RSS Reader

A modern web-based RSS feed reader built with Rust and Rocket. Features a clean, dark-themed interface that allows you to:

• Add and manage RSS/Atom feeds
• View feed entries with titles, summaries, and timestamps
• Poll feeds for updates
• Organize feeds with categories
• Multi-user support with admin capabilities

Installation

Using Nix

This project is packaged with Nix flakes. To install and run it:

1. Make sure you have Nix installed with flakes enabled. Add this to your /etc/nix/nix.conf if you haven't already:

   experimental-features = nix-command flakes
   

2. Install the package:

   nix profile install git+https://code.everydayimshuflin.com/greg/rss-reader
   

   Or run it directly:

   # Run with a persistent database
   nix run git+https://code.everydayimshuflin.com/greg/rss-reader -- -d /path/to/database.sqlite
   
   # Or try it out in demo mode (uses in-memory database)
   nix run git+https://code.everydayimshuflin.com/greg/rss-reader -- --demo
   

The application requires a SECRET_KEY environment variable to be set in order to run. This key is used for encrypting cookies and other security-related functionality. This is the same secret key described in Rocket's documentation.

You can generate a suitable secret key using OpenSSL:

export SECRET_KEY=$(openssl rand -base64 32)

Development

To set up a development environment:

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://code.everydayimshuflin.com/greg/rss-reader.git
   cd rss-reader
   

2. Generate a secret key and set it in your environment:

   export SECRET_KEY=$(openssl rand -base64 32)
   

3. Enter the development shell:

   nix develop
   

4. Build and run the application from source:

   # Run with a persistent database on default port (8000)
   cargo run -- -d rss-reader.db
   
   # Run on a specific port
   cargo run -- -d rss-reader.db -p 3000
   
   # Run in demo mode with custom port
   cargo run -- --demo -p 8080
   

The application will be available at http://localhost:<port> (default port is 8000).

Command Line Options

• -d, --database <PATH> - Path to the SQLite database file (required unless in demo mode)
• --demo - Run in demo mode with an in-memory database
• -p, --port <PORT> - Port to listen on (default: 8000)

Running in Production

For production deployments, make sure to:

1. Generate a strong secret key:

   openssl rand -base64 32
   

2. Set it permanently in your environment or service configuration:

   export SECRET_KEY="your-generated-key"
   

3. Keep this key consistent across application restarts to maintain user sessions
4. Never share or commit this key to version control

Demo Mode

When running in demo mode (using the --demo flag), the application will:

• Use an in-memory SQLite database that is cleared when the application stops
• Create two pre-configured users:
  • Admin user: username admin, password admin
  • Regular user: username demo, password demo