Flask Notes API

A simple and clean REST API for note-taking built with Flask and SQLite. Features full CRUD operations with a minimal, easy-to-understand codebase.

Features

• Create Notes: Add new notes with title and content
• Read Notes: Retrieve all notes or a specific note by ID
• Update Notes: Modify existing note titles and content
• Delete Notes: Remove notes permanently
• SQLite Database: Lightweight persistent storage
• RESTful Design: Standard HTTP methods and status codes
• Automatic Timestamps: Created date tracked for each note

Technologies Used

• Python 3
• Flask (Web Framework)
• SQLite3 (Database)

Database Schema

Notes Table

CREATE TABLE notes (
    id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
    title TEXT NOT NULL,
    content TEXT,
    created_at TEXT NOT NULL
)

API Endpoints

Get All Notes

GET /api/notes/

Response: Array of all notes with id, title, content, and timestamp

Example Response:

[
  {
    "id": 1,
    "title": "First Note",
    "content": "This is my first note",
    "created_at": "11/12/2025, 18:35:37"
  }
]

---

Get Single Note

GET /api/notes/<id>

Response: Single note object or 404 error if not found

---

Create New Note

POST /api/notes/
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "title": "Note title",
  "content": "Note content"
}

Response: 201 Created with success message

---

Update Note

PUT /api/notes/<id>
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "title": "Updated title",
  "content": "Updated content"
}

Response: 200 OK with success message or 404 if not found

Note: Both fields are optional - send only the fields you want to update

---

Delete Note

DELETE /api/notes/<id>

Response: 200 OK with success message or 404 if not found

---

Installation & Setup

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/jandaghi14/beginner-flask-notes-api.git
cd beginner-flask-notes-api

2. Install Flask:

pip install flask

3. Run the application:

python app.py

4. Server runs on: http://127.0.0.1:5000

Testing with curl

Create a note

curl -X POST http://127.0.0.1:5000/api/notes/ -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d "{\"title\": \"My first note\", \"content\": \"This is the content\"}"

Get all notes

curl http://127.0.0.1:5000/api/notes/

Get single note

curl http://127.0.0.1:5000/api/notes/1

Update note

curl -X PUT http://127.0.0.1:5000/api/notes/1 -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d "{\"title\": \"Updated title\"}"

Delete note

curl -X DELETE http://127.0.0.1:5000/api/notes/2

Project Structure

beginner-flask-notes-api/
│
├── app.py              # Flask application and API routes
├── database.py         # Database operations and schema
├── .gitignore          # Git ignore rules
└── README.md           # Project documentation

Key Features

Clean Architecture

• Separation of concerns (routes vs database logic)
• Modular code organization
• Easy to understand and maintain

Error Handling

• Proper HTTP status codes (200, 201, 404)
• Descriptive error messages
• Validation for missing notes

Database Design

• Automatic ID generation
• Timestamp tracking
• Optional content field
• Parameterized queries for security

What I Learned

• Building REST APIs with Flask
• SQLite database operations
• HTTP methods and status codes
• JSON request/response handling
• API testing with curl
• Error handling in web applications
• Code organization and modularity

Future Improvements

• Add user authentication
• Implement search functionality
• Add tags/categories for notes
• Pagination for large note collections
• Input validation and sanitization
• Deploy to cloud platform
• Add unit tests

License

This project is open source and available for educational purposes.

Author

Built as part of a Python learning journey - practicing Flask and SQLite integration.