Braden Kelley
All Posts by Braden Kelley
JWTs in React for Secure Authentication
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. Although authentication is a common requirement for web apps, it can be difficult to get it right, especially if you’re by yourself or part...
Build a Secure React Application with JWTs and Redux
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. If you’ve worked with React at all, chances are you’ve at least heard of Redux. But you may not know what it is, how...
Build Simple Authentication in Express in 15 Minutes
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. Building web pages with user authentication can be a huge pain. You typically need to set up some sort of database to manage users...
Build a CRUD App with Node.js and GraphQL
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. There are so many options when it comes to building out a simple CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) app. The most refreshing data access...
Build a Node.js API with TypeScript
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. JavaScript has been turning into more and more of a robust language and is no longer just seen in browsers. Server-side JavaScript has become...
Build a REST API with Node and Postgres
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. If you haven’t heard of PostgreSQL (often called Postgres), today’s your lucky day. It’s a robust, open source relational database that powers some of...
A Beginner's Guide to Redux
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. React has gained a lot of popularity over the last few years, and Redux is a term often heard in combination with it. While...
Simple User Authentication in React
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. In 2019, it’s quite easy to find React components for pretty much everything. For example, if you want to add user authentication to your...
Build Your First Router in Node with Express
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. If you’ve done any web development with Node in the last few years, you’ve probably used Express. Even if you haven’t used it directly,...
Create and Verify JWTs with Node
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. Authentication on the internet has evolved quite a bit over the years. There are many ways to do it, but what worked well enough...
Build a Simple Web App with Express, React and GraphQL
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. GraphQL and React have both become quite popular in the last few years, and it’s safe to say they go together like avocado and...
Build a Simple API Service with Express and GraphQL
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. GraphQL has become an immensely popular alternative to REST APIs. The flexibility you get from using GraphQL makes it easier for developers to get...
Build a Simple REST API with Node and OAuth 2.0
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. JavaScript is used everywhere on the web - nearly every web page will include at least some JavaScript, and even if it doesn’t, your...
Build a CRUD-y SPA with Node and Angular
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. Even before the release of Angular 6, Angular had gone through some changes over the years. The biggest one was the jump from AngularJS...
Build a Basic CRUD App with Node and React
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. There are a lot of JavaScript frameworks out there today. It seems like I hear about a new one every month or so. They...
How to Securely Manage Users in Your Node App
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. If you’re building a non-trivial website, chances are you’ll want some way to keep track of users. This can be quite complex and require...
Secure a Node API with OAuth 2.0 Client Credentials
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. Securing server-to-server API services can be tricky. OAuth 2.0 is an excellent way to offload user authentication to another service, but what if there...
Simple Multi-Factor Authentication in Node
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. If you’re building a web application, chances are you’re going to want to serve different content depending on the user. Authenticating users can be...
Simple Node Authentication
Note: In May 2025, the Okta Integrator Free Plan replaced Okta Developer Edition Accounts, and the Okta CLI was deprecated. We preserved this post for reference, but the instructions no longer work exactly as written. Replace the Okta CLI commands by manually configuring Okta following the instructions in our Developer Documentation. Authenticating users for Node.js/Express.js web apps can be difficult. You have to set up a database, define a user schema (or use something more...