A modern course platform (LMS) built with Next.js 15, React 19, Stripe, Drizzle ORM, Shadcn UI, and PostgreSQL — focused on best practices, caching, and scalable project structure.

• Node.js
• Docker
• Stripe CLI (for local webhook testing)

git clone https://github.com/ACmaster7/course-platform
cd course-platform-project

Create a .env file in the root of the project and copy values from .env.example.

❗️You must fill out all values in .env before running the project — otherwise the app will throw an error on startup.

Example:

DB_PASSWORD=password
DB_USER=postgres
DB_NAME=course-platform
DB_HOST=localhost
DB_PORT=5432
...

This project uses a PostgreSQL container managed by Docker Compose.

docker-compose up -d

This will:

• Start a postgres:17.0 container
• Map container port 5432 to your local machine’s 5432 (by default)
• Use credentials and port from your .env file

If port 5432 is already in use on your machine change the DB_PORT value in .env (e.g., to 5434)

Since the project uses a canary version of Next.js, run with --force:

npm install --force

Once the database container is up and dependencies are installed, generate the schema and migrate tables into the database:

npm run db:generate
npm run db:migrate

This will create and apply the database schema defined using Drizzle ORM.

You can now view and explore the database tables using:

npm run db:studio

1. Go to Clerk.com and create a free account.
2. Create a new application.
3. Get the following values from your Clerk dashboard and add them to your .env:

**Note: CLERK_WEBHOOK_SIGNING_SECRET – You will get this value in Step 7 when you create the Clerk webhook.

CLERK_SECRET_KEY=sk_test_...
CLERK_WEBHOOK_SIGNING_SECRET=whsec_... 
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=pk_test_...
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_SIGN_IN_URL=/sign-in
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_SIGN_IN_FALLBACK_REDIRECT_URL=/
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_SIGN_UP_URL=/sign-up
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_SIGN_UP_FALLBACK_REDIRECT_URL=/

⚠️ Important: You must have your Clerk webhook set up before creating a user, so the PostgreSQL database can sync with Clerk. Otherwise, the app's logic will break.

👤 To test admin features: After creating a user, go to the Clerk dashboard → Users tab → Metadata section → Public → Edit → Set role to admin → Save. Make sure the webhook is set up so the change is reflected in your database.

1. Go to Stripe Dashboard.
2. Get your keys and create promo codes as needed.
3. Add the following values:

STRIPE_SECRET_KEY=sk_test_...
NEXT_PUBLIC_STRIPE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=pk_test_...

STRIPE_PPP_50_COUPON_ID=your_coupon_id_here
STRIPE_PPP_40_COUPON_ID=your_coupon_id_here
STRIPE_PPP_30_COUPON_ID=your_coupon_id_here
STRIPE_PPP_20_COUPON_ID=your_coupon_id_here

🧪 To test a purchase in dev mode, use the test card number: 4242 4242 4242 4242
You can enter any valid date, CVC, and name in the other inputs.

1. Sign up at Arcjet.com and create a project.
2. Copy your Arcjet key:

ARCJET_KEY=your_arcjet_key_here

NEXT_PUBLIC_SERVER_URL=http://localhost:3000

# Optional:
# TEST_IP_ADDRESS=1.187.0.0  # A test IP address from India to simulate regional coupons (e.g., PPP discounts)

To forward Clerk webhook events to your local server:

1. In VS Code, open the Ports tab.
2. Click “Forward a Port”, enter 3000, then hit Enter.
3. After the URL is generated (e.g., https://[random-chararcters]-3000.use2.devtunnels.ms/):
   • Right-click → Make port visibility Public
4. Copy the URL and set up a webhook in Clerk:

[YOUR_PUBLIC_URL]/api/webhooks/clerk

To receive Stripe events locally:

stripe login
stripe listen --forward-to http://localhost:3000/api/webhooks/stripe

Copy the whsec_... key it gives you and add it to .env:

STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET=whsec_...

Once everything is configured and installed:

npm run dev

To populate the database with initial data:

http://localhost:3000/api/seed

Navigate to that URL after starting the dev server.