diff --git a/backend/Gemfile b/backend/Gemfile
index c2b7a419..78fa2009 100644
--- a/backend/Gemfile
+++ b/backend/Gemfile
@@ -6,14 +6,15 @@ ruby "3.2.3"
 gem "dotenv-rails", groups: %i[development test]
 
 # Bundle edge Rails instead: gem 'rails', github: 'rails/rails'
-gem "rails", "~> 6.1.7.7"
+gem "rails", "~> 7.1.0"
 gem "rake"
+gem "sprockets-rails"
 
 # JSON serializer
-gem "active_model_serializers", "0.9.8"
+gem "active_model_serializers", "~> 0.9"
 
 # Use postgresql and mongo as the database for Active Record
-gem "mongoid", "7.3.3"
+gem "mongoid", "8.1.3" # https://www.mongodb.com/docs/mongoid/current/reference/compatibility/#rails-compatibility
 gem "pg"
 
 # Use Puma as the app server
@@ -21,11 +22,11 @@ gem "puma", "5.6.8"
 
 # Authentication libraries
 gem "cancancan", "~> 3.5.0"
-gem "cancancan-mongoid", "2.0.0"
-gem "devise", "4.8.0"
-gem "devise_invitable", "2.0.9"
-gem "omniauth", "1.8.1"
-gem "omniauth-facebook", "3.0.0"
+gem "cancancan-mongoid", "~> 2.0"
+gem "devise", "~> 4.8"
+gem "devise_invitable", "~> 2.0"
+gem "omniauth", "~> 1.8"
+gem "omniauth-facebook", "~> 3.0"
 
 # Colored output to console
 gem "colored"
diff --git a/backend/Gemfile.lock b/backend/Gemfile.lock
index 018d4ad6..551097b4 100644
--- a/backend/Gemfile.lock
+++ b/backend/Gemfile.lock
@@ -1,68 +1,83 @@
 GEM
   remote: https://rubygems.org/
   specs:
-    actioncable (6.1.7.7)
-      actionpack (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+    actioncable (7.1.3.4)
+      actionpack (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
       nio4r (~> 2.0)
       websocket-driver (>= 0.6.1)
-    actionmailbox (6.1.7.7)
-      actionpack (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activejob (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activerecord (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activestorage (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+      zeitwerk (~> 2.6)
+    actionmailbox (7.1.3.4)
+      actionpack (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activejob (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activerecord (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activestorage (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
       mail (>= 2.7.1)
-    actionmailer (6.1.7.7)
-      actionpack (= 6.1.7.7)
-      actionview (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activejob (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+      net-imap
+      net-pop
+      net-smtp
+    actionmailer (7.1.3.4)
+      actionpack (= 7.1.3.4)
+      actionview (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activejob (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
       mail (~> 2.5, >= 2.5.4)
-      rails-dom-testing (~> 2.0)
-    actionpack (6.1.7.7)
-      actionview (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
-      rack (~> 2.0, >= 2.0.9)
+      net-imap
+      net-pop
+      net-smtp
+      rails-dom-testing (~> 2.2)
+    actionpack (7.1.3.4)
+      actionview (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
+      nokogiri (>= 1.8.5)
+      racc
+      rack (>= 2.2.4)
+      rack-session (>= 1.0.1)
       rack-test (>= 0.6.3)
-      rails-dom-testing (~> 2.0)
-      rails-html-sanitizer (~> 1.0, >= 1.2.0)
-    actiontext (6.1.7.7)
-      actionpack (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activerecord (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activestorage (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+      rails-dom-testing (~> 2.2)
+      rails-html-sanitizer (~> 1.6)
+    actiontext (7.1.3.4)
+      actionpack (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activerecord (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activestorage (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
+      globalid (>= 0.6.0)
       nokogiri (>= 1.8.5)
-    actionview (6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+    actionview (7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
       builder (~> 3.1)
-      erubi (~> 1.4)
-      rails-dom-testing (~> 2.0)
-      rails-html-sanitizer (~> 1.1, >= 1.2.0)
+      erubi (~> 1.11)
+      rails-dom-testing (~> 2.2)
+      rails-html-sanitizer (~> 1.6)
     active_model_serializers (0.9.8)
       activemodel (>= 3.2)
       concurrent-ruby (~> 1.0)
-    activejob (6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+    activejob (7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
       globalid (>= 0.3.6)
-    activemodel (6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
-    activerecord (6.1.7.7)
-      activemodel (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
-    activestorage (6.1.7.7)
-      actionpack (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activejob (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activerecord (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+    activemodel (7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
+    activerecord (7.1.3.4)
+      activemodel (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
+      timeout (>= 0.4.0)
+    activestorage (7.1.3.4)
+      actionpack (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activejob (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activerecord (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
       marcel (~> 1.0)
-      mini_mime (>= 1.1.0)
-    activesupport (6.1.7.7)
+    activesupport (7.1.3.4)
+      base64
+      bigdecimal
       concurrent-ruby (~> 1.0, >= 1.0.2)
+      connection_pool (>= 2.2.5)
+      drb
       i18n (>= 1.6, < 2)
       minitest (>= 5.1)
+      mutex_m
       tzinfo (~> 2.0)
-      zeitwerk (~> 2.3)
     addressable (2.8.6)
       public_suffix (>= 2.0.2, < 6.0)
     andand (1.3.3)
@@ -71,6 +86,7 @@ GEM
       rake (>= 10.4, < 14.0)
     ast (2.4.2)
     awesome_print (1.9.2)
+    base64 (0.2.0)
     bcrypt (3.1.20)
     better_errors (2.10.1)
       erubi (>= 1.0.0)
@@ -87,10 +103,10 @@ GEM
     brakeman (6.1.2)
       racc
     bson (4.15.0)
-    bugsnag (6.26.0)
+    bugsnag (6.27.1)
       concurrent-ruby (~> 1.0)
-    builder (3.2.4)
-    bullet (7.1.6)
+    builder (3.3.0)
+    bullet (7.2.0)
       activesupport (>= 3.0.0)
       uniform_notifier (~> 1.11)
     byebug (11.1.3)
@@ -110,7 +126,7 @@ GEM
     coercible (1.0.0)
       descendants_tracker (~> 0.0.1)
     colored (1.2)
-    concurrent-ruby (1.2.3)
+    concurrent-ruby (1.3.3)
     connection_pool (2.4.1)
     countries (4.0.1)
       i18n_data (~> 0.13.0)
@@ -119,6 +135,7 @@ GEM
       bigdecimal
       rexml
     crass (1.0.6)
+    csv (3.3.0)
     cuprite (0.15)
       capybara (~> 3.0)
       ferrum (~> 0.14.0)
@@ -134,7 +151,7 @@ GEM
     date (3.3.4)
     descendants_tracker (0.0.4)
       thread_safe (~> 0.3, >= 0.3.1)
-    devise (4.8.0)
+    devise (4.9.4)
       bcrypt (~> 3.0)
       orm_adapter (~> 0.1)
       railties (>= 4.1.0)
@@ -149,6 +166,7 @@ GEM
     dotenv-rails (3.1.0)
       dotenv (= 3.1.0)
       railties (>= 6.1)
+    drb (2.2.1)
     erb_lint (0.5.0)
       activesupport
       better_html (>= 2.0.1)
@@ -156,7 +174,7 @@ GEM
       rainbow
       rubocop
       smart_properties
-    erubi (1.12.0)
+    erubi (1.13.0)
     factory_bot (6.4.6)
       activesupport (>= 5.0.0)
     factory_bot_rails (6.4.3)
@@ -187,35 +205,41 @@ GEM
       webrick (~> 1.7)
       websocket-driver (>= 0.6, < 0.8)
     ffaker (2.23.0)
-    foreman (0.87.2)
-    geocoder (1.8.2)
+    foreman (0.88.1)
+    geocoder (1.8.3)
+      base64 (>= 0.1.0)
+      csv (>= 3.0.0)
     globalid (1.2.1)
       activesupport (>= 6.1)
-    globalize (6.0.1)
-      activemodel (>= 4.2, < 7.0)
-      activerecord (>= 4.2, < 7.0)
+    globalize (6.3.0)
+      activemodel (>= 4.2, < 7.2)
+      activerecord (>= 4.2, < 7.2)
       request_store (~> 1.0)
     hashdiff (1.1.0)
     hashie (3.5.7)
     httpclient (2.8.3)
-    i18n (1.14.4)
+    i18n (1.14.5)
       concurrent-ruby (~> 1.0)
     i18n_data (0.13.0)
+    io-console (0.7.2)
+    irb (1.14.0)
+      rdoc (>= 4.0.0)
+      reline (>= 0.4.2)
     json (2.7.1)
     jwt (2.3.0)
     kaminari-actionview (1.2.1)
       actionview
       kaminari-core (= 1.2.1)
     kaminari-core (1.2.1)
-    kaminari-mongoid (1.0.1)
+    kaminari-mongoid (1.0.2)
       kaminari-core (~> 1.0)
       mongoid
     kdtree (0.4)
     language_server-protocol (3.17.0.3)
     launchy (2.5.2)
       addressable (~> 2.8)
-    letter_opener (1.9.0)
-      launchy (>= 2.2, < 3)
+    letter_opener (1.10.0)
+      launchy (>= 2.2, < 4)
     lint_roller (1.1.0)
     loofah (2.22.0)
       crass (~> 1.0.2)
@@ -227,34 +251,32 @@ GEM
       net-smtp
     marcel (1.0.4)
     matrix (0.4.2)
-    method_source (1.0.0)
+    method_source (1.1.0)
     mini_mime (1.1.5)
-    mini_portile2 (2.8.5)
-    minitest (5.22.3)
-    mongo (2.19.3)
-      bson (>= 4.14.1, < 5.0.0)
-    mongoid (7.3.3)
-      activemodel (>= 5.1, < 6.2)
-      mongo (>= 2.10.5, < 3.0.0)
+    mini_portile2 (2.8.7)
+    minitest (5.24.1)
+    mongo (2.20.1)
+      bson (>= 4.14.1, < 6.0.0)
+    mongoid (8.1.3)
+      activemodel (>= 5.1, < 7.2, != 7.0.0)
+      concurrent-ruby (>= 1.0.5, < 2.0)
+      mongo (>= 2.18.0, < 3.0.0)
       ruby2_keywords (~> 0.0.5)
     mongoid-compatibility (0.6.0)
       activesupport
       mongoid (>= 2.0)
-    mongoid-rspec (4.1.0)
-      activesupport (>= 3.0.0)
-      mongoid (>= 3.1)
+    mongoid-rspec (4.2.0)
+      mongoid (>= 3.0, < 10.0)
       mongoid-compatibility (>= 0.5.1)
-      rspec-core (~> 3.3)
-      rspec-expectations (~> 3.3)
-      rspec-mocks (~> 3.3)
     multi_json (1.15.0)
     multi_xml (0.6.0)
     multipart-post (2.1.1)
+    mutex_m (0.2.0)
     nearest_time_zone (0.0.4)
       andand
       kdtree
       require_all
-    net-imap (0.4.10)
+    net-imap (0.4.14)
       date
       net-protocol
     net-pop (0.1.2)
@@ -263,8 +285,8 @@ GEM
       timeout
     net-smtp (0.5.0)
       net-protocol
-    nio4r (2.7.1)
-    nokogiri (1.16.3)
+    nio4r (2.7.3)
+    nokogiri (1.16.6)
       mini_portile2 (~> 2.8.2)
       racc (~> 1.4)
     oauth2 (1.4.7)
@@ -296,38 +318,44 @@ GEM
     pry-doc (1.5.0)
       pry (~> 0.11)
       yard (~> 0.9.11)
-    pry-rails (0.3.9)
-      pry (>= 0.10.4)
+    pry-rails (0.3.11)
+      pry (>= 0.13.0)
+    psych (5.1.2)
+      stringio
     public_suffix (5.0.4)
     puma (5.6.8)
       nio4r (~> 2.0)
-    pusher (2.0.2)
+    pusher (2.0.3)
       httpclient (~> 2.8)
       multi_json (~> 1.15)
       pusher-signature (~> 0.1.8)
     pusher-signature (0.1.8)
-    racc (1.7.3)
+    racc (1.8.0)
     rack (2.2.9)
     rack-cors (2.0.1)
       rack (>= 2.0.0)
+    rack-session (1.0.2)
+      rack (< 3)
     rack-test (2.1.0)
       rack (>= 1.3)
-    rack-timeout (0.6.3)
-    rails (6.1.7.7)
-      actioncable (= 6.1.7.7)
-      actionmailbox (= 6.1.7.7)
-      actionmailer (= 6.1.7.7)
-      actionpack (= 6.1.7.7)
-      actiontext (= 6.1.7.7)
-      actionview (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activejob (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activemodel (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activerecord (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activestorage (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
+    rack-timeout (0.7.0)
+    rackup (1.0.0)
+      rack (< 3)
+      webrick
+    rails (7.1.3.4)
+      actioncable (= 7.1.3.4)
+      actionmailbox (= 7.1.3.4)
+      actionmailer (= 7.1.3.4)
+      actionpack (= 7.1.3.4)
+      actiontext (= 7.1.3.4)
+      actionview (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activejob (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activemodel (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activerecord (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activestorage (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
       bundler (>= 1.15.0)
-      railties (= 6.1.7.7)
-      sprockets-rails (>= 2.0.0)
+      railties (= 7.1.3.4)
     rails-dom-testing (2.2.0)
       activesupport (>= 5.0.0)
       minitest
@@ -340,17 +368,23 @@ GEM
       rails_stdout_logging
     rails_serve_static_assets (0.0.5)
     rails_stdout_logging (0.0.5)
-    railties (6.1.7.7)
-      actionpack (= 6.1.7.7)
-      activesupport (= 6.1.7.7)
-      method_source
+    railties (7.1.3.4)
+      actionpack (= 7.1.3.4)
+      activesupport (= 7.1.3.4)
+      irb
+      rackup (>= 1.0.0)
       rake (>= 12.2)
-      thor (~> 1.0)
+      thor (~> 1.0, >= 1.2.2)
+      zeitwerk (~> 2.6)
     rainbow (3.1.1)
-    rake (13.1.0)
+    rake (13.2.1)
+    rdoc (6.7.0)
+      psych (>= 4.0.0)
     redis-client (0.21.1)
       connection_pool
     regexp_parser (2.9.0)
+    reline (0.5.9)
+      io-console (~> 0.5)
     request_store (1.5.0)
       rack (>= 1.4)
     require_all (3.0.0)
@@ -367,7 +401,7 @@ GEM
     rspec-mocks (3.13.0)
       diff-lcs (>= 1.2.0, < 2.0)
       rspec-support (~> 3.13.0)
-    rspec-rails (6.1.2)
+    rspec-rails (6.1.3)
       actionpack (>= 6.1)
       activesupport (>= 6.1)
       railties (>= 6.1)
@@ -398,7 +432,7 @@ GEM
       rake (>= 10.0)
     shoulda-matchers (6.2.0)
       activesupport (>= 5.2.0)
-    sidekiq (7.2.2)
+    sidekiq (7.2.4)
       concurrent-ruby (< 2)
       connection_pool (>= 2.3.0)
       rack (>= 2.2.4)
@@ -414,9 +448,9 @@ GEM
     sprockets (4.2.1)
       concurrent-ruby (~> 1.0)
       rack (>= 2.2.4, < 4)
-    sprockets-rails (3.4.2)
-      actionpack (>= 5.2)
-      activesupport (>= 5.2)
+    sprockets-rails (3.5.1)
+      actionpack (>= 6.1)
+      activesupport (>= 6.1)
       sprockets (>= 3.0.0)
     standard (1.35.1)
       language_server-protocol (~> 3.17.0.2)
@@ -432,6 +466,7 @@ GEM
       rubocop-performance (~> 1.20.2)
     standardrb (1.0.1)
       standard
+    stringio (3.1.1)
     symmetric-encryption (4.6.0)
       coercible (~> 1.0)
     thor (1.3.1)
@@ -445,7 +480,7 @@ GEM
     vcr (6.2.0)
     warden (1.2.9)
       rack (>= 2.0.9)
-    webmock (3.23.0)
+    webmock (3.23.1)
       addressable (>= 2.8.0)
       crack (>= 0.3.2)
       hashdiff (>= 0.4.0, < 2.0.0)
@@ -456,13 +491,13 @@ GEM
     xpath (3.2.0)
       nokogiri (~> 1.8)
     yard (0.9.36)
-    zeitwerk (2.6.13)
+    zeitwerk (2.6.16)
 
 PLATFORMS
   ruby
 
 DEPENDENCIES
-  active_model_serializers (= 0.9.8)
+  active_model_serializers (~> 0.9)
   annotate
   awesome_print
   better_errors
@@ -471,15 +506,15 @@ DEPENDENCIES
   bullet
   byebug
   cancancan (~> 3.5.0)
-  cancancan-mongoid (= 2.0.0)
+  cancancan-mongoid (~> 2.0)
   capybara
   colored
   countries
   cuprite
   database_cleaner
   database_cleaner-mongoid
-  devise (= 4.8.0)
-  devise_invitable (= 2.0.9)
+  devise (~> 4.8)
+  devise_invitable (~> 2.0)
   dotenv-rails
   erb_lint
   factory_bot_rails
@@ -490,11 +525,11 @@ DEPENDENCIES
   kaminari-actionview
   kaminari-mongoid
   letter_opener
-  mongoid (= 7.3.3)
+  mongoid (= 8.1.3)
   mongoid-rspec
   nearest_time_zone
-  omniauth (= 1.8.1)
-  omniauth-facebook (= 3.0.0)
+  omniauth (~> 1.8)
+  omniauth-facebook (~> 3.0)
   pg
   pry-byebug
   pry-doc
@@ -503,7 +538,7 @@ DEPENDENCIES
   pusher
   rack-cors (= 2.0.1)
   rack-timeout
-  rails (~> 6.1.7.7)
+  rails (~> 7.1.0)
   rails_12factor
   rake
   rspec-rails
@@ -512,6 +547,7 @@ DEPENDENCIES
   shoulda-matchers
   sidekiq (~> 7.2)
   simplecov
+  sprockets-rails
   standardrb
   symmetric-encryption
   tomorrowio_rb (~> 0.0.3)
diff --git a/backend/app/models/checkin/fiveable.rb b/backend/app/models/checkin/fiveable.rb
index e64b8572..dcc2ad58 100644
--- a/backend/app/models/checkin/fiveable.rb
+++ b/backend/app/models/checkin/fiveable.rb
@@ -3,6 +3,6 @@ module Checkin::Fiveable
 
   included do
     field :value, type: Integer
-    validates :value, inclusion: {in: (0..4)}, if: -> { value.present? }
+    validates :value, inclusion: {in: (0..4), allow_blank: true}
   end
 end
diff --git a/backend/app/models/weather.rb b/backend/app/models/weather.rb
index 72cd46af..0aa3e1ef 100644
--- a/backend/app/models/weather.rb
+++ b/backend/app/models/weather.rb
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 class Weather < ActiveRecord::Base
   validates :date, uniqueness: {scope: :position_id}
-  belongs_to :position
+  # NOTE: if we want to enforce presence, modify spec factory instead
+  belongs_to :position, optional: true
 end
diff --git a/backend/app/serializers/api/v1/concerns.rb b/backend/app/serializers/api/v1/concerns.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5ffb6469
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/app/serializers/api/v1/concerns.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+module Api
+  module V1
+    module Concerns
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/backend/bin/rails b/backend/bin/rails
index fa9738b3..5361cd9d 100755
--- a/backend/bin/rails
+++ b/backend/bin/rails
@@ -4,6 +4,6 @@ if ENV["RAILS_ENV"] == "test"
   SimpleCov.start "rails"
   puts "required simplecov"
 end
-APP_PATH = File.expand_path("../../config/application", __FILE__)
+APP_PATH = File.expand_path("../config/application", __dir__)
 require_relative "../config/boot"
 require "rails/commands"
diff --git a/backend/bin/setup b/backend/bin/setup
index d220dfa5..3cd5a9d7 100755
--- a/backend/bin/setup
+++ b/backend/bin/setup
@@ -1,30 +1,29 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env ruby
-require "pathname"
 require "fileutils"
-include FileUtils
 
 # path to your application root.
-APP_ROOT = Pathname.new File.expand_path("../../", __FILE__)
+APP_ROOT = File.expand_path("..", __dir__)
 
 def system!(*args)
-  system(*args) || abort("\n== Command #{args} failed ==")
+  system(*args, exception: true)
 end
 
-chdir APP_ROOT do
-  # This script is a starting point to setup your application.
+FileUtils.chdir APP_ROOT do
+  # This script is a way to set up or update your development environment automatically.
+  # This script is idempotent, so that you can run it at any time and get an expectable outcome.
   # Add necessary setup steps to this file.
 
   puts "== Installing dependencies =="
   system! "gem install bundler --conservative"
-  system("bundle check") or system!("bundle install")
+  system("bundle check") || system!("bundle install")
 
   # puts "\n== Copying sample files =="
-  # unless File.exist?('config/database.yml')
-  #   cp 'config/database.yml.sample', 'config/database.yml'
+  # unless File.exist?("config/database.yml")
+  #   FileUtils.cp "config/database.yml.sample", "config/database.yml"
   # end
 
   puts "\n== Preparing database =="
-  system! "bin/rails db:setup"
+  system! "bin/rails db:prepare"
 
   puts "\n== Removing old logs and tempfiles =="
   system! "bin/rails log:clear tmp:clear"
diff --git a/backend/config/application.rb b/backend/config/application.rb
index 55c80691..2f848fe1 100644
--- a/backend/config/application.rb
+++ b/backend/config/application.rb
@@ -1,16 +1,18 @@
-require File.expand_path("../boot", __FILE__)
+require_relative "boot"
 
 require "rails"
 # Pick the frameworks you want:
 require "active_model/railtie"
 require "active_job/railtie"
 require "active_record/railtie"
+# require "active_storage/engine"
 require "action_controller/railtie"
 require "action_mailer/railtie"
-require "action_view/railtie"
 require "sprockets/railtie"
+# require "action_mailbox/engine"
+# require "action_text/engine"
+require "action_view/railtie"
 # require "action_cable/engine"
-# require "sprockets/railtie"
 # require "rails/test_unit/railtie"
 
 # Require the gems listed in Gemfile, including any gems
@@ -19,6 +21,11 @@
 
 module Flaredown
   class Application < Rails::Application
+    # Initialize configuration defaults for originally generated Rails version.
+    config.load_defaults 7.1
+    config.add_autoload_paths_to_load_path = false
+    config.active_support.cache_format_version = 7.1
+
     # https://medium.com/@Nicholson85/handling-cors-issues-in-your-rails-api-120dfbcb8a24
     # fix CORS issues in staging?
     config.middleware.insert_before 0, Rack::Cors do
@@ -27,14 +34,24 @@ class Application < Rails::Application
         resource "*", headers: :any, methods: [:get, :post, :put, :patch, :delete, :options, :head]
       end
     end
-    # Settings in config/environments/* take precedence over those specified here.
-    # Application configuration should go into files in config/initializers
-    # -- all .rb files in that directory are automatically loaded.
-    config.autoload_paths << Rails.root.join("lib")
-    config.autoload_paths << Rails.root.join("lib/*")
-    config.autoload_paths << Rails.root.join("lib/**/*")
-    config.autoload_paths << Rails.root.join("app/serializers/concerns")
-    config.autoload_paths << Rails.root.join("app/serializers/api/v1/concerns")
+
+    config.add_autoload_paths_to_load_path = false
+
+    # Please, add to the `ignore` list any other `lib` subdirectories that do
+    # not contain `.rb` files, or that should not be reloaded or eager loaded.
+    # Common ones are `templates`, `generators`, or `middleware`, for example.
+    config.autoload_lib(ignore: %w[assets tasks])
+
+    # Configuration for the application, engines, and railties goes here.
+    #
+    # These settings can be overridden in specific environments using the files
+    # in config/environments, which are processed later.
+    #
+    # config.time_zone = "Central Time (US & Canada)"
+    # config.eager_load_paths << Rails.root.join("extras")
+
+    # Don't generate system test files.
+    config.generators.system_tests = nil
 
     # Only loads a smaller set of middleware suitable for API only apps.
     # Middleware like session, flash, cookies can be added back manually.
diff --git a/backend/config/boot.rb b/backend/config/boot.rb
index fb24cf2e..28201161 100644
--- a/backend/config/boot.rb
+++ b/backend/config/boot.rb
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
-ENV["BUNDLE_GEMFILE"] ||= File.expand_path("../../Gemfile", __FILE__)
+ENV["BUNDLE_GEMFILE"] ||= File.expand_path("../Gemfile", __dir__)
 
 require "bundler/setup" # Set up gems listed in the Gemfile.
diff --git a/backend/config/environment.rb b/backend/config/environment.rb
index 17119856..cac53157 100644
--- a/backend/config/environment.rb
+++ b/backend/config/environment.rb
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 # Load the Rails application.
-require File.expand_path("../application", __FILE__)
+require_relative "application"
 
 # Initialize the Rails application.
 Rails.application.initialize!
diff --git a/backend/config/environments/development.rb b/backend/config/environments/development.rb
index 56b13c4e..94ec5dbd 100644
--- a/backend/config/environments/development.rb
+++ b/backend/config/environments/development.rb
@@ -1,53 +1,72 @@
-Rails.application.configure do
-  config.after_initialize do
-    Bullet.enable = true
-    Bullet.alert = true
-    Bullet.bullet_logger = true
-    Bullet.console = true
-    # Bullet.growl         = true
-    Bullet.rails_logger = true
-    Bullet.add_footer = true
-  end
+require "active_support/core_ext/integer/time"
 
+Rails.application.configure do
   # Settings specified here will take precedence over those in config/application.rb.
 
-  # In the development environment your application's code is reloaded on
-  # every request. This slows down response time but is perfect for development
+  # In the development environment your application's code is reloaded any time
+  # it changes. This slows down response time but is perfect for development
   # since you don't have to restart the web server when you make code changes.
-  config.cache_classes = false
+  config.enable_reloading = true
 
   # Do not eager load code on boot.
   config.eager_load = false
 
-  # Show full error reports and disable caching.
+  # Show full error reports.
   config.consider_all_requests_local = true
-  config.action_controller.perform_caching = false
+
+  # Enable server timing
+  config.server_timing = true
+
+  # Enable/disable caching. By default caching is disabled.
+  # Run rails dev:cache to toggle caching.
+  if Rails.root.join("tmp/caching-dev.txt").exist?
+    config.action_controller.perform_caching = true
+    config.action_controller.enable_fragment_cache_logging = true
+
+    config.cache_store = :memory_store
+    config.public_file_server.headers = {
+      "Cache-Control" => "public, max-age=#{2.days.to_i}"
+    }
+  else
+    config.action_controller.perform_caching = false
+
+    config.cache_store = :null_store
+  end
 
   # Don't care if the mailer can't send.
   config.action_mailer.raise_delivery_errors = false
 
+  config.action_mailer.perform_caching = false
+
   # Print deprecation notices to the Rails logger.
   config.active_support.deprecation = :log
 
+  # Raise exceptions for disallowed deprecations.
+  config.active_support.disallowed_deprecation = :raise
+
+  # Tell Active Support which deprecation messages to disallow.
+  config.active_support.disallowed_deprecation_warnings = []
+
   # Raise an error on page load if there are pending migrations.
   config.active_record.migration_error = :page_load
 
-  # Debug mode disables concatenation and preprocessing of assets.
-  # This option may cause significant delays in view rendering with a large
-  # number of complex assets.
-  config.assets.debug = true
+  # Highlight code that triggered database queries in logs.
+  config.active_record.verbose_query_logs = true
+
+  # Highlight code that enqueued background job in logs.
+  config.active_job.verbose_enqueue_logs = true
 
-  # Asset digests allow you to set far-future HTTP expiration dates on all assets,
-  # yet still be able to expire them through the digest params.
-  config.assets.digest = true
+  # Suppress logger output for asset requests.
+  config.assets.quiet = true
 
-  # Adds additional error checking when serving assets at runtime.
-  # Checks for improperly declared sprockets dependencies.
-  # Raises helpful error messages.
-  config.assets.raise_runtime_errors = true
+  # Raises error for missing translations.
+  config.i18n.raise_on_missing_translations = true
 
-  # Raises error for missing translations
-  # config.action_view.raise_on_missing_translations = true
+  # Annotate rendered view with file names.
+  # config.action_view.annotate_rendered_view_with_filenames = true
+
+  # Raise error when a before_action's only/except options reference missing actions
+  config.action_controller.raise_on_missing_callback_actions = true
 
   # Delivery with letter opener
   config.action_mailer.delivery_method = :letter_opener
@@ -57,6 +76,8 @@
     Bullet.alert = true
     Bullet.bullet_logger = true
     Bullet.console = true
+    # Bullet.growl = true
     Bullet.rails_logger = true
+    Bullet.add_footer = true
   end
 end
diff --git a/backend/config/environments/production.rb b/backend/config/environments/production.rb
index 45a9cc0c..ab43a8d0 100644
--- a/backend/config/environments/production.rb
+++ b/backend/config/environments/production.rb
@@ -1,8 +1,10 @@
+require "active_support/core_ext/integer/time"
+
 Rails.application.configure do
   # Settings specified here will take precedence over those in config/application.rb.
 
   # Code is not reloaded between requests.
-  config.cache_classes = true
+  config.enable_reloading = false
 
   # Eager load code on boot. This eager loads most of Rails and
   # your application in memory, allowing both threaded web servers
@@ -14,53 +16,54 @@
   config.consider_all_requests_local = false
   config.action_controller.perform_caching = true
 
-  # Enable Rack::Cache to put a simple HTTP cache in front of your application
-  # Add `rack-cache` to your Gemfile before enabling this.
-  # For large-scale production use, consider using a caching reverse proxy like
-  # NGINX, varnish or squid.
-  # config.action_dispatch.rack_cache = true
+  # Ensures that a master key has been made available in ENV["RAILS_MASTER_KEY"], config/master.key, or an environment
+  # key such as config/credentials/production.key. This key is used to decrypt credentials (and other encrypted files).
+  # config.require_master_key = true
 
-  # Disable serving static files from the `/public` folder by default since
-  # Apache or NGINX already handles this.
+  # Disable serving static files from `public/`, relying on NGINX/Apache to do so instead.
   config.public_file_server.enabled = ENV["RAILS_SERVE_STATIC_FILES"].present?
 
-  # config.serve_static_files = ENV['RAILS_SERVE_STATIC_FILES'].present?
-
-  # Compress JavaScripts and CSS.
-  # config.assets.js_compressor = :uglifier
+  # Compress CSS using a preprocessor.
   # config.assets.css_compressor = :sass
 
-  # Do not fallback to assets pipeline if a precompiled asset is missed.
+  # Do not fall back to assets pipeline if a precompiled asset is missed.
   config.assets.compile = false
 
-  # Asset digests allow you to set far-future HTTP expiration dates on all assets,
-  # yet still be able to expire them through the digest params.
-  config.assets.digest = true
-
-  # `config.assets.precompile` and `config.assets.version` have moved to config/initializers/assets.rb
+  # Enable serving of images, stylesheets, and JavaScripts from an asset server.
+  # config.asset_host = "http://assets.example.com"
 
   # Specifies the header that your server uses for sending files.
-  # config.action_dispatch.x_sendfile_header = 'X-Sendfile' # for Apache
-  # config.action_dispatch.x_sendfile_header = 'X-Accel-Redirect' # for NGINX
+  # config.action_dispatch.x_sendfile_header = "X-Sendfile" # for Apache
+  # config.action_dispatch.x_sendfile_header = "X-Accel-Redirect" # for NGINX
+
+  # Assume all access to the app is happening through a SSL-terminating reverse proxy.
+  # Can be used together with config.force_ssl for Strict-Transport-Security and secure cookies.
+  # config.assume_ssl = true
 
   # Force all access to the app over SSL, use Strict-Transport-Security, and use secure cookies.
   config.force_ssl = true
 
-  # Use the lowest log level to ensure availability of diagnostic information
-  # when problems arise.
-  config.log_level = :debug
+  # Log to STDOUT by default
+  config.logger = ActiveSupport::Logger.new(STDOUT)
+    .tap { |logger| logger.formatter = ::Logger::Formatter.new }
+    .then { |logger| ActiveSupport::TaggedLogging.new(logger) }
 
   # Prepend all log lines with the following tags.
-  # config.log_tags = [ :subdomain, :uuid ]
+  config.log_tags = [:request_id]
 
-  # Use a different logger for distributed setups.
-  # config.logger = ActiveSupport::TaggedLogging.new(SyslogLogger.new)
+  # "info" includes generic and useful information about system operation, but avoids logging too much
+  # information to avoid inadvertent exposure of personally identifiable information (PII). If you
+  # want to log everything, set the level to "debug".
+  config.log_level = ENV.fetch("RAILS_LOG_LEVEL", "debug")
 
   # Use a different cache store in production.
   # config.cache_store = :mem_cache_store
 
-  # Enable serving of images, stylesheets, and JavaScripts from an asset server.
-  # config.action_controller.asset_host = 'http://assets.example.com'
+  # Use a real queuing backend for Active Job (and separate queues per environment).
+  # config.active_job.queue_adapter = :resque
+  # config.active_job.queue_name_prefix = "flaredown_production"
+
+  config.action_mailer.perform_caching = false
 
   # Ignore bad email addresses and do not raise email delivery errors.
   # Set this to true and configure the email server for immediate delivery to raise delivery errors.
@@ -70,12 +73,17 @@
   # the I18n.default_locale when a translation cannot be found).
   config.i18n.fallbacks = true
 
-  # Send deprecation notices to registered listeners.
-  config.active_support.deprecation = :notify
-
-  # Use default logging formatter so that PID and timestamp are not suppressed.
-  config.log_formatter = ::Logger::Formatter.new
+  # Send deprecation notices to registered listeners. (false by default)
+  config.active_support.report_deprecations = :notify
 
   # Do not dump schema after migrations.
   config.active_record.dump_schema_after_migration = false
+
+  # Enable DNS rebinding protection and other `Host` header attacks.
+  # config.hosts = [
+  #   "example.com",     # Allow requests from example.com
+  #   /.*\.example\.com/ # Allow requests from subdomains like `www.example.com`
+  # ]
+  # Skip DNS rebinding protection for the default health check endpoint.
+  # config.host_authorization = { exclude: ->(request) { request.path == "/up" } }
 end
diff --git a/backend/config/environments/test.rb b/backend/config/environments/test.rb
index f2d57420..772fdeec 100644
--- a/backend/config/environments/test.rb
+++ b/backend/config/environments/test.rb
@@ -1,44 +1,63 @@
+require "active_support/core_ext/integer/time"
+
+# The test environment is used exclusively to run your application's
+# test suite. You never need to work with it otherwise. Remember that
+# your test database is "scratch space" for the test suite and is wiped
+# and recreated between test runs. Don't rely on the data there!
+
 Rails.application.configure do
   # Settings specified here will take precedence over those in config/application.rb.
 
-  # The test environment is used exclusively to run your application's
-  # test suite. You never need to work with it otherwise. Remember that
-  # your test database is "scratch space" for the test suite and is wiped
-  # and recreated between test runs. Don't rely on the data there!
-  config.cache_classes = true
+  # While tests run files are not watched, reloading is not necessary.
+  config.enable_reloading = false
 
-  # Do not eager load code on boot. This avoids loading your whole application
-  # just for the purpose of running a single test. If you are using a tool that
-  # preloads Rails for running tests, you may have to set it to true.
-  config.eager_load = false
+  # Eager loading loads your entire application. When running a single test locally,
+  # this is usually not necessary, and can slow down your test suite. However, it's
+  # recommended that you enable it in continuous integration systems to ensure eager
+  # loading is working properly before deploying your code.
+  config.eager_load = ENV["CI"].present?
 
-  # Configure static file server for tests with Cache-Control for performance.
+  # Configure public file server for tests with Cache-Control for performance.
   config.public_file_server.enabled = true
-  config.public_file_server.headers = {"Cache-Control" => "public, max-age=3600"}
+  config.public_file_server.headers = {
+    "Cache-Control" => "public, max-age=#{1.hour.to_i}"
+  }
 
   # Show full error reports and disable caching.
   config.consider_all_requests_local = true
   config.action_controller.perform_caching = false
+  config.cache_store = :null_store
 
-  # Raise exceptions instead of rendering exception templates.
-  config.action_dispatch.show_exceptions = false
+  # Render exception templates for rescuable exceptions and raise for other exceptions.
+  config.action_dispatch.show_exceptions = :rescuable
 
   # Disable request forgery protection in test environment.
   config.action_controller.allow_forgery_protection = false
 
+  config.action_mailer.perform_caching = false
+
   # Tell Action Mailer not to deliver emails to the real world.
   # The :test delivery method accumulates sent emails in the
   # ActionMailer::Base.deliveries array.
   config.action_mailer.delivery_method = :test
 
-  # Randomize the order test cases are executed.
-  config.active_support.test_order = :random
-
   # Print deprecation notices to the stderr.
   config.active_support.deprecation = :stderr
 
-  # Raises error for missing translations
-  # config.action_view.raise_on_missing_translations = true
+  # Raise exceptions for disallowed deprecations.
+  config.active_support.disallowed_deprecation = :raise
+
+  # Tell Active Support which deprecation messages to disallow.
+  config.active_support.disallowed_deprecation_warnings = []
+
+  # Raises error for missing translations.
+  # config.i18n.raise_on_missing_translations = true
+
+  # Annotate rendered view with file names.
+  # config.action_view.annotate_rendered_view_with_filenames = true
+
+  # Raise error when a before_action's only/except options reference missing actions
+  config.action_controller.raise_on_missing_callback_actions = true
 
   config.after_initialize do
     Bullet.enable = true
diff --git a/backend/config/initializers/assets.rb b/backend/config/initializers/assets.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..2eeef966
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/config/initializers/assets.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+# Be sure to restart your server when you modify this file.
+
+# Version of your assets, change this if you want to expire all your assets.
+Rails.application.config.assets.version = "1.0"
+
+# Add additional assets to the asset load path.
+# Rails.application.config.assets.paths << Emoji.images_path
+
+# Precompile additional assets.
+# application.js, application.css, and all non-JS/CSS in the app/assets
+# folder are already added.
+# Rails.application.config.assets.precompile += %w( admin.js admin.css )
diff --git a/backend/config/initializers/content_security_policy.rb b/backend/config/initializers/content_security_policy.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b3076b38
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/config/initializers/content_security_policy.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+# Be sure to restart your server when you modify this file.
+
+# Define an application-wide content security policy.
+# See the Securing Rails Applications Guide for more information:
+# https://guides.rubyonrails.org/security.html#content-security-policy-header
+
+# Rails.application.configure do
+#   config.content_security_policy do |policy|
+#     policy.default_src :self, :https
+#     policy.font_src    :self, :https, :data
+#     policy.img_src     :self, :https, :data
+#     policy.object_src  :none
+#     policy.script_src  :self, :https
+#     policy.style_src   :self, :https
+#     # Specify URI for violation reports
+#     # policy.report_uri "/csp-violation-report-endpoint"
+#   end
+#
+#   # Generate session nonces for permitted importmap, inline scripts, and inline styles.
+#   config.content_security_policy_nonce_generator = ->(request) { request.session.id.to_s }
+#   config.content_security_policy_nonce_directives = %w(script-src style-src)
+#
+#   # Report violations without enforcing the policy.
+#   # config.content_security_policy_report_only = true
+# end
diff --git a/backend/config/initializers/filter_parameter_logging.rb b/backend/config/initializers/filter_parameter_logging.rb
index 4a994e1e..3435964b 100644
--- a/backend/config/initializers/filter_parameter_logging.rb
+++ b/backend/config/initializers/filter_parameter_logging.rb
@@ -1,4 +1,8 @@
 # Be sure to restart your server when you modify this file.
 
-# Configure sensitive parameters which will be filtered from the log file.
-Rails.application.config.filter_parameters += [:password]
+# Configure parameters to be partially matched (e.g. passw matches password) and filtered from the log file.
+# Use this to limit dissemination of sensitive information.
+# See the ActiveSupport::ParameterFilter documentation for supported notations and behaviors.
+Rails.application.config.filter_parameters += [
+  :password, :passw, :secret, :token, :_key, :crypt, :salt, :certificate, :otp, :ssn
+]
diff --git a/backend/config/initializers/inflections.rb b/backend/config/initializers/inflections.rb
index ac033bf9..3860f659 100644
--- a/backend/config/initializers/inflections.rb
+++ b/backend/config/initializers/inflections.rb
@@ -4,13 +4,13 @@
 # are locale specific, and you may define rules for as many different
 # locales as you wish. All of these examples are active by default:
 # ActiveSupport::Inflector.inflections(:en) do |inflect|
-#   inflect.plural /^(ox)$/i, '\1en'
-#   inflect.singular /^(ox)en/i, '\1'
-#   inflect.irregular 'person', 'people'
+#   inflect.plural /^(ox)$/i, "\\1en"
+#   inflect.singular /^(ox)en/i, "\\1"
+#   inflect.irregular "person", "people"
 #   inflect.uncountable %w( fish sheep )
 # end
 
 # These inflection rules are supported but not enabled by default:
 # ActiveSupport::Inflector.inflections(:en) do |inflect|
-#   inflect.acronym 'RESTful'
+#   inflect.acronym "RESTful"
 # end
diff --git a/backend/config/initializers/mongoid.rb b/backend/config/initializers/mongoid.rb
index fb11b035..e89b546f 100644
--- a/backend/config/initializers/mongoid.rb
+++ b/backend/config/initializers/mongoid.rb
@@ -1,3 +1,7 @@
+Mongoid.configure do |config|
+  config.load_defaults 8.1
+end
+
 Mongoid::Document.send(:include, ActiveModel::SerializerSupport)
 Mongoid::Criteria.delegate(:active_model_serializer, to: :to_a)
 
diff --git a/backend/config/initializers/new_framework_defaults_7_1.rb b/backend/config/initializers/new_framework_defaults_7_1.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..27d1fab2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/config/initializers/new_framework_defaults_7_1.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,288 @@
+# Be sure to restart your server when you modify this file.
+#
+# This file eases your Rails 7.1 framework defaults upgrade.
+#
+# Uncomment each configuration one by one to switch to the new default.
+# Once your application is ready to run with all new defaults, you can remove
+# this file and set the `config.load_defaults` to `7.1`.
+#
+# Read the Guide for Upgrading Ruby on Rails for more info on each option.
+# https://guides.rubyonrails.org/upgrading_ruby_on_rails.html
+# https://guides.rubyonrails.org/configuring.html#default-values-for-target-version-7-1
+
+###
+# No longer add autoloaded paths into `$LOAD_PATH`. This means that you won't be able
+# to manually require files that are managed by the autoloader, which you shouldn't do anyway.
+#
+# This will reduce the size of the load path, making `require` faster if you don't use bootsnap, or reduce the size
+# of the bootsnap cache if you use it.
+#
+# To set this configuration, add the following line to `config/application.rb` (NOT this file):
+#   config.add_autoload_paths_to_load_path = false (DONE)
+
+###
+# Remove the default X-Download-Options headers since it is used only by Internet Explorer.
+# If you need to support Internet Explorer, add back `"X-Download-Options" => "noopen"`.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.action_dispatch.default_headers = {
+  "X-Frame-Options" => "SAMEORIGIN",
+  "X-XSS-Protection" => "0",
+  "X-Content-Type-Options" => "nosniff",
+  "X-Permitted-Cross-Domain-Policies" => "none",
+  "Referrer-Policy" => "strict-origin-when-cross-origin"
+}
+
+###
+# Do not treat an `ActionController::Parameters` instance
+# as equal to an equivalent `Hash` by default.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.action_controller.allow_deprecated_parameters_hash_equality = false
+
+###
+# Active Record Encryption now uses SHA-256 as its hash digest algorithm.
+#
+# There are 3 scenarios to consider.
+#
+# 1. If you have data encrypted with previous Rails versions, and you have
+# +config.active_support.key_generator_hash_digest_class+ configured as SHA1 (the default
+# before Rails 7.0), you need to configure SHA-1 for Active Record Encryption too:
+#++
+# Rails.application.config.active_record.encryption.hash_digest_class = OpenSSL::Digest::SHA1
+#
+# 2. If you have +config.active_support.key_generator_hash_digest_class+ configured as SHA256 (the new default
+# in 7.0), then you need to configure SHA-256 for Active Record Encryption:
+#++
+# Rails.application.config.active_record.encryption.hash_digest_class = OpenSSL::Digest::SHA256
+#
+# 3. If you don't currently have data encrypted with Active Record encryption, you can disable this setting to
+# configure the default behavior starting 7.1+:
+#++
+# - NOTE: I don't see `key_generator_hash_digest_class`` or `encrypts` used anywhwere
+#   - If app is using Active Record Encryption, will need to do 1 or 2 above
+Rails.application.config.active_record.encryption.support_sha1_for_non_deterministic_encryption = false
+
+###
+# No longer run after_commit callbacks on the first of multiple Active Record
+# instances to save changes to the same database row within a transaction.
+# Instead, run these callbacks on the instance most likely to have internal
+# state which matches what was committed to the database, typically the last
+# instance to save.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.run_commit_callbacks_on_first_saved_instances_in_transaction = false
+
+###
+# Configures SQLite with a strict strings mode, which disables double-quoted string literals.
+#
+# SQLite has some quirks around double-quoted string literals.
+# It first tries to consider double-quoted strings as identifier names, but if they don't exist
+# it then considers them as string literals. Because of this, typos can silently go unnoticed.
+# For example, it is possible to create an index for a non existing column.
+# See https://www.sqlite.org/quirks.html#double_quoted_string_literals_are_accepted for more details.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.sqlite3_adapter_strict_strings_by_default = true
+
+###
+# Disable deprecated singular associations names.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.allow_deprecated_singular_associations_name = false
+
+###
+# Enable the Active Job `BigDecimal` argument serializer, which guarantees
+# roundtripping. Without this serializer, some queue adapters may serialize
+# `BigDecimal` arguments as simple (non-roundtrippable) strings.
+#
+# When deploying an application with multiple replicas, old (pre-Rails 7.1)
+# replicas will not be able to deserialize `BigDecimal` arguments from this
+# serializer. Therefore, this setting should only be enabled after all replicas
+# have been successfully upgraded to Rails 7.1.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_job.use_big_decimal_serializer = true
+
+###
+# Specify if an `ArgumentError` should be raised if `Rails.cache` `fetch` or
+# `write` are given an invalid `expires_at` or `expires_in` time.
+# Options are `true`, and `false`. If `false`, the exception will be reported
+# as `handled` and logged instead.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_support.raise_on_invalid_cache_expiration_time = true
+
+###
+# Specify whether Query Logs will format tags using the SQLCommenter format
+# (https://open-telemetry.github.io/opentelemetry-sqlcommenter/), or using the legacy format.
+# Options are `:legacy` and `:sqlcommenter`.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.query_log_tags_format = :sqlcommenter
+
+###
+# Specify the default serializer used by `MessageEncryptor` and `MessageVerifier`
+# instances.
+#
+# The legacy default is `:marshal`, which is a potential vector for
+# deserialization attacks in cases where a message signing secret has been
+# leaked.
+#
+# In Rails 7.1, the new default is `:json_allow_marshal` which serializes and
+# deserializes with `ActiveSupport::JSON`, but can fall back to deserializing
+# with `Marshal` so that legacy messages can still be read.
+#
+# In Rails 7.2, the default will become `:json` which serializes and
+# deserializes with `ActiveSupport::JSON` only.
+#
+# Alternatively, you can choose `:message_pack` or `:message_pack_allow_marshal`,
+# which serialize with `ActiveSupport::MessagePack`. `ActiveSupport::MessagePack`
+# can roundtrip some Ruby types that are not supported by JSON, and may provide
+# improved performance, but it requires the `msgpack` gem.
+#
+# For more information, see
+# https://guides.rubyonrails.org/v7.1/configuring.html#config-active-support-message-serializer
+#
+# NOTE: Does rolling deploy apply here?
+# If you are performing a rolling deploy of a Rails 7.1 upgrade, wherein servers
+# that have not yet been upgraded must be able to read messages from upgraded
+# servers, first deploy without changing the serializer, then set the serializer
+# in a subsequent deploy.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_support.message_serializer = :json_allow_marshal
+
+###
+# Enable a performance optimization that serializes message data and metadata
+# together. This changes the message format, so messages serialized this way
+# cannot be read by older versions of Rails. However, messages that use the old
+# format can still be read, regardless of whether this optimization is enabled.
+#
+# NOTE: Does rolling deploy apply here?
+# To perform a rolling deploy of a Rails 7.1 upgrade, wherein servers that have
+# not yet been upgraded must be able to read messages from upgraded servers,
+# leave this optimization off on the first deploy, then enable it on a
+# subsequent deploy.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_support.use_message_serializer_for_metadata = true
+
+###
+# Set the maximum size for Rails log files.
+#
+# `config.load_defaults 7.1` does not set this value for environments other than
+# development and test.
+#++
+if Rails.env.local?
+  Rails.application.config.log_file_size = 100 * 1024 * 1024
+end
+
+###
+# Enable raising on assignment to attr_readonly attributes. The previous
+# behavior would allow assignment but silently not persist changes to the
+# database.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.raise_on_assign_to_attr_readonly = true
+
+###
+# Enable validating only parent-related columns for presence when the parent is mandatory.
+# The previous behavior was to validate the presence of the parent record, which performed an extra query
+# to get the parent every time the child record was updated, even when parent has not changed.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.belongs_to_required_validates_foreign_key = false
+
+###
+# Enable precompilation of `config.filter_parameters`. Precompilation can
+# improve filtering performance, depending on the quantity and types of filters.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.precompile_filter_parameters = true
+
+###
+# Enable before_committed! callbacks on all enrolled records in a transaction.
+# The previous behavior was to only run the callbacks on the first copy of a record
+# if there were multiple copies of the same record enrolled in the transaction.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.before_committed_on_all_records = true
+
+###
+# Disable automatic column serialization into YAML.
+# To keep the historic behavior, you can set it to `YAML`, however it is
+# recommended to explicitly define the serialization method for each column
+# rather than to rely on a global default.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.default_column_serializer = nil
+
+###
+# Enable a performance optimization that serializes Active Record models
+# in a faster and more compact way.
+#
+# NOTE: Does rolling deploy apply here?
+# To perform a rolling deploy of a Rails 7.1 upgrade, wherein servers that have
+# not yet been upgraded must be able to read caches from upgraded servers,
+# leave this optimization off on the first deploy, then enable it on a
+# subsequent deploy.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.marshalling_format_version = 7.1
+
+###
+# Run `after_commit` and `after_*_commit` callbacks in the order they are defined in a model.
+# This matches the behaviour of all other callbacks.
+# In previous versions of Rails, they ran in the inverse order.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.run_after_transaction_callbacks_in_order_defined = true
+
+###
+# Whether a `transaction` block is committed or rolled back when exited via `return`, `break` or `throw`.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.commit_transaction_on_non_local_return = true
+
+###
+# Controls when to generate a value for <tt>has_secure_token</tt> declarations.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.active_record.generate_secure_token_on = :initialize
+
+###
+# ** Please read carefully, this must be configured in config/application.rb **
+# Change the format of the cache entry.
+#
+# Changing this default means that all new cache entries added to the cache
+# will have a different format that is not supported by Rails 7.0
+# applications.
+#
+# Only change this value after your application is fully deployed to Rails 7.1
+# and you have no plans to rollback.
+# When you're ready to change format, add this to `config/application.rb` (NOT
+# this file):
+# NOTE: Does rolling deploy apply here?
+#   - TODO: If so, revert change in app config & create issue for this to be done after deploying?
+#   config.active_support.cache_format_version = 7.1 (DOME)
+
+###
+# Configure Action View to use HTML5 standards-compliant sanitizers when they are supported on your
+# platform.
+#
+# `Rails::HTML::Sanitizer.best_supported_vendor` will cause Action View to use HTML5-compliant
+# sanitizers if they are supported, else fall back to HTML4 sanitizers.
+#
+# In previous versions of Rails, Action View always used `Rails::HTML4::Sanitizer` as its vendor.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.action_view.sanitizer_vendor = Rails::HTML::Sanitizer.best_supported_vendor
+
+###
+# Configure Action Text to use an HTML5 standards-compliant sanitizer when it is supported on your
+# platform.
+#
+# `Rails::HTML::Sanitizer.best_supported_vendor` will cause Action Text to use HTML5-compliant
+# sanitizers if they are supported, else fall back to HTML4 sanitizers.
+#
+# In previous versions of Rails, Action Text always used `Rails::HTML4::Sanitizer` as its vendor.
+#++
+# NOTE: App is not using Action Text, this is ignored when load_defaults: 7.1 is enabled.
+# Rails.application.config.action_text.sanitizer_vendor = Rails::HTML::Sanitizer.best_supported_vendor
+
+###
+# Configure the log level used by the DebugExceptions middleware when logging
+# uncaught exceptions during requests.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.action_dispatch.debug_exception_log_level = :error
+
+###
+# Configure the test helpers in Action View, Action Dispatch, and rails-dom-testing to use HTML5
+# parsers.
+#
+# Nokogiri::HTML5 isn't supported on JRuby, so JRuby applications must set this to :html4.
+#
+# In previous versions of Rails, these test helpers always used an HTML4 parser.
+#++
+Rails.application.config.dom_testing_default_html_version = :html5
diff --git a/backend/config/initializers/permissions_policy.rb b/backend/config/initializers/permissions_policy.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7db3b957
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/config/initializers/permissions_policy.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+# Be sure to restart your server when you modify this file.
+
+# Define an application-wide HTTP permissions policy. For further
+# information see: https://developers.google.com/web/updates/2018/06/feature-policy
+
+# Rails.application.config.permissions_policy do |policy|
+#   policy.camera      :none
+#   policy.gyroscope   :none
+#   policy.microphone  :none
+#   policy.usb         :none
+#   policy.fullscreen  :self
+#   policy.payment     :self, "https://secure.example.com"
+# end
diff --git a/backend/config/mongoid.yml b/backend/config/mongoid.yml
index dd6ced10..b8c8e1b3 100644
--- a/backend/config/mongoid.yml
+++ b/backend/config/mongoid.yml
@@ -3,7 +3,11 @@ development:
   clients:
     # Defines the default client. (required)
     default:
-      # Defines the name of the default database that Mongoid can connect to.
+      # Mongoid can connect to a URI accepted by the driver:
+      # uri: mongodb://user:password@mongodb.domain.com:27017/flaredown_development
+
+      # Otherwise define the parameters separately.
+      # This defines the name of the default database that Mongoid can connect to.
       # (required).
       database: flaredown_development
       # Provides the hosts the default client can connect to. Must be an array
@@ -11,9 +15,14 @@ development:
       hosts:
         - <%= ENV['MONGODB_HOST'] || "localhost" %>:27017
       options:
+        # Note that all options listed below are Ruby driver client options (the mongo gem).
+        # Please refer to the driver documentation of the version of the mongo gem you are using
+        # for the most up-to-date list of options.
+        #
         # Change the default write concern. (default = { w: 1 })
         # write:
         #   w: 1
+
         # Change the default read preference. Valid options for mode are: :secondary,
         # :secondary_preferred, :primary, :primary_preferred, :nearest
         # (default: primary)
@@ -33,11 +42,13 @@ development:
         #   - 'dbOwner'
 
         # Change the default authentication mechanism. Valid options are: :scram,
-        # :mongodb_cr, :mongodb_x509, and :plain. (default on 3.0 is :scram, default
-        # on 2.4 and 2.6 is :plain)
+        # :mongodb_cr, :mongodb_x509, and :plain. Note that all authentication
+        # mechanisms require username and password, with the exception of :mongodb_x509.
+        # Default on mongoDB 3.0 is :scram, default on 2.4 and 2.6 is :plain.
         # auth_mech: :scram
 
-        # The database or source to authenticate the user against. (default: admin)
+        # The database or source to authenticate the user against.
+        # (default: the database specified above or admin)
         # auth_source: admin
 
         # Force a the driver cluster to behave in a certain manner instead of auto-
@@ -46,11 +57,11 @@ development:
         # connect: :direct
 
         # Changes the default time in seconds the server monitors refresh their status
-        # via ismaster commands. (default: 10)
+        # via hello commands. (default: 10)
         # heartbeat_frequency: 10
 
-        # The time in seconds for selecting servers for a near read preference. (default: 5)
-        # local_threshold: 5
+        # The time in seconds for selecting servers for a near read preference. (default: 0.015)
+        # local_threshold: 0.015
 
         # The timeout in seconds for selecting a server for an operation. (default: 30)
         # server_selection_timeout: 30
@@ -66,11 +77,16 @@ development:
         # wait_queue_timeout: 5
 
         # The time to wait to establish a connection before timing out, in seconds.
-        # (default: 5)
-        # connect_timeout: 5
-
-        # The timeout to wait to execute operations on a socket before raising an error.
-        # (default: 5)
+        # (default: 10)
+        # connect_timeout: 10
+
+        # How long to wait for a response for each operation sent to the
+        # server. This timeout should be set to a value larger than the
+        # processing time for the longest operation that will be executed
+        # by the application. Note that this is a client-side timeout;
+        # the server may continue executing an operation after the client
+        # aborts it with the SocketTimeout exception.
+        # (default: nil, meaning no timeout)
         # socket_timeout: 5
 
         # The name of the replica set to connect to. Servers provided as seeds that do
@@ -91,22 +107,46 @@ development:
         # A passphrase for the private key.
         # ssl_key_pass_phrase: password
 
-        # Whether or not to do peer certification validation. (default: false)
+        # Whether to do peer certification validation. (default: true)
         # ssl_verify: true
 
-        # The file containing a set of concatenated certification authority certifications
+        # The file containing concatenated certificate authority certificates
         # used to validate certs passed from the other end of the connection.
         # ssl_ca_cert: /path/to/ca.cert
 
+        # Whether to truncate long log lines. (default: true)
+        # truncate_logs: true
 
   # Configure Mongoid specific options. (optional)
   options:
-    # Includes the root model name in json serialization. (default: false)
+    # Application name that is printed to the mongodb logs upon establishing
+    # a connection in server versions >= 3.4. Note that the name cannot
+    # exceed 128 bytes. It is also used as the database name if the
+    # database name is not explicitly defined. (default: nil)
+    # app_name: MyApplicationName
+
+    # Mark belongs_to associations as required by default, so that saving a
+    # model with a missing belongs_to association will trigger a validation
+    # error. (default: true)
+    # belongs_to_required_by_default: true
+
+    # Raise an exception when a field is redefined. (default: false)
+    # duplicate_fields_exception: false
+
+    # Include the root model name in json serialization. (default: false)
     # include_root_in_json: false
 
     # Include the _type field in serialization. (default: false)
     # include_type_for_serialization: false
 
+    # Whether to join nested persistence contexts for atomic operations
+    # to parent contexts by default. (default: false)
+    # join_contexts: false
+
+    # Set the Mongoid and Ruby driver log levels when Mongoid is not using
+    # Ruby on Rails logger instance. (default: :info)
+    # log_level: :info
+
     # Preload all models in development, needed when models use
     # inheritance. (default: false)
     # preload_models: false
@@ -119,11 +159,20 @@ development:
     # existing method. (default: false)
     # scope_overwrite_exception: false
 
-    # Use Active Support's time zone in conversions. (default: true)
+    # Use ActiveSupport's time zone in time operations instead of
+    # the Ruby default time zone. See the time zone section below for
+    # further information. (default: true)
     # use_activesupport_time_zone: true
 
-    # Ensure all times are UTC in the app side. (default: false)
+    # Return stored times as UTC. See the time zone section below for
+    # further information. Most applications should not use this option.
+    # (default: false)
     # use_utc: false
+
+    # (Deprecated) In MongoDB 4.0 and earlier, set whether to create
+    # indexes in the background by default. (default: false)
+    # background_indexing: false
+
 test:
   clients:
     default:
diff --git a/backend/spec/models/checkin/condition_spec.rb b/backend/spec/models/checkin/condition_spec.rb
index 2efc9099..4279c222 100644
--- a/backend/spec/models/checkin/condition_spec.rb
+++ b/backend/spec/models/checkin/condition_spec.rb
@@ -3,15 +3,9 @@
 RSpec.describe Checkin::Condition, type: :model do
   include Mongoid::Matchers
 
+  it_behaves_like "fiveable"
+
   describe "Relations" do
     it { is_expected.to belong_to(:checkin) }
   end
-
-  describe "Respond to" do
-    it { is_expected.to respond_to(:value) }
-  end
-
-  describe "Validations" do
-    it { is_expected.to validate_inclusion_of(:value).to_allow(0..4) }
-  end
 end
diff --git a/backend/spec/models/checkin/symptom_spec.rb b/backend/spec/models/checkin/symptom_spec.rb
index 530d8951..2cc648c4 100644
--- a/backend/spec/models/checkin/symptom_spec.rb
+++ b/backend/spec/models/checkin/symptom_spec.rb
@@ -3,15 +3,9 @@
 RSpec.describe Checkin::Symptom, type: :model do
   include Mongoid::Matchers
 
+  it_behaves_like "fiveable"
+
   describe "Relations" do
     it { is_expected.to belong_to(:checkin) }
   end
-
-  describe "Respond to" do
-    it { is_expected.to respond_to(:value) }
-  end
-
-  describe "Validations" do
-    it { is_expected.to validate_inclusion_of(:value).to_allow(0..4) }
-  end
 end
diff --git a/backend/spec/models/tracking_spec.rb b/backend/spec/models/tracking_spec.rb
index 99b10ee9..5e6e642e 100644
--- a/backend/spec/models/tracking_spec.rb
+++ b/backend/spec/models/tracking_spec.rb
@@ -25,9 +25,13 @@
     it { is_expected.to validate_presence_of(:user) }
     it { is_expected.to validate_presence_of(:trackable) }
     it { is_expected.to validate_inclusion_of(:trackable_type).in_array(%w[Condition Symptom Treatment]) }
+
     context "without foreign key checks" do
+      subject { create :tracking, :for_condition, :active }
+
       before { disable_foreign_key_checks("trackings") }
       after { enable_foreign_key_checks("trackings") }
+
       it do
         is_expected.to(
           validate_uniqueness_of(:user_id)
diff --git a/backend/spec/services/checkin/updater_spec.rb b/backend/spec/services/checkin/updater_spec.rb
index 9124f510..79a56b46 100644
--- a/backend/spec/services/checkin/updater_spec.rb
+++ b/backend/spec/services/checkin/updater_spec.rb
@@ -190,7 +190,8 @@
         end
       end
       context "on a past checkin" do
-        before { checkin.update!(date: Time.zone.today - 1.day) }
+        let(:checkin) { create(:checkin, user_id: user.id, date: Time.zone.today - 1.day) }
+
         it "updates trackables positions in checkin but doesn't save them in profile" do
           params[:checkin][:conditions_attributes].each do |condition_attr|
             checkin_condition = subject.conditions.find(condition_attr[:id])
diff --git a/backend/spec/spec_helper.rb b/backend/spec/spec_helper.rb
index 022a6073..dbacc836 100644
--- a/backend/spec/spec_helper.rb
+++ b/backend/spec/spec_helper.rb
@@ -10,6 +10,19 @@
 require "webmock/rspec"
 WebMock.disable_net_connect!(allow_localhost: true)
 
+Geocoder.configure(lookup: :test, ip_lookup: :test)
+minneapolis_geo = {
+  # match the WeatherRetriever vcr stub
+  "coordinates" => [44.967486, -93.2897678],
+  "address" => "Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA",
+  "state" => "Minnesota",
+  "state_code" => "MN",
+  "country" => "United States",
+  "country_code" => "US",
+  "postal_code" => "55403"
+}
+Geocoder::Lookup::Test.set_default_stub([minneapolis_geo])
+
 Dir[Rails.root.join("spec/support/**/*.rb")].each { |f| require f }
 
 RSpec.configure do |config|
diff --git a/backend/spec/support/shared_examples/fiveable.rb b/backend/spec/support/shared_examples/fiveable.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5a2bdab8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/spec/support/shared_examples/fiveable.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+require "spec_helper"
+
+shared_examples_for "fiveable" do
+  include Mongoid::Matchers
+
+  it { is_expected.to respond_to(:value) }
+  it { is_expected.to validate_inclusion_of(:value).to_allow(0..4) }
+end