Getting Started with Next 14 and Strapi: project example overview

Summary

This tutorial video introduces viewers to a project combining Next.js 14 and Strapi, showcasing how to set up a full-stack application with features like styling, routing, data fetching, and server components. The presenter demonstrates a live demo of a dashboard with CRUD capabilities, search functionality, and user registration. They guide through local setup, environment configuration, and backend initialization, encouraging exploration and customization of the provided codebase. The video concludes with an invitation to ask questions on Discord and hints at follow-up videos for deeper insights.

Takeaways

• 🚀 The video introduces a project that combines Next.js 14 with Strapi, a modern headless CMS, to create a full-stack application.
• 📚 The tutorial covers essential topics like styling, optimization, routing, data fetching, search, pagination, and server-side operations with Next.js.
• 🔍 The project showcases a live demo of a Strapi-powered application with CRUD functionality for customers, invoices, revenue, and users.
• 🔑 The video includes a demonstration of user authentication, including login, registration, and the use of test accounts.
• 🛠️ Viewers are guided through setting up the project locally, including installing dependencies and configuring environment variables.
• 🔄 The script explains how to seed the database with initial data to facilitate testing and development.
• 📝 It highlights the use of Zod for form validation in Next.js, which automatically handles error reporting to the frontend.
• 🍪 The video demonstrates setting JWT tokens using cookies with the help of Next.js' `next.headers` for handling authentication.
• 🔒 Private routing is controlled through middleware that checks for cookies to determine if a user is authenticated.
• 🔄 The presenter encourages viewers to explore the code, ask questions, and join open office hours on Discord for further support.
• 🌟 The video concludes with an invitation for viewers to download the project, experiment with it, and contribute suggestions for improvement.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video?

The video is about getting started with Next.js 14 and Strapi, demonstrating how to combine these technologies to create a project with features like styling, routing, data fetching, search, pagination, and more.

What is the first step recommended for learning Next.js 14?

The first step is to visit NEXT.js.org, click the 'Learn Next.js' button, and learn everything needed to get started with Next.js 14.

What is the purpose of the demo shown in the video?

The demo is to showcase a project built with Next.js and Strapi, displaying features such as a dashboard, customer and invoice management, search functionality, and CRUD operations.

How does the search functionality in the demo work with pagination?

The search functionality allows users to search for items and also works with pagination, showing results across multiple pages and adjusting the number of pages based on the search criteria.

What is the significance of the 'CRUD' functionality mentioned in the video?

CRUD stands for Create, Read, Update, and Delete, which are the basic operations for database management. The video demonstrates full CRUD functionality within the Next.js and Strapi project.

How can users register in the Strapi admin panel as shown in the video?

Users can register by creating a new user account through the registration form in the Strapi admin panel, providing details like username, email, and password.

What command is used to set up the project locally?

The 'yarn setup' command is used to install all the dependencies needed to get the project running.

What is the role of the '.env' file in the project setup?

The '.env' file is used to store environment variables for both the front-end and back-end projects, which are necessary for the application to function properly.

How does the video guide the user to start the Strapi project?

The video instructs the user to navigate to the backend folder, run 'yarn build' and 'yarn develop' to start the Strapi project, and then create an admin user.

What is the purpose of the 'yarn seed' command mentioned in the video?

The 'yarn seed' command is used to seed the database with necessary data, such as customers, invoices, and revenue, by importing and deleting existing data.

How is private routing handled in the Next.js application?

Private routing is controlled by middleware in Next.js, which checks for the presence of a cookie and redirects the user to the login page if the cookie is not present.

What is the role of Zod in the registration form validation?

Zod is used for form validation in the registration form, automatically returning errors to the front end if the provided data does not meet the validation schema.

How does the video address the handling of JWT tokens after user registration?

After successful registration, the video demonstrates setting the JWT token using 'cookies.set' from 'next.headers', which allows adding, setting, or deleting cookies.

What is the final step for the user after setting up the project and starting the server?

The final step is to run 'yarn dev' to start both the front-end and back-end projects, allowing the user to access the application and see the seeded data.

How can viewers get support or ask questions about the project?

Viewers can ask questions in the comments section of the video or join the Strapi Discord channel for open office hours every Monday through Friday at 12:30 p.m. CST.