Node.js HTTP & HTTPS Core Modules - Building Fast Web Servers From Scratch

Before web frameworks like Express or Fastify existed, developers built web servers using Node.js's built-in http and https modules. Understanding how pure HTTP servers handle routing, HTTP headers, status codes, and request streams will make you a much stronger backend engineer.

Building a Complete HTTP Router with Pure Node.js

The following example demonstrates routing, query parameter parsing, and POST payload handling without any external third-party NPM packages:

// pure-http-server.js
const http = require('http');
const { URL } = require('url');

const PORT = 3000;

const server = http.createServer((req, res) => {
  // Parse full URL and search parameters
  const parsedUrl = new URL(req.url, `http://${req.headers.host}`);
  const path = parsedUrl.pathname;
  const method = req.method;

  // Helper to send JSON responses
  const sendJson = (statusCode, data) => {
    res.writeHead(statusCode, {
      'Content-Type': 'application/json',
      'X-Powered-By': 'Veewom Pure Node.js Engine'
    });
    res.end(JSON.stringify(data, null, 2));
  };

  // Route 1: GET /
  if (method === 'GET' && path === '/') {
    return sendJson(200, {
      message: 'Welcome to Veewom Pure HTTP Server API',
      status: 'active'
    });
  }

  // Route 2: GET /api/greet?name=Rahul
  if (method === 'GET' && path === '/api/greet') {
    const name = parsedUrl.searchParams.get('name') || 'Guest';
    return sendJson(200, { greeting: `Hello, ${name}!` });
  }

  // Route 3: POST /api/feedback (Handling Incoming Stream Body)
  if (method === 'POST' && path === '/api/feedback') {
    let bodyChunks = [];

    // Collect streaming data chunks
    req.on('data', (chunk) => {
      bodyChunks.push(chunk);
    });

    // Entire stream received
    req.on('end', () => {
      try {
        const bodyBuffer = Buffer.concat(bodyChunks);
        const parsedBody = JSON.parse(bodyBuffer.toString('utf8'));

        console.log('Received feedback:', parsedBody);

        return sendJson(201, {
          success: true,
          message: 'Feedback received successfully!',
          dataReceived: parsedBody
        });
      } catch (err) {
        return sendJson(400, { error: 'Invalid JSON payload received' });
      }
    });

    return; // Don't end response prematurely!
  }

  // Fallback 404 Not Found
  return sendJson(404, { error: 'Route not found' });
});

server.listen(PORT, () => {
  console.log(`Pure HTTP server running at http://localhost:${PORT}/`);
});

Enabling HTTPS with SSL/TLS Certificates

In production, all traffic must be encrypted over HTTPS. The https module accepts your SSL certificates generated by Let's Encrypt or OpenSSL:

const https = require('https');
const fs = require('fs');

const sslOptions = {
  key: fs.readFileSync('certs/privkey.pem'),
  cert: fs.readFileSync('certs/fullchain.pem')
};

https.createServer(sslOptions, (req, res) => {
  res.writeHead(200, { 'Content-Type': 'text/plain' });
  res.end('Secure HTTPS connection established with Veewom server!
');
}).listen(8443, () => {
  console.log('Secure HTTPS server live on port 8443');
});