# 🌊 Surf-Hub

A self-hosted observability stack built to monitor and visualize real-time surf conditions. 

**Surf-Hub** demonstrates a "DevOps approach" to a personal hobby. Instead of checking manual forecasts, this project automates data collection and visualization using industry-standard tools like **Grafana**, **InfluxDB**, and **Node.js**.

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## 🚀 Overview

The goal of this project is to create a persistent, historical record of local surf conditions (swell height, period, and wind) and display them in a high-visibility dashboard.

### 🛠️ The Tech Stack
* **Backend:** Node.js (Service-oriented architecture)
* **Database:** InfluxDB 2.x (Time-series data storage)
* **Visualization:** Grafana
* **Deployment:** Docker / Docker Compose
* **Architecture:** Multi-platform builds via `docker buildx` for `linux/amd64` compatibility.

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## 📊 Dashboard Preview
*(Tip: Replace this with a screenshot of your Grafana dashboard once it's live!)*
> ![Dashboard Screenshot](https://via.placeholder.com/800x400?text=Grafana+Surf+Dashboard+Preview)

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## ⚙️ How It Works

1.  **Data Ingestion:** A Node.js service polls a weather/surf API (e.g., Open-Meteo) every hour.
2.  **Time-Series Storage:** The data is normalized and pushed to **InfluxDB**, allowing for historical trend analysis.
3.  **Visualization:** **Grafana** queries InfluxDB to render "Live Condition" tiles and time-series graphs.
4.  **Containerization:** The entire stack is orchestrated via Docker Compose for easy deployment to any server.

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## 🛠️ Setup & Installation

### Prerequisites
* Docker & Docker Compose
* An API key from your chosen surf/weather data provider

### Quick Start
1. **Clone the repo:**
   ```bash
   git clone https://git.georgew.dev/<YOUR_USERNAME>/surf-hub.git
   cd surf-hub
2. **Configure environment:**
   Create a .env file with your API credentials and InfluxDB tokens.
3. **Deploy the stack:**
   Create a .env file with your API credentials and InfluxDB tokens.
   ```bash
   docker compose up -d
   ```
4. **Build the Fetcher (Cross-Platform):**
   Create a .env file with your API credentials and InfluxDB tokens.
   ```bash
   docker buildx build --platform linux/amd64 -t surf-fetcher:latest ./fetcher --load
   ```

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## 🚀 Lessons Learned

- Implementing time-series data structures for fluctuating environmental data.
- Managing containerized environments and cross-architecture builds using buildx.
- Designing intuitive dashboards that provide "glanceable" information.