Task 1.15: Isolating the Application Routes

Summary

Refactor buylater.email route definitions into a separate routes file to improve code organization, maintainability, and prepare for more complex routing patterns and middleware.

Motivation

Following Let’s Go Chapter 3.5, we need to separate route definitions from main.go to improve code organization and make route management more maintainable as the application grows.

Acceptance Criteria

Create dedicated routes.go file for route definitions
Move all route registration logic from main.go to routes function
Implement clean routes() function that returns configured mux
Maintain all existing route functionality
Group related routes logically with clear comments
Prepare structure for future middleware integration
Update main.go to use routes function
Document route organization and patterns
Ensure route definitions are easy to understand and modify

Technical Requirements

Routes Structure

// routes.go
func (app *application) routes() *http.ServeMux {
    mux := http.NewServeMux()
    
    // Static files
    // Application routes
    // API routes (future)
    
    return mux
}

Implementation Details

Create new cmd/web/routes.go file
Move all mux.Handle() and mux.HandleFunc() calls to routes function
Organize routes by category (static, pages, API, etc.)
Add clear comments explaining route patterns
Return configured mux from routes function
Update main.go to call routes function

Dependencies

Task 1.14 completed (centralized error handling system)

Testing Strategy

Unit Tests

Test routes function returns properly configured mux
Verify all routes are registered correctly

Integration Tests

All existing routes continue to work
Route patterns match correctly
Handler assignments are correct

Manual Testing

Test all existing routes: /, /submit, /about, /confirm/{token}
Verify static file serving still works
Check that POST /submit still functions
Confirm no routes were lost in refactoring

Definition of Done

All acceptance criteria met
All specified tests pass
Code follows project conventions (go fmt, go vet)
Clean separation of concerns achieved
All routes properly organized and documented
No functional regressions in route handling
Human verification completed successfully
Git commit created with proper message format

Implementation Notes

Approach

Extract route definitions from main.go into a dedicated, well-organized routes function that makes route management cleaner and more maintainable.

Key Files to Create/Modify

cmd/web/routes.go - New file with routes function
cmd/web/main.go - Update to use routes function

Route Organization

// Static files
mux.Handle("GET /static/", ...)

// Page routes
mux.Handle("GET /{$}", ...)
mux.Handle("GET /submit", ...)
mux.Handle("GET /about", ...)

// Form processing
mux.Handle("POST /submit", ...)

// API routes (future)
mux.Handle("GET /confirm/{token}", ...)

Benefits

Cleaner main.go focused on application startup
Easier route management and modification
Better organization for growing route complexity
Preparation for middleware integration
Clearer separation of concerns

Potential Risks

Route function could become unwieldy as application grows
Need to maintain proper route organization as features are added

Success Metrics

Clean, well-organized route definitions that are easy to understand, modify, and maintain while preserving all existing functionality.

Blocks: Future middleware implementation and complex routing
Blocked by: Task 3.4 (needs error handling foundation)
Related: Code organization, maintainability, and middleware preparation

Implementation Log

Implementation details will be recorded here during development.

Final Verification

Human Tester: [Name]
Date Completed: [YYYY-MM-DD]
Verification Result: [Pass/Fail]
Notes: [Any issues found or additional observations]

task_id: “1.15” title: “Isolating the Application Routes” status: “pending” priority: “medium” estimated_effort: “small” created: “2025-07-24” assigned_to: “pair” related_rfds: “RFD 004”