Multi-Service SaaS Backend

A SaaS backend starter built with Encore.ts, demonstrating multi-service architecture with event-driven communication.

Deploy to Encore

Architecture

This app has three services, each with its own database:

  • auth — Authentication handler. Reads auth_user from the query string (placeholder for demo purposes).
  • user — User management. Publishes UserCreated events.
  • billing — Subscription management. Subscribes to UserCreated to auto-provision free plans. Publishes PlanChanged events on upgrades. Authenticated endpoints.
  • project — Project management. Enforces plan-based limits (free: 3, pro: 25, enterprise: unlimited) via the billing service. Project creation requires authentication.

Patterns demonstrated

  • Authentication — A placeholder auth handler reads the user ID from the ?auth_user= query parameter. In a real app, replace this with JWT validation, session cookies, or an auth provider like Clerk or Auth0.
  • Event-driven provisioning — When a user signs up, the billing service automatically creates a free subscription via Pub/Sub.
  • Plan-based limits — The project service calls the billing service to enforce project limits based on the user's plan.
  • Cross-service authorization — Authenticated endpoints resolve the user from the auth context and pass it to downstream services.
  • Database per service — Each service owns its data, with no shared tables.

Getting Started

encore run

The Postgres databases are provisioned automatically on startup. Each service gets its own database — no manual setup required.

Open http://localhost:4000 for usage instructions, or http://localhost:9400 for the Local Dashboard. When deployed to Encore Cloud, use the Service Catalog to call endpoints and view traces to see how requests flow between services.

API Endpoints

Users

# Create a user
curl -X POST http://localhost:4000/users \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email": "[email protected]", "name": "Alice"}'

# List users
curl http://localhost:4000/users

# Get a user
curl http://localhost:4000/users/<user_id>

Billing

# Get billing info (auto-created after user signup)
curl "http://localhost:4000/billing?auth_user=<user_id>"

# Upgrade plan
curl -X POST "http://localhost:4000/billing/upgrade?auth_user=<user_id>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"plan": "pro"}'

Projects

# Create a project (enforces plan-based limits, requires auth)
curl -X POST "http://localhost:4000/projects?auth_user=<user_id>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "My Project", "description": "A great project"}'

# List projects
curl http://localhost:4000/projects

# List by owner
curl "http://localhost:4000/projects?owner_id=<user_id>"

# Get a project
curl http://localhost:4000/projects/<project_id>