Level 7 challenge

Put it all together — build a complete server

⏱ Est. ~6 min

01 · Read

Time to put everything you've learned together. In this challenge you'll build a complete server from scratch, combining everything from Level 7:- Serve an HTML page - Text routes - A JSON API endpoint - Query parameters - Properly configured project with .gitignore - Version control with Git and GitHub

There's no step-by-step hand-holding here. You have the knowledge from the previous lessons. Check the hints if you get stuck — but try on your own first.

This is what real development feels like: you know each piece, and now you're assembling them into a complete thing.

Key points

This challenge combines everything from Level 7
Try each step on your own first, then check the hint
It's fine to flip back to previous lessons for reference
When you're done, you'll have a real project on GitHub

02 · Checklist

Build a server with all the features below. Check off each one as you complete it.

GET / serves an HTML welcome page
GET /about serves an about page
GET /api/time returns JSON with the current time
GET /api/greeting?name=Sara returns a personalized greeting
A proper .gitignore with node_modules/ and .env
Project pushed to GitHub

03 · Quiz

Before pushing your Node.js project to GitHub, which file do you need to create to avoid committing node_modules?

.env
package-lock.json
.npmrc
.gitignore

04 · Fill in the blank

To return JSON data from an Express route handler, use res._____(data) instead of res.send(data).

05 · Read

Congratulations — you just built a real web server and shipped it to GitHub.

Let that sink in. A few lessons ago, you installed Node.js for the first time. Now you have:- A working web server that serves HTML pages - An API endpoint returning live JSON data - Dynamic routes that respond to user input (query parameters) - A properly configured project with version control - Your code on GitHub for the world to see

This isn't a toy or a simulation. This is real software, built with the same tools and patterns professional engineers use every day.

Key insight from Level 7: building software isn't about memorizing syntax. It's about understanding each piece — servers, routes, responses, data formats — and assembling them. You understand those pieces now.

Soon, Claude Code will help you assemble them faster and faster.

Key points

You built a real, working web server from scratch
You made HTML pages and JSON API endpoints
Your code is on GitHub — a real project in your portfolio
Up next: Claude Code dramatically accelerates your development speed

06 · Quiz

A new engineer joins your project. They clone the repo from GitHub and run npm install, but the server doesn't start. What file did they most likely forget to create?

The .env file with environment-specific settings
node_modules/ — they need to copy yours manually
.gitignore — the server can't run without it
app.js — the server entry point should be in the repo already

Other lessons in this chapter

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※ This is an independent Traditional Chinese teaching project — not an official Anthropic product. Claude™ is a trademark of Anthropic, PBC.