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Case Study 06

Real-Time Multi-User Chat

From-scratch real-time messaging system using Bun's native WebSocket server — no frameworks, pure fundamentals.

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None
Framework
None
ORM
Bun
Runtime
Custom WS
Protocol

The Problem

Needed a from-scratch real-time messaging system to demonstrate WebSocket fundamentals and serve as a reference implementation. No frameworks, no ORMs — pure fundamentals.

The Solution

  • Built with Bun runtime's native HTTP + WebSocket server (no Express, no Fastify)
  • PostgreSQL with raw SQL queries and manual migration system
  • React frontend with Vite
  • Custom WebSocket protocol with JSON message types
  • Read/unread (seen) feature with per-user tracking
  • Chat rooms with real-time message broadcasting
  • JWT auth with Bun.password hashing

Tech Stack

Bun TypeScript PostgreSQL React Vite WebSocket

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