⚡ You Might Not Need WebSockets – Build a Real-Time Chat with Server-Sent Events (SSE)

This project shows how to build a real-time chat app without WebSockets using Server-Sent Events (SSE) — a native, simpler alternative for pushing server updates to the client.

✅ No socket errors
✅ No reconnection logic
✅ Native HTTP-based stream

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❓ What Problem Does This Solve?

Most real-time apps default to WebSockets, but that often introduces:

• Extra libraries on both frontend and backend
• Persistent connections and resource management
• Reconnection edge cases and complexity
• Infrastructure scaling challenges

This project solves that by using Server-Sent Events (SSE) to stream updates from server to client with less overhead and no third-party dependencies — ideal when only the server needs to push updates (e.g., chat, notifications, live logs).

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🚀 Features

• Real-time message updates using SSE
• Lightweight and works over HTTP/1.1
• Pure JavaScript (no socket libraries)
• Express backend + React frontend

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🧠 How It Works

• Client sends a message to the server
• Server processes and resolves it to all connected clients via SSE
• Clients receive updates in real-time through an EventSource stream

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📦 Getting Started

1. Start the backend (Express + SSE stream endpoint)
2. Start the frontend (React + EventSource)
3. Type a message — it instantly appears for all connected users

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🤯 Why Not WebSockets?

WebSockets are great, but not always necessary. For one-way, real-time updates from server to client, SSE is simpler and more efficient. No need for complex connection handling — just plug and stream.

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👨‍💻 Author

Built by Joseph Uzuegbu

📜 License

MIT – free to use, modify, and share.