🌊 RentFlow - Complete Rental Management System

A modern, comprehensive rental management platform built with the MERN stack, featuring an ERP-style interface for managing products, orders, invoices, and more.

✨ Features

For Customers

• 🔍 Browse and search rental products with advanced filters
• 🛒 Shopping cart and checkout system
• 📅 Flexible rental duration (hourly, daily, weekly)
• 📊 Order tracking and history
• 💳 Invoice management
• ⭐ Product ratings and reviews

For Vendors

• 📦 Product management with ERP-style forms
• 📸 Multiple image upload for products
• 📈 Sales analytics dashboard
• 📋 Order management and fulfillment
• 💰 Revenue tracking
• 🏷️ Category and inventory management

For Admins

• 👥 User management (customers, vendors, admins)
• 🎛️ System-wide dashboard with analytics
• ✅ Product approval and publishing
• 📊 Revenue and performance reports
• ⚙️ System settings and configuration

🚀 Tech Stack

• Frontend: React 18.2.0, React Router, React Icons, React Toastify
• Backend: Node.js, Express 4.18.2
• Database: MongoDB with Mongoose 7.0.3
• Authentication: JWT with Bcrypt password hashing
• Styling: Custom CSS with modern, minimal design

📋 Prerequisites

• Node.js (v14 or higher)
• MongoDB (local or Atlas)
• npm or yarn

🛠️ Installation

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/yourusername/RentFlow.git
   cd RentFlow

2. Install dependencies

   npm install
   cd frontend && npm install
   cd ..

3. Environment Setup

   Create a .env file in the root directory:

   MONGODB_URI=mongodb://localhost:27017/rental-management
   JWT_SECRET=your_super_secret_jwt_key_here
   PORT=5000

4. Seed Sample Data

   npm run seed

   This creates:

   • 1 Admin user
   • 5 Vendor users
   • 3 Customer users
   • 48 Products across 9 categories

5. Run the Application

   npm run dev

   • Frontend: http://localhost:3000
   • Backend: http://localhost:5000

🔐 Default Login Credentials

Admin Account

• Email: admin@rentalapp.com
• Password: admin123

Vendor Accounts

• vendor1@rentalapp.com - vendor123
• vendor2@rentalapp.com - vendor123
• vendor3@rentalapp.com - vendor123
• vendor4@rentalapp.com - vendor123
• vendor5@rentalapp.com - vendor123

Customer Accounts

• customer1@rentalapp.com - customer123
• customer2@rentalapp.com - customer123
• customer3@rentalapp.com - customer123

📁 Project Structure

RentFlow/
├── backend/
│   ├── controllers/      # Route controllers
│   ├── models/          # MongoDB schemas
│   ├── routes/          # API routes
│   ├── middleware/      # Auth & validation
│   ├── seedData.js      # Sample data script
│   └── server.js        # Express server
├── frontend/
│   ├── public/
│   └── src/
│       ├── components/  # Reusable components
│       ├── context/     # React context (Auth, Cart)
│       ├── pages/       # Page components
│       ├── utils/       # API utilities
│       └── App.js       # Main app component
└── package.json         # Root dependencies

🎨 Key Features

ERP-Style Product Management

• Two-panel layout (General Info + Attributes)
• Image upload with preview
• Product type selection (Goods/Service)
• Dynamic pricing (hourly, daily, weekly)
• Specifications and attributes management
• Publish/unpublish toggle

Advanced Product Catalog

• 48 pre-seeded products across categories:
  • Electronics (cameras, laptops, tablets)
  • Event Equipment (projectors, sound systems)
  • Outdoor & Sports (tents, bikes, kayaks)
  • Party Supplies (tables, decorations)
  • Tools & Equipment (drills, generators)
  • Transportation (cars, bikes)
  • Entertainment (gaming consoles, cameras)
  • Furniture (chairs, tables)

Professional Dashboard

• Role-based dashboards for Admin, Vendor, and Customer
• Real-time analytics and metrics
• Order and revenue tracking
• User activity monitoring

🔧 Available Scripts

• npm run dev - Run both frontend and backend concurrently
• npm run server - Run backend only
• npm run client - Run frontend only
• npm run seed - Populate database with sample data

📦 API Endpoints

Authentication

• POST /api/auth/register - User registration
• POST /api/auth/login - User login
• GET /api/auth/me - Get current user

Products

• GET /api/products - Get all products
• GET /api/products/:id - Get single product
• POST /api/products - Create product (Vendor/Admin)
• PUT /api/products/:id - Update product (Vendor/Admin)
• DELETE /api/products/:id - Delete product (Vendor/Admin)

Orders

• GET /api/orders - Get all orders
• GET /api/orders/:id - Get single order
• POST /api/orders - Create order
• PUT /api/orders/:id/status - Update order status

Users (Admin only)

• GET /api/users - Get all users
• PUT /api/users/:id - Update user
• DELETE /api/users/:id - Delete user

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.

👨‍💻 Author

Built with ❤️ using the MERN stack

🙏 Acknowledgments

• React Icons for beautiful icons
• Unsplash for product images
• MongoDB for the database
• Express.js for the backend framework