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Introduction 👋

Let's discover CellixJs in less than 5 minutes.

Getting Started​

Get started by exploring the CellixJs platform.

CellixJs is a Domain-Driven Design (DDD) monorepo built on Azure Functions, implementing a modular architecture with strict separation of concerns.

What you'll need​

  • Node.js version 22.0 or above:

    • When installing Node.js, you are recommended to check all checkboxes related to dependencies.

  • Azure Functions Core Tools for local development

    • func --version
      • should return 4.0.6610 or greater
    • Install Guide
      • to upgrade: (mac)
      • brew upgrade azure-functions-core-tools@4

  • MongoDB or access to a MongoDB instance

Clone and Setup​

Clone the CellixJs repository and set up the development environment:

git clone https://github.com/CellixJs/cellixjs.git
cd cellixjs

Install dependencies and build the project: (we recommend using NVM)

# Install Node.js v22
nvm install v22

# Install Latest NPM (v11+)
nvm install-latest-npm

# Use Node.js v22
nvm use v22

# Clean, install dependencies, and build
npm run clean
npm install 
npm run build

Install VSCode plugins​

You will be prompted to install the recommended VSCode Plugins upon opening the project in VSCode. Go ahead and do so.

Start Development​

Run the development environment:

npm run dev

This command will:

  • Build all workspace packages
  • Start mock emulator services (Azurite for Azure Storage)
  • Launch the backend Azure Functions runtime
  • Start the frontend React UI

The development server will be available at:

Architecture Overview​

CellixJs follows these core patterns:

  • Domain Layer: Core business logic in packages/api-domain/src/domain/contexts/
  • Application Services: Orchestration layer for business operations
  • Infrastructure: Data persistence via Mongoose, OpenTelemetry observability
  • API Layer: GraphQL and REST endpoints via Azure Functions

Open any file in the packages/ directory and start exploring: the project uses hot reloading for rapid development!