backend-dev-guidelines

What this skill does

# Backend Development Guidelines

## Purpose

Establish consistency and best practices across Langfuse's backend packages (web, worker, packages/shared) using Next.js 14, tRPC, BullMQ, and TypeScript patterns.

## When to Use This Skill

Automatically activates when working on:

- Creating or modifying tRPC routers and procedures
- Creating or modifying public API endpoints (REST)
- Creating or modifying BullMQ queue consumers and producers
- Building services with business logic
- Authenticating API requests
- Accessing resources based on entitlements
- Implementing middleware (tRPC, NextAuth, public API)
- Database operations with Prisma (PostgreSQL) or ClickHouse
- Observability with OpenTelemetry, DataDog, logger, and traceException
- Input validation with Zod v4
- Environment configuration from env variables
- Backend testing and refactoring

---

## Quick Start

### UI: New tRPC Feature Checklist (Web)

- [ ] **Router**: Define in `features/[feature]/server/*Router.ts`
- [ ] **Procedures**: Use appropriate procedure type (protected, public)
- [ ] **Authentication**: Use JWT authorization via middlewares.
- [ ] **Entitlement check**: Access resources based on resource and role
- [ ] **Validation**: Zod v4 schema for input
- [ ] **Service**: Business logic in service file
- [ ] **Error handling**: Use traceException wrapper
- [ ] **Tests**: Unit + integration tests in `__tests__/`
- [ ] **Config**: Access via env.mjs

### SDKs: New Public API Endpoint Checklist (Web)

- [ ] **Route file**: Create in `pages/api/public/`
- [ ] **Wrapper**: Use `withMiddlewares` + `createAuthedProjectAPIRoute`
- [ ] **Types**: Define in `features/public-api/types/`
- [ ] **Authentication**: Authorization via basic auth
- [ ] **Validation**: Zod schemas for query/body/response
- [ ] **Versioning**: Versioning in API path and Zod schemas for query/body/response
- [ ] **Tests**: Add end-to-end test in `__tests__/async/`

### New Queue Processor Checklist (Worker)

- [ ] **Processor**: Create in `worker/src/queues/`
- [ ] **Queue types**: Create queue types in `packages/shared/src/server/queues`
- [ ] **Service**: Business logic in `features/` or `worker/src/features/`
- [ ] **Error handling**: Distinguish between errors which should fail queue processing and errors which should result in a succeeded event.
- [ ] **Queue registration**: Add to WorkerManager in app.ts
- [ ] **Tests**: Add vitest tests in worker

---

## Architecture Overview

### Layered Architecture

```
# Web Package (Next.js 14)

┌─ tRPC API ──────────────────┐   ┌── Public REST API ──────────┐
│                             │   │                             │
│  HTTP Request               │   │  HTTP Request               │
│      ↓                      │   │      ↓                      │
│  tRPC Procedure             │   │  withMiddlewares +          │
│  (protectedProjectProcedure)│   │  createAuthedProjectAPIRoute│
│      ↓                      │   │      ↓                      │
│  Service (business logic)   │   │  Service (business logic)   │
│      ↓                      │   │      ↓                      │
│  Prisma / ClickHouse        │   │  Prisma / ClickHouse        │
│                             │   │                             │
└─────────────────────────────┘   └─────────────────────────────┘
                 ↓
            [optional]: Publish to Redis BullMQ queue
                 ↓
┌─ Worker Package (Express) ──────────────────────────────────┐
│                                                             │
│  BullMQ Queue Job                                           │
│      ↓                                                      │
│  Queue Processor (handles job)                              │
│      ↓                                                      │
│  Service (business logic)                                   │
│      ↓                                                      │
│  Prisma / ClickHouse                                        │
│                                                             │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```

**Key Principles:**

- **Web**: tRPC procedures for UI OR public API routes for SDKs → Services → Database
- **Worker**: Queue processors → Services → Database
- **packages/shared**: Shared code for Web and Worker

See [architecture-overview.md](architecture-overview.md) for complete details.

---

## Directory Structure

### Web Package (`/web/`)

```
web/src/
├── features/                # Feature-organized code
│   ├── [feature-name]/
│   │   ├── server/          # Backend logic
│   │   │   ├── *Router.ts   # tRPC router
│   │   │   └── service.ts   # Business logic
│   │   ├── components/      # React components
│   │   └── types/           # Feature types
├── server/
│   ├── api/
│   │   ├── routers/         # tRPC routers
│   │   ├── trpc.ts          # tRPC setup & middleware
│   │   └── root.ts          # Main router
│   ├── auth.ts              # NextAuth.js config
│   └── db.ts                # Database client
├── pages/
│   ├── api/
│   │   ├── public/          # Public REST APIs
│   │   └── trpc/            # tRPC endpoint
│   └── [routes].tsx         # Next.js pages
├── __tests__/               # Jest tests
│   └── async/               # Integration tests
├── instrumentation.ts       # OpenTelemetry (FIRST IMPORT)
└── env.mjs                  # Environment config
```

### Worker Package (`/worker/`)

```
worker/src/
├── queues/                  # BullMQ processors
│   ├── evalQueue.ts
│   ├── ingestionQueue.ts
│   └── workerManager.ts
├── features/                # Business logic
│   └── [feature]/
│       └── service.ts
├── instrumentation.ts       # OpenTelemetry (FIRST IMPORT)
├── app.ts                   # Express setup + queue registration
├── env.ts                   # Environment config
└── index.ts                 # Server start
```

### Shared Package (`/packages/shared/`)

```
shared/src/
├── server/                  # Server utilities
│   ├── auth/                # Authentication helpers
│   ├── clickhouse/          # ClickHouse client & schema
│   ├── instrumentation/     # OpenTelemetry helpers
│   ├── llm/                 # LLM integration utilities
│   ├── redis/               # Redis queues & cache
│   ├── repositories/        # Data repositories
│   ├── services/            # Shared services
│   ├── utils/               # Server utilities
│   ├── logger.ts
│   └── queues.ts
├── encryption/              # Encryption utilities
├── features/                # Feature-specific code
├── tableDefinitions/        # Table schemas
├── utils/                   # Shared utilities
├── constants.ts
├── db.ts                    # Prisma client
├── env.ts                   # Environment config
└── index.ts                 # Main exports
```

**Import Paths (package.json exports):**

The shared package exposes specific import paths for different use cases:

| Import Path                                | Maps To                           | Use For                                                         |
| ------------------------------------------ | --------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `@langfuse/shared`                         | `dist/src/index.js`               | General types, schemas, utilities, constants                    |
| `@langfuse/shared/src/db`                  | `dist/src/db.js`                  | Prisma client and database types                                |
| `@langfuse/shared/src/server`              | `dist/src/server/index.js`        | Server-side utilities (queues, auth, services, instrumentation) |
| `@langfuse/shared/src/server/auth/apiKeys` | `dist/src/server/auth/apiKeys.js` | API key management utilities                                    |
| `@langfuse/shared/encryption`              | `dist/src/encryption/index.js`    | Encryption and signature utilities                              |

**Usage Examples:*