First Setup

After installing GO Shortener and ensuring the service is running, follow this guide to initialize the system and claim ownership of your instance.

1. The Zero-Hardcoded Super Admin Bootstrap

GO Shortener does not ship with hardcoded default administrative credentials. Instead, it utilizes an automatic first-registration claim model:

Claiming Ownership:

1. Open your browser and navigate to your deployed domain (e.g., https://go.arcn.online/register) or http://localhost:3000/register.
2. Register a new user account with your name, email, and a strong password (or click Continue with Google if Firebase is configured).
3. Upon registration, the backend checks the user table. Finding zero pre-existing users, it automatically sets:
   • role = "super_admin"
   • status = "active"
4. You will immediately have unrestricted access to the Admin Control Center at /admin.

2. Accessing the Admin Panel

Once logged into your super_admin account, click on your profile avatar in the header or navigate directly to:

https://go.arcn.online/admin

From the Admin Control Center, you can:

• Review global system metrics (total links, clicks, and registered users).
• Manage user roles and inspect activity.
• Moderate links and handle pending abuse reports.
• Review permanent link requests.
• Inspect the security audit records at /admin/login-records.

3. Post-Installation Verification Checklist

Complete these four quick checks to ensure your instance is fully operational:

• Health Check: Run curl http://127.0.0.1:3000/api/health and verify {"status":"ok"} is returned.
• Anonymous Link Creation: Visit your homepage without logging in, enter a test URL (e.g., https://github.com), select an expiration (e.g., 7 days), and confirm a short link is generated.
• Redirection Test: Open the generated short URL in a new browser tab and confirm you are immediately redirected (HTTP 302) to the destination.
• Database Integrity: Confirm that /root/Go-shortner/data/go.sqlite has been created and is actively operating in WAL mode:
  Terminal

  ls -lh /root/Go-shortner/data/
  # You should see go.sqlite, go.sqlite-wal, and go.sqlite-shm
  

4. Development Bootstrap Credentials (Optional)

In local development environments, you may optionally supply seed credentials in your .env file:

ADMIN_BOOTSTRAP_EMAIL=admin@example.com
ADMIN_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD=ChangeMeOnFirstLogin123!

If configured and the database has no registered users, GO will automatically provision this administrator account at boot time.