Name: Samon Shahzad
Student ID: 35562778
IP Address and Domain: 16.170.98.25 - samonshahzad.com
The Cloud-Based Learning Management System (LMS) is designed to address the evolving educational landscape, offering a cost-effective, scalable, and accessible platform for small educational institutions and independent tutors. Many existing LMS solutions are either overly complex, requiring significant infrastructure investment, or too limited in functionality, failing to meet the diverse needs of educators. Our system aims to bridge this gap by providing an intuitive, feature-rich, and cloud-hosted solution.
The LMS will be a web-based application hosted on an AWS EC2 instance running Ubuntu, ensuring scalability and performance efficiency. With a focus on accessibility, the system will be mobile-friendly, supporting instructors and students across devices. Security measures such as HTTPS encryption, secure session management, and robust input validation will be incorporated to protect user data and maintain privacy.
Key Features:
The backend will be powered by Node.js with Express.js, ensuring efficient, non-blocking request handling. SQLAlchemy ORM will be used for database interactions, with MySQL providing structured data storage and retrieval. Alembic will handle database migrations, ensuring smooth schema updates and version control. Authentication will be secured using JWT-based authentication, and additional security measures such as rate-limiting, input validation, and HTTPS encryption will be implemented.
To enhance deployment and maintainability, the project will be containerized using Docker with Docker Compose for service management. GitHub Actions will automate the CI/CD pipeline, streamlining testing and deployment. Static assets (e.g., PDFs, videos) will be stored in AWS S3 for efficient content delivery.
The system will feature an interactive analytics dashboard to track student engagement, potentially integrating third-party analytics tools. Real-time notifications will improve communication between students and instructors. Future expansions may include load balancing, Redis caching for optimization, and multilingual support to accommodate a diverse user base.
The Cloud-Based LMS Project will be licensed under the GNU General Public License v3 (GPL-3.0) to promote collaboration, transparency, and the continued development of open-source educational tools. Unlike permissive licenses such as MIT or Apache 2.0, which allow proprietary modifications, the GPL ensures that any derivative works remain open-source, benefiting the entire community rather than being restricted by commercial entities.
One of the key advantages of GPL-3.0 is its "copyleft" clause, which requires that modifications and enhancements to the software be shared under the same license. This guarantees that contributions made by developers, institutions, or independent educators will be available to everyone, fostering a culture of shared learning and innovation. Additionally, GPL-3.0 includes explicit protections against patent claims, ensuring that the software remains free from potential legal restrictions imposed by corporations.
By choosing GPL-3.0, this project aligns with the broader open-source movement, encouraging transparency, community-driven enhancements, and ethical software distribution. As education becomes increasingly digitized, it is crucial that core educational tools remain free, accessible, and adaptable to the needs of educators and learners worldwide. This licensing decision ensures the project's long-term impact and reinforces the principle that education should not be monopolized but freely shared for the greater good.
© 2025 Cloud-Based LMS Project. Licensed under GPL-3.0.