🎫 Helpdesk Ticketing System v2.0

A modern, secure, and scalable helpdesk ticketing system built with React, Node.js, and PostgreSQL. Features real-time updates, comprehensive security measures, and enterprise-grade deployment capabilities.

✨ Features

🔐 Security First

• Advanced Authentication: JWT-based with configurable expiry
• Role-Based Access Control: Admin and user permissions
• Rate Limiting: Protection against brute force attacks
• Input Validation: Comprehensive sanitization and validation
• Security Headers: CORS, HSTS, CSP, and more
• Container Security: Non-root users, read-only filesystems
• Intrusion Detection: Real-time monitoring and alerting

🎯 Core Functionality

• Ticket Management: Create, update, assign, and track tickets
• Real-time Updates: WebSocket-powered live notifications
• User Management: Multi-role user system with permissions
• Dashboard Analytics: Comprehensive reporting and metrics
• File Attachments: Secure file upload and management
• Email Notifications: Automated email alerts and updates
• Search & Filter: Advanced ticket search and filtering
• Audit Trail: Complete activity logging and history

🚀 Technical Excellence

• Microservices Architecture: Scalable and maintainable
• API-First Design: RESTful APIs with comprehensive documentation
• Real-time Communication: WebSocket integration for live updates
• Database Optimization: Efficient queries and indexing
• Caching Strategy: Redis-powered performance optimization
• Monitoring: Health checks and performance metrics
• CI/CD Pipeline: Automated testing and deployment

�️ Architecture

┌─────────────────┐    ┌─────────────────┐    ┌─────────────────┐
│   React SPA     │    │   Node.js API   │    │   PostgreSQL    │
│   (Frontend)    │◄──►│   (Backend)     │◄──►│   (Database)    │
│   Port: 8080    │    │   Port: 3001    │    │   Port: 5432    │
└─────────────────┘    └─────────────────┘    └─────────────────┘
         │                       │                       │
         │              ┌─────────────────┐              │
         │              │     Redis       │              │
         └──────────────│   (Cache)       │──────────────┘
                        │   Port: 6379    │
                        └─────────────────┘

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+ and npm
• Docker and Docker Compose
• Git for version control

1. Clone and Setup

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/helpdesk-ticketing-system.git
cd helpdesk-ticketing-system
cp .env.example .env

2. Configure Environment

# Edit .env with your configuration
nano .env

3. Start with Docker

docker-compose up -d

4. Access the Application

• Frontend: http://localhost:8080
• Backend API: http://localhost:3001
• API Documentation: http://localhost:3001/api-docs

� Screenshots

Screenshots will be added here to showcase the application interface

🔧 Configuration

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default
NODE_ENV	Environment mode	development
PORT	Backend port	3001
JWT_SECRET	JWT signing secret	Required
DB_HOST	Database host	postgres
DB_PASSWORD	Database password	Required
REDIS_PASSWORD	Redis password	Required
CORS_ORIGIN	Frontend URL for CORS	http://localhost:3000

Security Configuration

# Rate Limiting
RATE_LIMIT_MAX=100
RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW=900000

# Session Management
SESSION_TIMEOUT=1800000
SESSION_MAX_CONCURRENT=3

# Security Features
SECURITY_MONITORING=true
INTRUSION_DETECTION=true
LOG_SECURITY_EVENTS=true

🛡️ Security

This application implements enterprise-grade security measures:

• Authentication: JWT tokens with secure defaults
• Authorization: Role-based access control (RBAC)
• Input Validation: Comprehensive sanitization
• Rate Limiting: Configurable limits per endpoint
• Security Headers: OWASP recommended headers
• Container Security: Hardened Docker configurations
• Monitoring: Real-time security event tracking

For detailed security information, see SECURITY.md.

🚀 Deployment

Docker Deployment

# Production deployment
docker-compose -f docker-compose.yml -f docker-compose.production.yml up -d

Cloud Deployment

The application is cloud-ready with:

• Kubernetes manifests included
• GitHub Actions CI/CD pipeline
• Health checks and monitoring
• Auto-scaling configuration
• Load balancer support

🧪 Testing

# Run backend tests
cd backend && npm test

# Run frontend tests
cd frontend && npm test

# Run integration tests
npm run test:integration

# Security audit
npm audit

📊 Monitoring

Health Checks

• Backend: GET /health
• Database: Connection monitoring
• Redis: Cache health checks
• WebSocket: Real-time connection status

Metrics

• Request/response times
• Error rates and patterns
• User activity analytics
• Security event tracking
• Resource utilization

🤝 Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

📜 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

📞 Support

• Documentation: GitHub Wiki
• Issues: GitHub Issues
• Security: See SECURITY.md for security reporting
• Discussions: GitHub Discussions

🎯 Roadmap

Version 2.1 (Planned)

• Mobile application (React Native)
• Advanced analytics dashboard
• Multi-language support
• Advanced workflow automation

Version 2.2 (Planned)

• Single Sign-On (SSO) integration
• Advanced reporting engine
• Knowledge base integration
• AI-powered ticket categorization

🏆 Acknowledgments

• Built with modern web technologies
• Inspired by industry best practices
• Community-driven development
• Security-first approach

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Version: 2.0.0
Last Updated: June 13, 2025