed request headers for CORS. Example: `Content-Type,Authorization`
+- `NODE_ENV`: Specifies the application environment.
+  - `test`: When set to `test`, the application will use an in-memory MongoDB server provided by `mongodb-memory-server` for testing purposes. In this mode, the `MONGO_URL` variable is not required.
+  - `development`: Typically used during development. You might have specific development configurations.
+  - `production`: Used in the production environment.
+- `JWT_SECRET`: **Required and Critically Important.** A secret key used to sign and verify JSON Web Tokens (JWTs) for authentication. **This should be a long, random, and secure string. Do not share or expose this secret.**
+  ```bash
+  node -e "console.log(require('crypto').randomBytes(64).toString('hex'))"
+  ```
 
 ## Getting Started
 
-1. Copy this file to .env and fill in the actual values
+Copy this file to .env and fill in the actual values
 
 ```bash
 cp .env.sample .env
 ```
 
-1. Run a script:
+Install Dependencies
+
+```bash
+npm run install
+```
+
+Run a script:
 
 ```json
 "scripts": {