Requests Management System (API + Blazor WASM)

An employee requests management system for leave and mission workflows. Built on .NET 8 with a layered architecture:

• API host: RequestsManagementSystem (ASP.NET Core Web API + Swagger + JWT auth)
• Client: RequestsManagementSystem.Client (Blazor WebAssembly, hosted by the API)
• Domain/Core: RequestsManagementSystem.Core
• Data access: RequestsManagementSystem.Data (EF Core, SQL Server, migrations)
• Business logic: RequestsManagementSystem.Logic
• DTOs and validations: RequestsManagementSystem.DTOs

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Prerequisites

• .NET SDK 8.0+
• SQL Server (Developer/Express/localdb or remote)
• PowerShell (Windows) or any shell

Optional (for tooling):

• EF Core tools: dotnet tool install --global dotnet-ef

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Solution Structure

RequestsManagementSystem-API/
  RequestsManagementSystem.sln
  RequestsManagementSystem/                 # API host
  RequestsManagementSystem.Client/          # Blazor WASM client (hosted)
  RequestsManagementSystem.Core/            # Entities, enums, interfaces, extensions
  RequestsManagementSystem.Data/            # DbContext, migrations, repositories
  RequestsManagementSystem.Logic/           # Services (business logic)
  RequestsManagementSystem.DTOs/            # DTOs, validations, view models

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Quick Start

1. Restore

dotnet restore RequestsManagementSystem.sln

2. Configure connection string and JWT (do NOT commit secrets)

• Preferred: use user-secrets in the API project directory RequestsManagementSystem/:

dotnet user-secrets init --project RequestsManagementSystem
dotnet user-secrets set "ConnectionStrings:DefaultConnection" "Server=.;Database=RequestsDB;Trusted_Connection=True;TrustServerCertificate=True;" --project RequestsManagementSystem
dotnet user-secrets set "Jwt:Key" "<strong-random-key>" --project RequestsManagementSystem
dotnet user-secrets set "Jwt:Issuer" "RequestManagementSystemBackEnd" --project RequestsManagementSystem
dotnet user-secrets set "Jwt:Audience" "ElsewedyEmployees" --project RequestsManagementSystem

• Alternatively: set environment variables for deployment environments.

3. Apply database migrations to your SQL Server

dotnet ef database update \
  --project RequestsManagementSystem.Data \
  --startup-project RequestsManagementSystem

4. Run the API (which also serves the hosted Blazor client)

dotnet run --project RequestsManagementSystem

5. Open the app

• Swagger UI: https://localhost:5001/swagger or http://localhost:5000/swagger
• Hosted Blazor app: base URL of the API (e.g., https://localhost:5001)

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Configuration

The API reads settings from appsettings.json, environment-specific files, user-secrets, and environment variables. Key sections:

• ConnectionStrings:DefaultConnection: SQL Server connection string
• Jwt:Key (secret), Jwt:Issuer, Jwt:Audience, Jwt:ExpiresInMinutes, Jwt:refreshExpiresInDays
• EmployeeLevels: Seed configuration for leave entitlements per level
• TransactionTypes: Supported transaction types and relationships

Example (do not use real secrets in files):

{
  "ConnectionStrings": {
    "DefaultConnection": "Server=.;Database=RequestsDB;Trusted_Connection=True;TrustServerCertificate=True;"
  },
  "Jwt": {
    "Key": "<set-via-user-secrets>",
    "Issuer": "RequestManagementSystemBackEnd",
    "Audience": "ElsewedyEmployees",
    "ExpiresInMinutes": 15,
    "refreshExpiresInDays": 15
  }
}

Security note: never commit real connection strings, passwords, or JWT keys. Prefer user-secrets or environment variables.

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Database & Migrations

• Migrations live in RequestsManagementSystem.Data/Migrations
• Update database (uses API as startup to load configuration):

dotnet ef database update \
  --project RequestsManagementSystem.Data \
  --startup-project RequestsManagementSystem

• Add a new migration:

dotnet ef migrations add <MigrationName> \
  --project RequestsManagementSystem.Data \
  --startup-project RequestsManagementSystem

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Running in Development

• Launch profiles are in RequestsManagementSystem/Properties/launchSettings.json
• Typical dev URLs:
  • HTTP: http://localhost:5000
  • HTTPS: https://localhost:5001

Start the API:

dotnet run --project RequestsManagementSystem

The hosted Blazor client is served by the API. Navigate to the API base URL.

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Authentication

• JWT Bearer authentication
• Obtain a token via the authentication endpoint (see Swagger) using employee credentials
• Include Authorization: Bearer <token> in API requests

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Features (high level)

• Authentication & password update
• Leave requests: regular, casual, partial (half/quarter)
• Mission requests with date/time and locations
• Manager approvals, rejections, and modifications
• Leave balance validation and annual resets
• Notifications to employees, managers, and alternates

See 📋 Requests Management System – User Stories Specification for QA-*.md and Requirements-*.md for detailed stories and acceptance criteria.

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API Exploration

• Swagger is enabled by default in development. Use it to test endpoints and view schemas.

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Build, Test, Publish

Build solution:

dotnet build RequestsManagementSystem.sln -c Release

Publish API:

dotnet publish RequestsManagementSystem -c Release -o ./publish

Run published output:

dotnet ./publish/RequestsManagementSystem.dll

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Troubleshooting

• Connection errors: verify DefaultConnection and SQL Server availability
• 401 Unauthorized: confirm JWT settings and use a valid token
• Migrations not found: ensure commands point to RequestsManagementSystem.Data with API as --startup-project
• HTTPS dev cert issues: run dotnet dev-certs https --trust