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Follow Object

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Properties

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Characteristics

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One-Way Relationship

• Immediate Effect: No approval workflow required
• Unidirectional: Following someone doesn’t create a mutual relationship
• Public: Follow relationships are typically visible to others
• Content Access: Following grants access to user’s content feed

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Database Constraints

• Unique Constraint: Prevents duplicate follows between same users
• Self-Follow Prevention: Users cannot follow themselves
• Cascade Deletion: Follow relationships are deleted when users are removed

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User Model Associations

// User hasMany Follow as "following" (as follower)
User.hasMany(Follow, {
  foreignKey: "followerId",
  as: "following",
  onDelete: "CASCADE"
});

// User hasMany Follow as "followers" (as followed user)
User.hasMany(Follow, {
  foreignKey: "followedId",
  as: "followers",
  onDelete: "CASCADE"
});

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API Endpoints

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User-Centric Operations

• POST /users/:userId/follow - Follow a user
• GET /users/:userId/follow - Check follow status with user
• DELETE /users/:userId/follow - Unfollow a user
• GET /users/:userId/followers - Get followers of specific user
• GET /users/:userId/followers-count - Get followers count for specific user
• GET /users/:userId/following - Get who specific user follows
• GET /users/:userId/following-count - Get following count for specific user

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Follow-Centric Operations

• GET /follows/following - List accounts I follow
• GET /follows/followers - List accounts that follow me
• GET /follows/following-count - Get my following count
• GET /follows/followers-count - Get my followers count
• DELETE /follows/:followId - Unfollow by follow ID

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Usage Examples

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Following a User

POST /users/user-123/follow
→ Creates Follow record with followerId=current-user, followedId=user-123

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Checking Follow Status

GET /users/user-123/follow
→ Returns: { "isFollowing": true, "followId": "follow-uuid", "followedAt": "..." }

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Getting User’s Followers

GET /users/user-123/followers
→ Returns paginated list of users following user-123

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Business Rules

1. No Self-Following: Users cannot follow themselves
2. Unique Relationships: Only one follow record between any two users
3. Immediate Effect: Follow relationships are created instantly
4. Public Visibility: Follow relationships are generally public
5. No Approval Required: Unlike connections, follows don’t need acceptance

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Performance Considerations

• Indexes: Optimized for queries by followerId, followedId, and projectId
• Pagination: All list endpoints support pagination
• Rate Limiting: Follow actions limited to 75 requests per 5 minutes
• Caching: Consider caching follower/following counts for popular users

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Related Models

• User: The users involved in the follow relationship
• Connection: Bidirectional relationship alternative that requires mutual agreement
• AppNotification: Notifications can be triggered for new follows