Building a REST API with Node.js and Prisma ORM

Node.js is a popular JavaScript runtime that is commonly used to build server-side web applications. Prisma ORM is a modern database toolkit that simplifies database access in Node.js applications. In this article, we’ll explore how to build a REST API using Node.js and Prisma ORM.

Setting Up Node.js and Prisma ORM

Before we can start building our REST API, we need to set up Node.js and Prisma ORM. First, make sure you have Node.js installed on your machine. You can download it from the official Node.js website. Once Node.js is installed, you can create a new Node.js project using npm:

npm init -y

Next, we need to install Prisma ORM and its dependencies:

npm install @prisma/client prisma

Creating a Prisma Schema

Prisma ORM uses a schema to define the database model. Create a new file called schema.prisma and define your database model using Prisma’s schema language. For example:

model User {
  id Int @id @default(autoincrement())
  name String
  email String @unique
  posts Post[]
}

model Post {
  id Int @id @default(autoincrement())
  title String
  content String
  author User @relation(fields: [authorId], references: [id])
  authorId Int
}

Creating a Node.js Server

Now that we have our database model defined, we can start building our Node.js server. Create a new file called server.js and use the express and @prisma/client packages to create a REST API that interacts with our database model. Here’s a basic example to get you started:

const express = require('express');
const { PrismaClient } = require('@prisma/client');

const prisma = new PrismaClient();
const app = express();

app.get('/users', async (req, res) => {
  const users = await prisma.user.findMany();
  res.json(users);
});

app.post('/users', async (req, res) => {
  const { name, email } = req.body;
  const user = await prisma.user.create({
    data: {
      name,
      email,
    },
  });
  res.json(user);
});

app.listen(3000, () => {
  console.log('Server is running on port 3000');
});

Conclusion

In this article, we explored how to build a REST API using Node.js and Prisma ORM. With Node.js, Prisma ORM, and the express package, you can quickly and easily create a powerful and scalable REST API for your web applications. Happy coding!