Back-End Development Checklist

Functional Testing

• Verify all endpoints are functioning as expected.
• Ensure all input validations are working correctly (e.g., required fields, data types).
• Test all business logic to ensure it performs as intended.
• Confirm that database operations (CRUD) are working correctly.

Security

• Validate that all input data is properly sanitized and validated.
• Ensure proper authentication and authorization mechanisms are in place.
• Confirm that sensitive data (e.g., passwords, tokens) is encrypted and securely stored.
• Check for common security vulnerabilities such as SQL injection, XSS, CSRF, etc.
• Verify that secure communication protocols (e.g., HTTPS) are used.

Performance

• Test the performance of endpoints to ensure they respond in a timely manner.
• Optimize database queries to minimize load times.
• Confirm that the system can handle the expected load (conduct load testing if necessary).
• Check for efficient use of resources (CPU, memory).

Error Handling

• Ensure that meaningful error messages are returned for client-side handling.
• Confirm that errors are logged appropriately for troubleshooting.
• Verify that the system handles exceptions gracefully and maintains stability.

Code Quality

• Review the code for readability and maintainability.
• Ensure that the code adheres to the project's coding standards and guidelines.
• Remove any commented-out code or unnecessary debugging logs.
• Conduct a peer review or code review with another team member.

Documentation

• Update API documentation to reflect new or changed endpoints.
• Document any new business logic or important changes in the code.
• Ensure database schema changes are documented.
• Add comments to the code where necessary to explain complex logic.

Database

• Verify that all database schema changes have been applied correctly.
• Ensure that database migrations are created and tested.
• Confirm that database indexing is appropriate for new queries.
• Backup the database before deploying any changes.

Deployment

• Test deployment scripts to ensure they work correctly.
• Confirm that environment-specific configurations are set up properly.
• Verify that the application works in a staging environment before deploying to production.
• Monitor the application post-deployment to ensure it operates smoothly.

Final Review

• Ensure all tasks and requirements from the ticket or user story are complete.
• Communicate to the QA team that the feature is ready for testing.
• Prepare a release note if necessary, detailing the changes made.
• Ensure that all feedback from code reviews has been addressed.