Document Approval System

A web-based document approval system built with Flask that allows employees to upload documents and get them approved by their superiors in a hierarchical manner.

Features

• User authentication with admin and regular user roles
• Document upload and management
• Hierarchical approval workflow
• PDF document approval with digital signatures and remarks
• Admin dashboard for user management
• Modern and intuitive UI

App Screenshots

Prerequisites

• Python 3.8 or higher
• pip (Python package installer)

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

git clone <repository-url>
cd document-approval-system

2. Create a virtual environment (recommended):

python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

3. Install the required packages:

pip install -r requirements.txt

Configuration

1. The application uses SQLite as the database, which will be automatically created when you first run the application.

2. The default admin credentials are:

   • Username: admin
   • Password: admin123

   It's recommended to change these credentials after the first login.

Running the Application

1. Start the Flask development server:

python app.py

2. Open your web browser and navigate to:

http://localhost:5000

Usage

Admin User

1. Log in with the admin credentials
2. Use the admin dashboard to:
   • Add new users
   • Set user hierarchy levels
   • Manage existing users

Regular Users

1. Log in with your credentials
2. Use the dashboard to:
   • Upload PDF documents
   • Select approvers from users with higher hierarchy levels
   • View and manage your uploaded documents
   • Approve documents pending your approval
   • Add remarks and signatures to approvals

Security Notes

• Change the default admin password immediately after first login
• The application uses secure password hashing
• File uploads are restricted to PDF files only
• Maximum file size is limited to 16MB

File Structure

document-approval-system/
├── app.py              # Main application file
├── requirements.txt    # Python dependencies
├── README.md          # This file
├── uploads/           # Directory for uploaded documents
└── templates/         # HTML templates
    ├── base.html      # Base template
    ├── login.html     # Login page
    ├── dashboard.html # User dashboard
    └── admin_dashboard.html # Admin dashboard

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Commit your changes
4. Push to the branch
5. Create a Pull Request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.