sojorn/sojorn_docs/design/database_architecture.md
Patrick Britton 38653f5854 Sojorn Backend Finalization & Cleanup - Complete Migration from Supabase
##  Phase 1: Critical Feature Completion (Beacon Voting)
- Add VouchBeacon, ReportBeacon, RemoveBeaconVote methods to PostRepository
- Implement beacon voting HTTP handlers with confidence score calculations
- Register new beacon routes: /beacons/:id/vouch, /beacons/:id/report, /beacons/:id/vouch (DELETE)
- Auto-flag beacons at 5+ reports, confidence scoring (0.5 base + 0.1 per vouch)

##  Phase 2: Feed Logic & Post Distribution Integrity
- Verify unified feed logic supports all content types (Standard, Quips, Beacons)
- Ensure proper distribution: Profile Feed + Main/Home Feed for followers
- Beacon Map integration for location-based content
- Video content filtering for Quips feed

##  Phase 3: The Notification System
- Create comprehensive NotificationService with FCM integration
- Add CreateNotification method to NotificationRepository
- Implement smart deep linking: beacon_map, quip_feed, main_feed
- Trigger notifications for beacon interactions and cross-post comments
- Push notification logic with proper content type detection

##  Phase 4: The Great Supabase Purge
- Delete function_proxy.go and remove /functions/:name route
- Remove SupabaseURL, SupabaseKey from config.go
- Remove SupabaseID field from User model
- Clean all Supabase imports and dependencies
- Sanitize codebase of legacy Supabase references

##  Phase 5: Flutter Frontend Integration
- Implement vouchBeacon(), reportBeacon(), removeBeaconVote() in ApiService
- Replace TODO delay in video_comments_sheet.dart with actual publishComment call
- Fix compilation errors (named parameters, orphaned child properties)
- Complete frontend integration with Go API endpoints

##  Additional Improvements
- Fix compilation errors in threaded_comment_widget.dart (orphaned child property)
- Update video_comments_sheet.dart to use proper named parameters
- Comprehensive error handling and validation
- Production-ready notification system with deep linking

##  Migration Status: 100% Complete
- Backend: Fully migrated from Supabase to custom Go/Gin API
- Frontend: Integrated with new Go endpoints
- Notifications: Complete FCM integration with smart routing
- Database: Clean of all Supabase dependencies
- Features: All functionality preserved and enhanced

Ready for VPS deployment and production testing!
2026-01-30 09:24:31 -06:00

2.8 KiB

Sojorn Database Architecture & Context

Last Updated: January 27, 2026

Overview

The Sojorn backend uses a PostgreSQL database hosted on a VPS. It is critical to note that there are multiple databases present in the Postgres instance, and the application serves from a specific one.

Connection Details

  • Host: localhost (Internal to VPS)
  • Port: 5432
  • Primary Database Name: sojorn
  • User: postgres
  • SSL Mode: disable
  • Application Config Source: /opt/sojorn/.env (on VPS)

Warning: Do not assume the database is named postgres. Always target the sojorn database for application schema changes.

Critical Key Tables & Schema Notes

1. Profiles (public.profiles)

Stores user identity and global configuration.

Column Type Notes
id UUID Primary Key
handle Text Unique user handle (username)
is_private Boolean Crucial: Controls visibility in global feeds. Defaults to FALSE.
is_official Boolean Crucial: Verification badge / official account status.
identity_key Text For E2EE (Signal Protocol)

2. Follows (public.follows)

Manages the social graph.

Column Type Notes
follower_id UUID User DOING the following
following_id UUID User BEING followed
status Text Crucial: Must be 'accepted' or 'pending'. Logic joins on status='accepted'.

3. Posts (public.posts)

Column Type Notes
duration_ms Int Nullable. Can be NULL for non-video posts. Queries MUST use COALESCE(duration_ms, 0).
is_beacon Boolean Determines if post is location-aware.
location Geography Post coordinates (PostGIS).

Troubleshooting & Maintenance

Accessing the Database (CLI)

To manually inspect or patch the database, use the following command pattern on the VPS:

# Connect specifically to the 'sojorn' database
export PGPASSWORD='YOUR_PASSWORD'
psql -U postgres -h localhost -d sojorn

Common Pitfalls

  1. Patching postgres instead of sojorn: Running psql without -d sojorn defaults to the postgres system DB. Schema changes here WON'T affect the app.
  2. Null Scanning: Go's database/sql driver will panic or error if you try to Scan a SQL NULL into a non-pointer primitive (e.g., int vs *int or NullInt). Always use COALESCE in SQL queries for nullable optional fields like duration_ms, image_url.
  3. Scan Mismatches: If you add a column to a SELECT query, you MUST add a corresponding destination variable in rows.Scan().

Migration Strategy

  • The project currently relies on imperative SQL patches or golang-migrate scripts.
  • Ensure any migration scripts target the DATABASE_URL defined in .env.