AutomateKE 2.0

A working multi-tenant SaaS platform for Kenyan SMEs: CRM, M-Pesa payment automation, SMS/WhatsApp customer touchpoints, and automatic Day 1/3/7 follow-ups — all in one dashboard.

What's in this repo

• public/ — the frontend (static HTML/CSS/JS, no build step)
  • index.html — marketing/landing page
  • admin.html — your super-admin panel (add clients, see revenue, configure integrations)
  • dashboard.html — what each client sees (their CRM, transactions, follow-ups)
  • portal.html — the public payment page clients share with their own customers
  • js/api.js — shared helper that talks to the backend
• server/ — the Node.js/Express backend (JSON-file database, no separate DB server needed)
  • routes/ — API endpoints (auth, clients, transactions, contacts, followups, settings)
  • lib/ — M-Pesa Daraja, Africa's Talking SMS, JWT auth, JSON storage
  • cron/followups.js — background job that sends due follow-up SMS every 15 minutes
  • data/db.json — the database file (created automatically, not committed to git)

What to push to GitHub

Everything in this repo except:

• node_modules/ (already gitignored — installed fresh on the server)
• .env (already gitignored — your real secrets live only on the server)
• server/data/db.json (already gitignored — this is your live business data, not source code)

In short: just commit and push normally. The .gitignore already keeps secrets and data out.

What to upload/deploy to Truehost

Truehost (cPanel) hosting needs three things this repo doesn't include by default:

1. The code itself — either git clone your repo directly on the server (if Truehost gives you SSH/git access), or zip the repo and upload via cPanel File Manager, then extract it into your app's folder.
2. node_modules/ — run npm install on the server after upload (don't upload your local node_modules, it's gitignored and platform-specific anyway).
3. A real .env file — create this directly on the server (cPanel File Manager → create file .env in the project root, or via SSH). Never commit this file. Use .env.example as the template.

Step-by-step on Truehost cPanel

1. Log in to cPanel → find "Setup Node.js App" (under Software section). If your Truehost plan doesn't have this, you'll need their VPS plan instead — basic shared hosting without Node.js support cannot run this backend.
2. Create a new Node.js app:
   • Node version: 18 or higher
   • Application root: e.g. automate-ke (a folder under your account)
   • Application URL: your domain or subdomain
   • Application startup file: server/index.js
3. Upload the code into that application root folder (via Git, File Manager zip upload, or FTP) — same contents as this GitHub repo.
4. Set Environment Variables in the same "Setup Node.js App" screen (this is the secure equivalent of a .env file — Truehost's panel lets you add them directly, or you can create a real .env file in the app folder if your setup doesn't expose this panel):

   PORT=<the port Truehost assigns — leave default if shown>
   JWT_SECRET=<a long random string — generate one, don't reuse the example>
   ADMIN_PASSWORD=<your real admin password>
   APP_URL=https://yourdomain.co.ke
   MPESA_ENV=production
   MPESA_CONSUMER_KEY=<from developer.safaricom.co.ke>
   MPESA_CONSUMER_SECRET=<from developer.safaricom.co.ke>
   MPESA_SHORTCODE=<your Paybill/Till number>
   MPESA_PASSKEY=<from Safaricom Daraja portal>
   MPESA_CALLBACK_URL=https://yourdomain.co.ke/api/transactions/mpesa/callback
   AT_ENV=production
   AT_API_KEY=<from africastalking.com>
   AT_USERNAME=<your AT username>
   AT_SENDER_ID=AutomateKE
   

   You can leave the MPESA_* and AT_* variables empty at first — the app runs fine without them (payments are recorded as "simulated" and SMS sending is silently skipped) so you can demo the platform before signing up for real credentials.
5. Run "NPM Install" from the same Node.js App panel (there's usually a button for this — it runs npm install inside the app's virtual environment).
6. Start/Restart the app from the panel.
7. Visit your domain — you should see the landing page. Visit /admin.html and log in with the ADMIN_PASSWORD you set.

Getting real credentials (optional, app works without them first)

• M-Pesa Daraja: sign up free at developer.safaricom.co.ke, create an app, get sandbox keys to test, then apply for "Go Live" to get production keys against your real Paybill/Till number.
• Africa's Talking SMS: sign up free at africastalking.com, get an API key (sandbox first, then buy SMS credit for production).

Local development

npm install
cp .env.example .env   # then fill in JWT_SECRET and ADMIN_PASSWORD at minimum
npm run dev

Visit http://localhost:4000. Default admin password (until you change it via the Settings page) is whatever you set as ADMIN_PASSWORD in .env.

How the pieces fit together

1. You (super-admin) log into /admin.html and add a client business — this creates their dashboard login and a unique payment-portal link.
2. You send that client their dashboard link (/dashboard.html) and login, plus their portal link (/portal.html?key=...) to share with their own customers.
3. The client's customers pay via the portal — M-Pesa STK push if configured, otherwise a clearly-flagged simulated payment so the flow still works end-to-end.
4. The client uses their dashboard's CRM tab to track leads, send SMS, and schedule Day 1/3/7 follow-ups — these are sent automatically by the background cron job in server/cron/followups.js.

Known limitations / upgrade paths

• WhatsApp currently uses wa.me click-to-chat links (one tap opens WhatsApp with a pre-filled message). A fully automated WhatsApp bot requires Meta Business verification for the WhatsApp Cloud API — a future upgrade, not implemented here.
• WiFi voucher redemption is a simplified client-side check, not a real MikroTik router integration. Real router integration is a future upgrade per WiFi client.
• Database is a single JSON file with atomic writes — fine for the scale of a single Truehost app, but if you outgrow it, migrate to Postgres/MySQL.