Getting Started

This guide will help you set up Sentro in your project and create your first database management API.

Installation

Install the core packages using npm or yarn:

npm install @sentrodb/connector-node @sentrodb/connector-helper-sql
# or
yarn add @sentrodb/connector-node @sentrodb/connector-helper-sql

Prerequisites

Node.js 16+ installed
A database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, or MSSQL)
TypeScript project (recommended)
Basic knowledge of async/await

Basic Setup

1. Create a Connector Instance

First, create and configure your connector instance:

import Connector from "@sentrodb/connector-node";
import ConnectorHelperSql from "@sentrodb/connector-helper-sql";

const connector = new Connector({
  secretKey: process.env.CONNECTOR_SECRET_KEY!,
  db: {
    host: process.env.DB_HOST!,
    port: parseInt(process.env.DB_PORT!),
    user: process.env.DB_USER!,
    password: process.env.DB_PASSWORD!,
    database: process.env.DB_NAME!,
    schema: "public", // PostgreSQL only
    type: "postgres" // or "mysql" or "mssql"
  }
});

2. Set Database Handler

Initialize the database connection:

await connector.setDatabaseHandler(new ConnectorHelperSql());

3. Start the Connector

This introspects your database schema and prepares the API:

await connector.start();

4. Mount on Your Framework

Choose your preferred framework:

NestJS

import { NestFactory } from '@nestjs/core';
import { AppModule } from './app.module';

async function bootstrap() {
  const app = await NestFactory.create(AppModule);

  // ... connector setup ...

  connector.mountOnNestJs(app);
  await app.listen(4000);
}
bootstrap();

Express

import express from 'express';

const app = express();

// ... connector setup ...

connector.mountOnExpress(app);
app.listen(4000);

Fastify

import fastify from 'fastify';

const app = fastify();

// ... connector setup ...

connector.mountOnFastify(app);
await app.listen({ port: 4000 });

Standalone Server

// ... connector setup ...

connector.startStandaloneServer({ port: 4000 });

Complete Example

Here's a complete working example with NestJS:

import { NestFactory } from '@nestjs/core';
import { AppModule } from './app.module';
import Connector from "@sentrodb/connector-node";
import ConnectorHelperSql from "@sentrodb/connector-helper-sql";

async function bootstrap() {
  const app = await NestFactory.create(AppModule);

  const connector = new Connector({
    secretKey: process.env.CONNECTOR_SECRET_KEY!,
    authKey?: "auth",
    db: {
      host: "localhost",
      port: 5432,
      user: "postgres",
      password: "password",
      database: "mydb",
      schema: "public",
      type: "postgres"
    }
  });

  await connector.setDatabaseHandler(new ConnectorHelperSql());
  await connector.start();

  connector.mountOnNestJs(app);
  await app.listen(4000);

  console.log(`Application is running on: http://localhost:4000`);
  console.log(`Connector API: http://localhost:4000/dbmanager`);
}

bootstrap();

Testing Your API

Once running, you can access the auto-generated health endpoint at:

Health API

GET http(s)://<your-host>/dbmanager/health

Next Steps: Learn about Configuration options to customize your setup.