Objective

Build a RESTful API for a To-Do List application that allows clients to perform CRUD operations on tasks. The API should be secure, follow best practices, and store tasks persistently in a database.

Core requirements

• Endpoints
  • Create a task with a title and timestamp.
  • Fetch every task in the database.
  • Fetch one task by its ID.
  • Update a task, including marking it as completed.
  • Delete a task by its ID.
• Data validation
  • Validate required fields such as the task title.
  • Return useful errors for invalid or missing data.
• Database
  • Use a relational database such as MySQL or PostgreSQL, or a NoSQL database such as MongoDB.
• Data model
  • Each task needs a unique ID, title, timestamp, and status such as Pending or Completed.
• Security
  • Implement basic authentication using an API key or token-based approach.

Stretch goals

• Paginate the task collection.
• Add status filters and title search.
• Implement API rate limiting.
• Deploy the API to a cloud service.
• Write unit and integration tests for key behavior.