Role-Based Access Control in Node.js: Beyond Simple Middleware

The article critiques simple role-check patterns in Node.js authentication and proposes a scalable Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) architecture. It introduces a three-table data model (roles, permissions, role_permissions) with hierarchical role inheritance, a TypeScript PermissionResolver class that walks the role tree and caches results, and a single reusable middleware that checks permissions instead of roles.