docs/sprint-artifacts/tech-spec-api-url-fix.md

Tech-Spec: Fix API URL Configuration Issue

Created: December 23, 2025 Status: Ready for Development

Overview

Problem Statement

The frontend application is configured to use a hardcoded Hugging Face Space URL (https://zelyanoth-lin-cbfcff2.hf.space) instead of the user's local server IP address (http://46.62.218.169/). This causes API requests to fail with 404 errors when users try to access endpoints like /api/posts/jobs/{jobId}.

Solution

Update the frontend environment configuration to use the correct API URL that matches the user's server IP address instead of the hardcoded Hugging Face Space URL.

Scope (In/Out)

In Scope:

• Update frontend environment configuration files to use correct API URL
• Ensure API requests are made to the user's server IP address (http://46.62.218.169/)
• Test that API endpoints work correctly after configuration change

Out Scope:

• Backend server modifications
• Database schema changes
• UI/UX modifications

Context for Development

Codebase Patterns

• Frontend uses Vite with environment variables for configuration
• API calls are made through axios with a base URL configuration
• The project follows a standard React + Flask architecture

Files to Reference

• frontend/.env.production - Contains the hardcoded Hugging Face Space URL
• frontend/src/services/apiClient.js - Contains the API client configuration logic
• frontend/src/services/api.js - Contains additional API configuration

Technical Decisions

• The API URL should be configurable via environment variables to support different deployment environments
• The production environment file should be updated to use the correct server IP address
• CORS configuration in the backend already supports multiple origins including local addresses

Implementation Plan

Tasks

• Update frontend/.env.production to use correct API URL
• Verify that the API client properly handles the new URL configuration
• Test that API requests are made to the correct server IP address
• Verify that job polling endpoints work correctly

Acceptance Criteria

• AC 1: Given the updated configuration, when a user clicks the button to generate a post, then API requests should be made to http://46.62.218.169/api/posts/ instead of the Hugging Face Space URL
• AC 2: Given the updated configuration, when a user polls for job status, then requests to /api/posts/jobs/{jobId} should succeed without 404 errors
• AC 3: Given the updated configuration, when the application runs in production mode, then all API calls should use the correct server IP address

Additional Context

Dependencies

• Frontend build process needs to be run after environment variable changes
• Backend server must be accessible at the configured IP address

Testing Strategy

• Test the post generation flow after configuration changes
• Verify that job polling works correctly
• Check that all API endpoints return successful responses

Notes

• The backend is already configured to accept requests from various origins including local addresses
• The frontend uses environment variables to determine the API URL based on the environment
• The hardcoded URL in the production environment file needs to be changed to the user's server IP