---
title: SmaFit FastApi
emoji: 🏋️
colorFrom: blue
colorTo: green
sdk: docker
pinned: false
---

# Capstone Backend API (FastAPI)

This is the Python-based backend that handles authentication (JWT), PostgreSQL database operations (SQLModel/Alembic), API requests, and the RAG Chatbot powered by ChromaDB & Gemini.

## 🛠️ Prerequisites
- Python 3.10+
- PostgreSQL database installed and running locally

## 🚀 Setup Instructions

1. **Create Virtual Environment**
   It is highly recommended to isolate dependencies. Create and activate a virtual environment:
   ```bash
   # Windows
   python -m venv venv
   venv\Scripts\activate

   # macOS/Linux
   python3 -m venv venv
   source venv/bin/activate
   ```

2. **Install Dependencies**
   Install FastAPI, SQLModel, Alembic, and all required packages:
   ```bash
   pip install -r requirements.txt
   ```

3. **Configure Environment Variables**
   Sensitive credentials are never pushed to the repository.
   - Copy the template file: `cp .env.example .env`
   - Open `.env` and fill in your actual PostgreSQL password (`DATABASE_URL`) and generate a `SECRET_KEY`.
   - **Note:** The backend will not start if the `SECRET_KEY` is missing!

4. **Run Database Migrations (Alembic)**
   Apply all migrations to set up the database schema:
   ```bash
   alembic upgrade head
   ```
   To create a new migration after changing `models.py`:
   ```bash
   alembic revision --autogenerate -m "describe_your_change"
   alembic upgrade head
   ```

5. **Setup GenAI & Knowledge Base**
   Your `.env` file must contain your `GEMINI_API_KEY`.
   Run the ingestion script to populate the ChromaDB vector store with RAG data:
   ```bash
   python ingest.py
   ```

6. **Run the Server**
   Start the FastAPI development server:
   ```bash
   fastapi dev main.py
   ```
   *(Or alternatively, `uvicorn main:app --reload`)*

   Once running, the API will be available at `http://127.0.0.1:8000`.
   You can view the interactive auto-generated documentation at `http://127.0.0.1:8000/docs`.