Introduction:
Node.js has become a popular choice for developers who want to build server-side applications due to its simplicity and flexibility. In this tutorial, we will walk you through setting up a local server using Node.js. By the end of this tutorial, you will have a basic understanding of how to create a local server and handle HTTP requests and responses in Node.js.

Requirements:

• Node.js installed on your machine
• A code editor, such as Visual Studio Code

1. Create the server:
   Create a new file in your project directory called server.js and open it in your code editor. Add the following code to create a basic HTTP server:

// Import the required modules
const http = require('http');

// Define the server's hostname and port
const hostname = '127.0.0.1';
const port = 3000;

// Create the server
const server = http.createServer((req, res) => {
  // Send the response
  res.end('Hello, World! This is a Node.js server.\n');
});

// Start the server and listen for incoming requests
server.listen(port, hostname, () => {
  console.log(`Server running at http://${hostname}:${port}/`);
});

In this code, we import the http module and use its createServer method to create a new server. The server listens for incoming HTTP requests and responds with a “Hello, World! This is a Node.js server.” message.

2. Start the server:
To start the server, run the following command in your terminal:

node server.js

You should see the following message indicating that the server is running:

Server running at http://127.0.0.1:3000/

3. Test your server Open your web browser and visit http://127.0.0.1:3000/. You should see the “Hello, World! This is a Node.js server.” message displayed in your browser.

Conclusion:
In this tutorial, we demonstrated how to create a local server using Node.js and the http module. You can now use this knowledge to build more complex server-side applications and APIs. To explore further, consider learning about Express, a popular web application framework for Node.js that makes building servers even easier.