nestjs-documentation

OpenAPI & Documentation

Priority: P2 (MEDIUM)

Workflow

1. Enable Swagger plugin in nest-cli.json to auto-generate @ApiProperty from DTOs.
2. Annotate controllers with @ApiTags, @ApiResponse, and auth decorators.
3. Create generic wrappers for paginated and polymorphic responses.
4. Generate separate docs for public vs internal audiences.

Setup

See implementation examples for nest-cli.json plugin config and Swagger bootstrap.

Response Documentation

• Strictness: Every controller method must @ApiResponse({ status: 200, type: UserDto }).
• Generic Wrappers: Define ApiPaginatedResponse<T> decorators using ApiExtraModels + getSchemaPath() to handle generics properly.

Advanced Patterns

• Polymorphism: Use @ApiExtraModels and getSchemaPath for oneOf/anyOf union types.
• File Uploads: Use @ApiConsumes('multipart/form-data') with explicit @ApiBody schema.
• Authentication: Use @ApiBearerAuth() or @ApiSecurity('api-key') matching DocumentBuilder config.
• Enums: Force named enums: @ApiProperty({ enum: MyEnum, enumName: 'MyEnum' }).

Operation Grouping

• Tags: Mandatory @ApiTags('domains') on every Controller.
• Multiple Docs: Generate separate docs for different audiences (Public vs Internal).

See implementation examples

Anti-Patterns

• No missing @ApiResponse: Every controller method must declare its response type and status code.
• No /docs in production: Disable Swagger in production to prevent API schema exposure.
• No manual @ApiProperty everywhere: Use Nest CLI Swagger plugin to auto-generate from DTOs.