Quick Start Guide

This guide will help you get started with Estate Sentry by testing the API and creating your first sensors.

Prerequisites

Make sure you've completed the Installation and have:

  • API running at http://localhost:8000
  • Admin user created
  • Terminal ready for curl commands

Step 1: Register a User

curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/api/auth/register/ \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "username": "testuser",
    "email": "test@example.com",
    "password": "securepass123",
    "auth_method": "password"
  }'

Step 2: Login and Get Token

curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/api/auth/login/ \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "username": "testuser",
    "password": "securepass123"
  }'

Save the token from the response - you'll need it for authenticated requests.

Example response: 

{
  "token": "abc123def456...",
  "user": {
    "id": 1,
    "username": "testuser",
    "email": "test@example.com"
  }
}

Step 3: Create a Sensor

Replace YOUR_TOKEN_HERE with the token from Step 2:

curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/api/sensors/ \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Token YOUR_TOKEN_HERE" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Front Door Sensor",
    "sensor_type": "DOOR_CONTACT",
    "location": "Main Entrance",
    "status": "ACTIVE"
  }'

Save the sensor id from the response.

Step 4: Submit a Sensor Reading

Replace 1 with your sensor ID and use your token:

curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/api/sensors/1/readings/ \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Token YOUR_TOKEN_HERE" \
  -d '{
    "value": {"state": "open"},
    "reading_type": "contact_state"
  }'

This will automatically create an alert because the door was opened!

Step 5: View Alerts

curl http://localhost:8000/api/alerts/ \
  -H "Authorization: Token YOUR_TOKEN_HERE"

You should see an alert for the door opening.

Step 6: Acknowledge an Alert

Replace 1 with your alert ID:

curl -X PATCH http://localhost:8000/api/alerts/1/acknowledge/ \
  -H "Authorization: Token YOUR_TOKEN_HERE"

Available Sensor Types

When creating sensors, you can use these sensor types:

  • CAMERA - Camera systems
  • DOOR_CONTACT - Door contact sensors
  • WINDOW_CONTACT - Window contact sensors
  • GLASS_BREAK - Glass break detectors
  • MOTION - Motion detectors
  • SMOKE - Smoke detectors
  • CO - Carbon monoxide detectors
  • WATER_LEAK - Water leak detectors
  • CUSTOM - Custom sensor types

Using Task Commands

If you're using Task, here are some helpful commands:

# Start development servers
task dev

# Run tests
task test

# Create superuser
task api:superuser

# Run migrations
task api:migrate

# View all available tasks
task --list

Using the Admin Interface

  1. Visit http://localhost:8000/admin/
  2. Login with your superuser credentials
  3. Explore:
  4. Users - Manage user accounts
  5. Sensors - View and configure sensors
  6. Sensor readings - View all sensor data
  7. Alerts - Monitor security alerts

Next Steps