# FosterFlow SaaS Platform — Design Spec

**Date:** 2026-03-26
**Domain:** fosterflow.app
**Status:** Approved

---

## Overview

FosterFlow is a multi-tenant SaaS platform for animal rescues. It provides a complete website + management system — everything a foster-based rescue needs, nothing it doesn't. Clean room rebuild using the AHCR (Almost Home Canine Rescue) codebase as reference.

**Two deployment modes:**
- **Self-hosted** — free, open source (MIT), rescue runs the tenant app themselves via Docker
- **FosterFlow Cloud** — $19/mo managed hosting with automated provisioning, subdomain, SSL, backups, updates

**Tech stack:** SvelteKit 2, Svelte 5 (runes), Tailwind CSS 4, Drizzle ORM, MariaDB, Stripe, Nodemailer, Caddy, Ollama (AI features)

---

## 1. Overall Architecture

```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    Caddy Proxy                       │
│  fosterflow.app      → platform app (marketing,     │
│                        signup, operator dashboard)   │
│  *.fosterflow.app    → tenant app (by subdomain)    │
│  custom domains      → tenant app (by domain)       │
└──────────────┬──────────────────────┬───────────────┘
               │                      │
    ┌──────────▼──────────┐ ┌────────▼────────────┐
    │  Platform App       │ │  Tenant Instance(s)  │
    │  (SvelteKit)        │ │  (SvelteKit)         │
    │                     │ │                      │
    │  /           landing│ │  /     public site   │
    │  /signup     form   │ │  /admin  dashboard   │
    │  /operator   mgmt   │ │  /foster portal      │
    │  /api        hooks  │ │  /api    endpoints   │
    └──────────┬──────────┘ └────────┬────────────┘
               │                      │
    ┌──────────▼──────────┐ ┌────────▼────────────┐
    │  fosterflow_platform│ │  ff_{slug} (per DB)  │
    │  (tenants, billing, │ │  (pets, users, apps, │
    │   signups, events)  │ │   donations, etc.)   │
    └─────────────────────┘ └─────────────────────┘
               │                      │
               └──────────┬───────────┘
                    MariaDB Server
```

**Two separate apps, two separate repos:**

- **`fosterflow`** (public, GitHub) — the tenant app. Full rescue site + admin + foster portal. This is what self-hosted users clone. MIT licensed.
- **`fosterflow-cloud`** (private) — the platform app. Operator dashboard, signup/approval, provisioning engine, billing. Only runs on FosterFlow infrastructure.

The tenant app has zero knowledge of multi-tenancy. It's just "a rescue site." The platform app orchestrates instances of it.

**Shared Ollama instance** — platform-level AI service all tenants call for the dog name generator (free perk).

---

## 2. Data Model

### Platform Database (`fosterflow_platform`)

```sql
-- Signup applications (pre-approval)
CREATE TABLE signups (
    id INT PRIMARY KEY AUTO_INCREMENT,
    org_name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    admin_name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    admin_email VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    password_hash VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    slug VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
    website_url VARCHAR(255),
    ein VARCHAR(20),
    description TEXT,
    city VARCHAR(100),
    state VARCHAR(100),
    status ENUM('pending', 'approved', 'rejected') DEFAULT 'pending',
    reviewed_by INT,
    reviewed_at TIMESTAMP,
    rejection_reason TEXT,
    created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

-- Active tenants (post-approval)
CREATE TABLE tenants (
    id INT PRIMARY KEY AUTO_INCREMENT,
    name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    slug VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
    subdomain VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
    custom_domain VARCHAR(255),
    db_name VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL,
    port INT NOT NULL,
    admin_email VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    admin_name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    plan ENUM('trial', 'manage', 'cloud', 'self_hosted') DEFAULT 'trial',
    stripe_customer_id VARCHAR(255),
    stripe_subscription_id VARCHAR(255),
    status ENUM('provisioning', 'active', 'suspended', 'deleted') DEFAULT 'provisioning',
    trial_ends_at TIMESTAMP,
    created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
    updated_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP ON UPDATE CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

-- Audit trail for tenant lifecycle
CREATE TABLE tenant_events (
    id INT PRIMARY KEY AUTO_INCREMENT,
    tenant_id INT NOT NULL REFERENCES tenants(id),
    event VARCHAR(50) NOT NULL,
    details JSON,
    created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

-- Operator users
CREATE TABLE operators (
    id INT PRIMARY KEY AUTO_INCREMENT,
    email VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
    name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    password_hash VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);
```

### Tenant Database (`ff_{slug}`)

| Group | Tables |
|-------|--------|
| **Auth** | `users`, `sessions` |
| **Pets** | `pets`, `pet_photos`, `pet_medical`, `foster_assignments`, `pet_mentors` |
| **Applications** | `applications`, `application_homevisit_notes` |
| **People** | `vets`, `mentors`, `sponsors`, `intake_sources` |
| **Finance** | `donations`, `expenses` |
| **Content** | `events`, `happy_tails`, `content_blocks`, `newsletter_subscribers`, `contact_messages` |
| **Foster** | `foster_submissions`, `supply_requests` |
| **Config** | `site_settings`, `org_config` |
| **System** | `audit_log`, `page_views`, `ai_jobs` |

**`org_config` table** — key/value store with JSON values:

```sql
CREATE TABLE org_config (
    id INT PRIMARY KEY AUTO_INCREMENT,
    `key` VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
    value JSON NOT NULL,
    updated_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP ON UPDATE CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

-- Example rows:
-- ('branding', '{"primaryColor":"#0d9488","accentColor":"#f59e0b","logoUrl":"/uploads/logo.png"}')
-- ('org_info', '{"name":"Almost Home","city":"Sioux Falls","state":"SD","phone":"..."}')
-- ('locale', '{"language":"en","currency":"USD","dateFormat":"MM/DD/YYYY"}')
-- ('applications', '{"adoptionEnabled":true,"fosterEnabled":true,"adoptionFee":250}')
-- ('agreements', '{"adoption":[...],"foster":[...]}')
```

**Changes from AHCR:**
- Added `org_config` table — drives theming, org details, locale, form settings
- All user-facing strings from config, not hardcoded
- Dropped `sync_jobs` (PetFinder API is dead)
- Dropped AHCR-specific import tables
- Generic CSV import replaces hardcoded importers

---

## 3. Tenant Lifecycle

```
Rescue finds fosterflow.app
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│  Signup Form        │
│  org name, admin    │
│  name/email, pass,  │
│  subdomain, website │
│  EIN (opt), desc,   │
│  city/state         │
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│  Pending Review     │  → Operator gets email notification
│  (stored in         │
│   platform DB)      │
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
    ┌─────▼─────┐
    │  Operator  │
    │  reviews   │
    ├────┬───────┤
    │    │       │
  Approve    Reject
    │         │
    │         └→ Rejection email with reason
    ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│  Auto-Provision     │  (~60 seconds)
│  1. Create DB       │
│  2. Run migrations  │
│  3. Seed admin user │
│  4. Generate .env   │
│  5. Clone tenant app│
│  6. Build & start   │
│  7. Add Caddy route │
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│  Welcome Email      │
│  login URL, temp    │
│  password, guide    │
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│  Setup Wizard       │
│  branding, config,  │
│  application forms, │
│  optional CSV import│
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
          ▼
   Live at {slug}.fosterflow.app
   14-day free trial (no card required)
          │
          ▼
   Trial expires → Pay $19/mo → Active
                → Don't pay  → Suspended (7 day grace)
                             → Deleted (30 days, data archived)
```

**Signup validation:** subdomain availability, unique email, spam checks.

**Suspension:** App still runs but shows "account suspended" page. Data preserved. Reactivate by paying.

**Custom domains:** Tenant sets domain in settings, adds CNAME to `{slug}.fosterflow.app`, Caddy auto-provisions SSL.

**Deprovisioning:** Stop service, remove Caddy route, archive DB dump + uploads, mark deleted. Hard delete after 30 days.

---

## 4. Roles & Permissions

### Operator Level (Platform App)

| Role | Access |
|------|--------|
| `operator` | Full access — approve/reject signups, manage tenants, billing, health, migrations |

Separate auth system from tenant auth. Email/password login.

### Tenant Level (Tenant App)

| Role | Permissions |
|------|-------------|
| `sysadmin` | All 14 permissions (full control of rescue instance) |
| `director` | All except `system` |
| `foster_coordinator` | dashboard, pets, applications |
| `volunteer_manager` | dashboard, volunteers, events |
| `vet_liaison` | dashboard, pets, vets, medical, expenses |
| `content_editor` | dashboard, sponsors, content, events |
| `applications_manager` | dashboard, applications, pets_view |
| `viewer` | dashboard only |
| `foster` | Foster portal only |

**14 permissions:** pets, applications, donations, expenses, vets, medical, events, content, volunteers, users, shop, import, system, dashboard

Tenant `sysadmin` has zero visibility into the platform. They see their rescue site and nothing else.

---

## 5. Feature Set

### Core Features (Rebuilt from AHCR Reference)

| Feature | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| **Pet Management** | Profiles, photos, medical records, foster assignments, status tracking, mentors |
| **Applications** | Adoption, foster, volunteer, surrender — configurable questions per form |
| **Foster Portal** | Dedicated dashboard — submit updates, photos, supply requests |
| **Donations & Expenses** | Stripe payments, multi-source tracking (PayPal, Venmo, cash, etc.), financial reports |
| **Events** | Listings with optional Facebook auto-posting |
| **Content CMS** | Editable page sections via `content_blocks`, happy tails / success stories |
| **Newsletter** | Subscriber management, compose and send |
| **Contact Forms** | Public contact form with message management in admin |
| **Sponsors** | Three tiers (top dog, wagging tails, wet noses), public sponsor page |
| **Analytics** | Page views, traffic tracking, bot detection |
| **Bot Protection** | Dynamic robots.txt, honeypot, managed blocklist/whitelist |
| **AI Name Generator** | Shared Ollama instance, free for all tenants |

### New for FosterFlow

| Feature | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| **Setup Wizard** | First-login onboarding — branding, org info, forms config, optional CSV import |
| **Configurable Theming** | Primary + accent color, logo upload via CSS custom properties |
| **`org_config` System** | All org-level settings in one place, drives the whole app |
| **Generic CSV Import** | Upload any CSV, map columns to FosterFlow fields, preview before commit |
| **Health Endpoint** | `/api/health` for platform monitoring |
| **i18n Architecture** | Translation key system, English strings in locale files, ready for more languages |

### Dropped from AHCR

| Dropped | Why |
|---------|-----|
| PetFinder sync | API is dead |
| AHCR-specific CSV import scripts | Replaced with generic column-mapping CSV import |
| Hardcoded content | Replaced with CMS content blocks + org_config |

---

## 6. Tech Architecture Details

### Tenant App Structure

```
fosterflow/
├── src/
│   ├── lib/
│   │   ├── server/
│   │   │   ├── db.ts              # Drizzle + MariaDB connection
│   │   │   ├── schema.ts          # All tenant tables
│   │   │   ├── auth.ts            # Session management, Argon2
│   │   │   ├── auth-utils.ts      # Permission checks
│   │   │   ├── email.ts           # Nodemailer (from address via config)
│   │   │   ├── stripe.ts          # Payment processing
│   │   │   ├── upload.ts          # File uploads
│   │   │   ├── audit.ts           # Audit logging
│   │   │   ├── rate-limit.ts      # Rate limiting
│   │   │   ├── content.ts         # CMS content blocks
│   │   │   ├── contract.ts        # Adoption contract generation
│   │   │   ├── ai.ts              # Ollama client (name generator)
│   │   │   └── config.ts          # Reads org_config, caches it
│   │   ├── components/
│   │   │   ├── ui/                # Shared UI primitives
│   │   │   ├── admin/             # Admin dashboard components
│   │   │   └── public/            # Public site components
│   │   ├── i18n/
│   │   │   ├── index.ts           # Translation loader
│   │   │   └── locales/
│   │   │       └── en.json        # English strings
│   │   ├── roles.ts               # Role + permission definitions
│   │   └── slugify.ts
│   ├── routes/
│   │   ├── (public)/              # Public-facing pages
│   │   ├── admin/                 # Admin dashboard
│   │   ├── foster/                # Foster portal
│   │   ├── api/                   # API endpoints
│   │   ├── application/           # Public application forms
│   │   ├── setup/                 # First-login setup wizard
│   │   ├── login/
│   │   ├── logout/
│   │   ├── register/
│   │   ├── change-password/
│   │   ├── pay/                   # Stripe payment pages
│   │   ├── robots.txt/
│   │   └── sitemap.xml/
│   ├── hooks.server.ts            # Auth, security headers, tracking
│   └── app.html
├── drizzle/                       # Migration files
├── scripts/
│   ├── seed.ts                    # Seed placeholder data
│   └── seed-tenant.ts             # Seed admin user (used by provisioner)
├── static/
├── .env.example
├── package.json
├── svelte.config.js
├── drizzle.config.ts
├── vite.config.ts
├── docker-compose.yml
├── Dockerfile
└── Caddyfile
```

### Config-Driven Architecture

Everything flows from two sources:

- **`.env`** — infrastructure config (DB URL, ports, secrets, Stripe keys, SMTP)
- **`org_config` table** — org-level config (branding, org info, locale, form settings, agreements)

```
Request comes in
  → hooks.server.ts loads org_config (cached, refreshes every 5 min)
  → event.locals.orgConfig available in all routes
  → Components read orgConfig for branding, org name, colors
  → CSS custom properties set from orgConfig.branding
  → i18n loads locale from orgConfig.locale
```

### Theming

```css
/* Generated from org_config.branding */
:root {
  --color-primary: #0d9488;
  --color-accent: #f59e0b;
}
```

Tailwind CSS 4 picks these up via CSS custom properties. Components use `text-primary`, `bg-accent`, etc. No hardcoded colors.

### i18n Approach

Every user-facing string goes through a `t()` function:

```svelte
<h1>{t('pets.title')}</h1>
<p>{t('applications.adoption.intro')}</p>
```

`en.json` ships with the app. Adding a language = adding a locale file + tenant picks locale in settings. No code changes required.

### Generic CSV Import

- Upload any CSV file
- App auto-detects columns, shows preview
- User maps their columns to FosterFlow fields (name, breed, age, status, etc.)
- Preview mapped data before committing
- Handle mismatches gracefully (skip bad rows, show errors)
- Available in setup wizard and in admin anytime for bulk imports

---

## 7. Testing Strategy

| Layer | Tool | What |
|-------|------|------|
| **Unit** | Vitest | Schema validation, permission checks, config loading, i18n, utility functions |
| **Integration** | Vitest | DB operations, auth flows, API endpoints (real DB, not mocks) |
| **E2E** | Playwright | Full user flows — setup wizard, pet CRUD, application submission, foster portal |

**Key test scenarios:**
- Setup wizard completes and populates org_config
- Role permissions block/allow correctly
- Theming applies from org_config
- CSV import with various column formats
- Application forms render based on config
- Public site reflects CMS content blocks
- Health endpoint returns correct status

---

## 8. Deployment & Infrastructure

### Self-Hosted (Tenant App Only)

```bash
git clone https://github.com/jrei/fosterflow
cd fosterflow
cp .env.example .env    # edit with your details
docker compose up -d    # MariaDB + app + Caddy
```

Three containers:
- `fosterflow-app` — Node.js SvelteKit
- `fosterflow-db` — MariaDB
- `fosterflow-proxy` — Caddy (auto SSL)

No operator dashboard. No multi-tenant machinery. Just a rescue site.

### FosterFlow Cloud

Caddy proxy, one app process per tenant, database-per-tenant on shared MariaDB. Platform app runs alongside.

Provisioning script automates: create DB, run migrations, seed admin user, clone tenant app, generate `.env`, build, start systemd service, add Caddy route.

**Scaling path:**

| Tenants | Setup |
|---------|-------|
| 0-100 | Single VPS ($15-20/mo) |
| 100-200 | Separate DB server, shared app build (symlink not copy), automated health checks |
| 200+ | Multiple app servers, Cloudflare R2 for images, monitoring (Grafana), consider containers |

**Revenue at scale:**

| Tenants | Monthly Revenue | Server Costs | Margin |
|---------|----------------|--------------|--------|
| 10 | $190 | $15 | $175 |
| 50 | $950 | $30 | $920 |
| 100 | $1,900 | $60 | $1,840 |
| 500 | $9,500 | $200 | $9,300 |

### Backups

- Per-tenant `mysqldump` on cron
- Uploads archived separately
- Platform DB backed up independently
- 30-day retention after tenant deletion

### Pricing Tiers

| Tier | Price | What They Get |
|------|-------|---------------|
| **Self-Hosted** | Free | Full source code, run it yourself, MIT licensed |
| **Manage** | $12/mo | Admin dashboard + foster portal only. No hosted public site. Embeddable pet widgets for their existing website. |
| **Cloud** | $25/mo | Full hosted website + management + subdomain + SSL + backups + updates |
| **API Add-on** | +$5/mo | REST API access for custom integrations (available on Manage or Cloud) |

**Trial:** 14 days free on any paid tier (no card required)

**Why tiered pricing:**
- Most rescues already have a website (WordPress, Facebook page, etc.). The **Manage** tier captures rescues that want better management tools but don't want to switch their whole site.
- **Embeddable widgets** bridge the gap — a JS snippet that shows available pets on their existing site, pulling from FosterFlow data. Displays "Powered by FosterFlow" (marketing for upgrades).
- **Cloud** is the premium experience — full hosted site + management, zero setup.
- **API access** lets tech-savvy rescues build custom integrations or embed data however they want.

**Manage tier details:**
- Tenant gets admin dashboard + foster portal (same app, just no public routes served)
- Caddy routes their subdomain to admin/foster only
- Embeddable widgets: `<script src="https://{slug}.fosterflow.app/embed/pets.js"></script>` renders a pet grid on any page
- Widget is an iframe or web component pulling from the existing `/api/pets` endpoint
- Lower infrastructure cost (no public traffic, just admin users)

**Revenue projections (updated):**

| Tenants | Mix (Manage/Cloud) | Monthly Revenue | Server Costs | Margin |
|---------|-------------------|----------------|--------------|--------|
| 10 | 5/5 | $185 | $15 | $170 |
| 50 | 30/20 | $860 | $30 | $830 |
| 100 | 60/40 | $1,720 | $60 | $1,660 |
| 500 | 300/200 | $8,600 | $200 | $8,400 |

### Billing (Stripe)

- **Products:** FosterFlow Manage ($12/mo), FosterFlow Cloud ($25/mo), API Add-on (+$5/mo)
- **Trial:** 14 days free (no card required)
- **Webhook events:**
  - `customer.subscription.created` → activate tenant
  - `customer.subscription.deleted` → suspend tenant (grace period)
  - `invoice.payment_failed` → warning email, suspend after 3 failures
- **Dunning:** Stripe handles retry logic

---

## Reference

- **Domain:** fosterflow.app
- **AHCR source:** `../almosthomecaninerescue.com-2026/ahcr/`
- **Market:** ~10,000 rescue organizations in the US, ~14,000 total animal welfare orgs
- **Differentiator:** Full website + management in one (competitors are mostly backend-only tools). Manage tier captures rescues that just want the backend.
- **Competition:** Shelterluv ($2/adoption), RescueGroups (free), Petstablished (free), BARRK ($20/mo)