From 9a30c5ab16b7ed51b913bc50d30c1d6c3e80a762 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Relism <itzdrekkopvp@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 19 Mar 2026 21:35:54 +0100
Subject: [PATCH] enhanced router middleware support; added pre-fused
 middleware handling and improved handler registration

---
 .idea/vcs.xml                                 |   1 +
 .idea/workspace.xml                           |  54 ++++-----
 flash-bench/pom.xml                           |  11 +-
 .../src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServer.java  |  37 +++---
 .../java/dev/relism/models/QueryParams.java   |  52 ++++++--
 .../main/java/dev/relism/models/Response.java |   6 -
 .../dev/relism/routing/AbstractRouter.java    | 111 ++++++++++++++----
 .../java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouter.java |   9 +-
 .../main/java/dev/relism/routing/Route.java   |   4 +-
 .../fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImpl.java    |   4 +
 10 files changed, 204 insertions(+), 85 deletions(-)

diff --git a/.idea/vcs.xml b/.idea/vcs.xml
index 35eb1dd..d5975af 100644
--- a/.idea/vcs.xml
+++ b/.idea/vcs.xml
@@ -2,5 +2,6 @@
 <project version="4">
   <component name="VcsDirectoryMappings">
     <mapping directory="" vcs="Git" />
+    <mapping directory="$PROJECT_DIR$/nuxt-shadcn-dashboard" vcs="Git" />
   </component>
 </project>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.idea/workspace.xml b/.idea/workspace.xml
index cc3dfdf..ed6e7a2 100644
--- a/.idea/workspace.xml
+++ b/.idea/workspace.xml
@@ -4,37 +4,19 @@
     <option name="autoReloadType" value="SELECTIVE" />
   </component>
   <component name="ChangeListManager">
-    <list default="true" id="fc757130-fe3e-4ea9-8d69-c26ffb8545a4" name="Changes" comment="optimized dynamic body size impl, decluttering javadocs/comments">
-      <change afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash-bench/src/main/java/dev/relism/bench/StaticResourceManager.java" afterDir="false" />
+    <list default="true" id="fc757130-fe3e-4ea9-8d69-c26ffb8545a4" name="Changes" comment="multipart parsing, request body access, and chunked input stream support">
+      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/.idea/vcs.xml" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/.idea/vcs.xml" afterDir="false" />
       <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/.idea/workspace.xml" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/.idea/workspace.xml" afterDir="false" />
       <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash-bench/pom.xml" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash-bench/pom.xml" afterDir="false" />
+      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash-bench/src/main/java/dev/relism/bench/Main.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash-bench/src/main/java/dev/relism/bench/Main.java" afterDir="false" />
       <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServer.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServer.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServerConfiguration.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServerConfiguration.java" afterDir="false" />
       <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/Main.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/Main.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/RequestParser.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/RequestParser.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/http/ContentType.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/http/ContentType.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/http/HttpStatus.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/http/HttpStatus.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/HeaderMap.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/HeaderMap.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/LazyBody.java" beforeDir="false" />
       <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/QueryParams.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/QueryParams.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Request.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Request.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/RequestHandler.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/RequestHandler.java" afterDir="false" />
       <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Response.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Response.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/SimpleHandler.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/SimpleHandler.java" afterDir="false" />
       <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/AbstractRouter.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/AbstractRouter.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathViews.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathViews.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/resources/assets/html/default_404.html" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/resources/assets/html/default_404.html" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/resources/assets/html/default_exception.html" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/resources/assets/html/default_exception.html" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/HttpServerConcurrencyTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/HttpServerConcurrencyTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/HttpServerTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/HttpServerTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/RequestParserTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/RequestParserTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/HeaderMapTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/HeaderMapTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/RequestLineTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/RequestLineTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/RequestTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/RequestTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/ResponseTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/models/ResponseTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouterTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouterTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImplTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImplTest.java" afterDir="false" />
-      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/template/ErrorPagesTest.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/test/java/dev/relism/template/ErrorPagesTest.java" afterDir="false" />
+      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouter.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouter.java" afterDir="false" />
+      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/Route.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/Route.java" afterDir="false" />
+      <change beforePath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImpl.java" beforeDir="false" afterPath="$PROJECT_DIR$/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImpl.java" afterDir="false" />
     </list>
     <option name="SHOW_DIALOG" value="false" />
     <option name="HIGHLIGHT_CONFLICTS" value="true" />
@@ -247,7 +229,7 @@
       <workItem from="1773837116508" duration="4255000" />
       <workItem from="1773847734658" duration="911000" />
       <workItem from="1773875652058" duration="5481000" />
-      <workItem from="1773915392332" duration="1223000" />
+      <workItem from="1773915392332" duration="24154000" />
     </task>
     <task id="LOCAL-00001" summary="Initial">
       <option name="closed" value="true" />
@@ -281,7 +263,23 @@
       <option name="project" value="LOCAL" />
       <updated>1773591259108</updated>
     </task>
-    <option name="localTasksCounter" value="5" />
+    <task id="LOCAL-00005" summary="enhanced HTTP server configuration and response handling; added acceptorThreads, improved header management, and refined error page titles">
+      <option name="closed" value="true" />
+      <created>1773920675327</created>
+      <option name="number" value="00005" />
+      <option name="presentableId" value="LOCAL-00005" />
+      <option name="project" value="LOCAL" />
+      <updated>1773920675327</updated>
+    </task>
+    <task id="LOCAL-00006" summary="multipart parsing, request body access, and chunked input stream support">
+      <option name="closed" value="true" />
+      <created>1773920735659</created>
+      <option name="number" value="00006" />
+      <option name="presentableId" value="LOCAL-00006" />
+      <option name="project" value="LOCAL" />
+      <updated>1773920735659</updated>
+    </task>
+    <option name="localTasksCounter" value="7" />
     <servers />
   </component>
   <component name="TypeScriptGeneratedFilesManager">
@@ -303,7 +301,9 @@
     <MESSAGE value="pre-module refactor" />
     <MESSAGE value="refactored, pre-buffer reuse" />
     <MESSAGE value="optimized dynamic body size impl, decluttering javadocs/comments" />
-    <option name="LAST_COMMIT_MESSAGE" value="optimized dynamic body size impl, decluttering javadocs/comments" />
+    <MESSAGE value="enhanced HTTP server configuration and response handling; added acceptorThreads, improved header management, and refined error page titles" />
+    <MESSAGE value="multipart parsing, request body access, and chunked input stream support" />
+    <option name="LAST_COMMIT_MESSAGE" value="multipart parsing, request body access, and chunked input stream support" />
   </component>
   <component name="XSLT-Support.FileAssociations.UIState">
     <expand />
diff --git a/flash-bench/pom.xml b/flash-bench/pom.xml
index be44d6f..92a1e88 100644
--- a/flash-bench/pom.xml
+++ b/flash-bench/pom.xml
@@ -31,9 +31,14 @@
             <artifactId>lombok</artifactId>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
-            <groupId>org.asynchttpclient</groupId>
-            <artifactId>async-http-client</artifactId>
-            <version>${ahc.version}</version>
+            <groupId>org.hibernate.orm</groupId>
+            <artifactId>hibernate-core</artifactId>
+            <version>6.6.4.Final</version>
+        </dependency>
+        <dependency>
+            <groupId>com.h2database</groupId>
+            <artifactId>h2</artifactId>
+            <version>2.3.232</version>
         </dependency>
     </dependencies>
 
diff --git a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServer.java b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServer.java
index 90a3cd1..6f8fa42 100644
--- a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServer.java
+++ b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/HttpServer.java
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import dev.relism.http.HttpStatus;
 import dev.relism.models.*;
 import dev.relism.routing.AbstractRouter;
 import dev.relism.routing.GlobalRouter;
+import dev.relism.routing.Middleware;
 
 import lombok.extern.slf4j.Slf4j;
 
@@ -29,7 +30,7 @@ import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
 public class HttpServer {
     private final HttpServerConfiguration configuration;
     private final ServerSocket serverSocket;
-    private final GlobalRouter globalRouter = new GlobalRouter();
+    private final GlobalRouter globalRouter;
     private final ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newVirtualThreadPerTaskExecutor();
     private final Set<Socket> activeSockets = ConcurrentHashMap.newKeySet();
     private volatile boolean stopped = false;
@@ -52,9 +53,14 @@ public class HttpServer {
             DIGITS[i] = String.valueOf(i).getBytes(StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
     }
 
-    public HttpServer(HttpServerConfiguration configuration) throws IOException {
+    /**
+     * Creates the server with optional server-level middlewares applied to every registered route.
+     * Middlewares are pre-fused at construction time; the first element executes outermost.
+     */
+    public HttpServer(HttpServerConfiguration configuration, Middleware... middlewares) throws IOException {
         this.configuration = configuration;
-        this.serverSocket = new ServerSocket(configuration.getPort());
+        this.serverSocket  = new ServerSocket(configuration.getPort());
+        this.globalRouter  = new GlobalRouter(middlewares);
     }
 
     /** Returns a future that completes once the accept loop is running and the server is ready. */
@@ -119,21 +125,18 @@ public class HttpServer {
         return this;
     }
 
-    public HttpServer register(RequestHandler handler) {
-        globalRouter.register(handler);
-        return this;
-    }
+    public HttpServer register(RequestHandler handler, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.register(handler, m); return this; }
 
-    public HttpServer get(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)     { globalRouter.get(path, h);     return this; }
-    public HttpServer post(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)    { globalRouter.post(path, h);    return this; }
-    public HttpServer put(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)     { globalRouter.put(path, h);     return this; }
-    public HttpServer delete(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)  { globalRouter.delete(path, h);  return this; }
-    public HttpServer patch(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)   { globalRouter.patch(path, h);   return this; }
-    public HttpServer options(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h) { globalRouter.options(path, h); return this; }
-    public HttpServer head(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)    { globalRouter.head(path, h);    return this; }
-    public HttpServer trace(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)   { globalRouter.trace(path, h);   return this; }
-    public HttpServer connect(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h) { globalRouter.connect(path, h); return this; }
-    public HttpServer purge(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)   { globalRouter.purge(path, h);   return this; }
+    public HttpServer get    (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.get    (path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer post   (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.post   (path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer put    (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.put    (path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer delete (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.delete (path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer patch  (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.patch  (path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer options(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.options(path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer head   (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.head   (path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer trace  (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.trace  (path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer connect(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.connect(path, h, m); return this; }
+    public HttpServer purge  (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { globalRouter.purge  (path, h, m); return this; }
 
 
     private void process(Socket socket) {
diff --git a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/QueryParams.java b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/QueryParams.java
index 05fece8..4e28996 100644
--- a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/QueryParams.java
+++ b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/QueryParams.java
@@ -8,7 +8,10 @@ import java.util.List;
 
 /**
  * Lazy query parameter access ({@code ?key=value&...}). Backed by a zero-copy {@link ByteView}
- * over the raw query string bytes, no parsing at construction, values decoded on demand.
+ * over the raw query string bytes, no parsing at construction, values percent-decoded on demand.
+ *
+ * <p>Percent-decoding ({@code %XX} → byte, {@code +} → space) follows the
+ * {@code application/x-www-form-urlencoded} convention used by all browsers.
  */
 public class QueryParams {
     public static final QueryParams EMPTY = new QueryParams(null);
@@ -22,10 +25,7 @@ public class QueryParams {
     public String get(String name) {
         long r = findFirst(name);
         if (r < 0) return null;
-        int s = (int) (r >> 32), l = (int) (r & 0xFFFFFFFFL);
-        byte[] bytes = new byte[l];
-        for (int i = 0; i < l; i++) bytes[i] = raw.byteAt(s + i);
-        return new String(bytes, StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
+        return decode((int) (r >> 32), (int) (r & 0xFFFFFFFFL));
     }
 
     ByteView view(String name) {
@@ -51,11 +51,8 @@ public class QueryParams {
                 int valStart = i;
                 while (i < len && raw.byteAt(i) != '&') i++;
                 if (keyMatches(keyStart, keyLen, name)) {
-                    int valLen = i - valStart;
-                    byte[] bytes = new byte[valLen];
-                    for (int j = 0; j < valLen; j++) bytes[j] = raw.byteAt(valStart + j);
                     if (result == null) result = new ArrayList<>();
-                    result.add(new String(bytes, StandardCharsets.UTF_8));
+                    result.add(decode(valStart, i - valStart));
                 }
             }
             if (i < len && raw.byteAt(i) == '&') i++;
@@ -63,6 +60,8 @@ public class QueryParams {
         return result != null ? result : List.of();
     }
 
+    // ── Internals ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
     /** Returns (valStart << 32) | valLen, or -1 if not found. */
     private long findFirst(String name) {
         if (raw == null) return -1L;
@@ -87,4 +86,39 @@ public class QueryParams {
         for (int i = 0; i < len; i++) if (raw.byteAt(start + i) != (byte) name.charAt(i)) return false;
         return true;
     }
+
+    /**
+     * Percent-decodes a value slice from {@code raw} into a UTF-8 String.
+     * {@code %XX} triplets are decoded to their byte values; {@code +} decodes as space.
+     * Invalid {@code %} sequences are passed through as-is.
+     */
+    private String decode(int start, int length) {
+        byte[] out = new byte[length]; // upper bound — decoded is never longer
+        int w = 0;
+        for (int i = 0; i < length; i++) {
+            byte b = raw.byteAt(start + i);
+            if (b == '+') {
+                out[w++] = ' ';
+            } else if (b == '%' && i + 2 < length) {
+                int hi = hexVal(raw.byteAt(start + i + 1));
+                int lo = hexVal(raw.byteAt(start + i + 2));
+                if (hi >= 0 && lo >= 0) {
+                    out[w++] = (byte) ((hi << 4) | lo);
+                    i += 2;
+                } else {
+                    out[w++] = b; // not a valid escape — keep literal %
+                }
+            } else {
+                out[w++] = b;
+            }
+        }
+        return new String(out, 0, w, StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
+    }
+
+    private static int hexVal(byte b) {
+        if (b >= '0' && b <= '9') return b - '0';
+        if (b >= 'a' && b <= 'f') return b - 'a' + 10;
+        if (b >= 'A' && b <= 'F') return b - 'A' + 10;
+        return -1;
+    }
 }
diff --git a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Response.java b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Response.java
index d74a320..dc1c620 100644
--- a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Response.java
+++ b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/models/Response.java
@@ -112,12 +112,6 @@ public class Response {
 
     public boolean isStreaming()      { return stream != null; }
 
-    /**
-     * Pre-encoded status bytes (e.g. {@code "200 OK"}), or {@code null} if the status was set
-     * via {@link #status(int)} — in which case {@link HttpStatus#bytesForCode} is used as fallback.
-     */
-    public byte[] getStatusBytes()   { return statusBytes; }
-
     // -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     // Internal setters used by HttpServer for handler return values
     // -------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/AbstractRouter.java b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/AbstractRouter.java
index cc632af..dd75354 100644
--- a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/AbstractRouter.java
+++ b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/AbstractRouter.java
@@ -12,9 +12,16 @@ import lombok.Getter;
 import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
 
 /**
- * Base router. Each router has a namespace prefix (default {@code "/"});
+ * Base router. Each router has a namespace prefix (default {@code "/"}).
  * Error handlers are scoped to this router.
- * The namespace is set automatically by {@link GlobalRouter#mount}.
+ *
+ * <p>Router-level {@link Middleware middlewares} are passed at construction time and
+ * pre-fused into a single wrapper applied to every handler registered on this router.
+ * Handler-level middlewares are passed to the {@link #register} / {@link #get} family of
+ * methods and wrapped <em>inside</em> the router-level chain.
+ *
+ * <p>All middleware composition happens once at boot time; the hot-path sees only a plain
+ * {@link RequestHandler} call with zero allocation and zero lookup overhead.
  */
 public abstract class AbstractRouter {
 
@@ -24,6 +31,12 @@ public abstract class AbstractRouter {
     @Getter(AccessLevel.PACKAGE)
     protected byte[] namespaceBytes = new byte[]{ '/' };
 
+    /**
+     * Pre-fused router-level middleware, or {@code null} when none were registered.
+     * A single null-check in {@link #compile} is the only cost when no router middleware exists.
+     */
+    private final Middleware routerMiddleware;
+
     protected SimpleHandler notFoundHandler = new SimpleHandler((req, res) -> {
         res.setStatusCode(404);
         res.setContentType(ContentType.TEXT_HTML);
@@ -36,6 +49,20 @@ public abstract class AbstractRouter {
         return ErrorPages.renderException(req, ex);
     };
 
+    /**
+     * Constructs a router with optional router-level middlewares.
+     * Middlewares are pre-fused at construction time; the first element executes outermost.
+     *
+     * @param middlewares zero or more middlewares applied to every handler on this router
+     */
+    protected AbstractRouter(Middleware... middlewares) {
+        this.routerMiddleware = middlewares.length == 0 ? null
+                              : middlewares.length == 1 ? middlewares[0]
+                              : Middleware.of(middlewares);
+    }
+
+    // ── Internal wiring ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
     SimpleHandler    getNotFoundHandler()  { return notFoundHandler; }
     ExceptionHandler getExceptionHandler() { return exceptionHandler; }
     void setNamespace(String namespace) {
@@ -43,6 +70,30 @@ public abstract class AbstractRouter {
         this.namespaceBytes = namespace.getBytes(StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Compiles a handler with its middleware chain. Called once per handler at registration.
+     *
+     * <p>Application order (innermost → outermost):
+     * <ol>
+     *   <li>handler-level middlewares (passed at the call site)</li>
+     *   <li>router-level middleware (set in the constructor)</li>
+     * </ol>
+     */
+    private RequestHandler compile(RequestHandler handler, Middleware[] handlerMiddlewares) {
+        RequestHandler compiled = handler;
+        // handler-level: wrap from innermost outward; box FunctionalHandler → SimpleHandler once per layer
+        for (int i = handlerMiddlewares.length - 1; i >= 0; i--)
+            compiled = new SimpleHandler(handlerMiddlewares[i].wrap(compiled));
+        // router-level: outermost wrapper, executes first
+        if (routerMiddleware != null)
+            compiled = new SimpleHandler(routerMiddleware.wrap(compiled));
+        return compiled;
+    }
+
+    private static final Middleware[] NO_MIDDLEWARES = new Middleware[0];
+
+    // ── Error handler configuration ───────────────────────────────────────────
+
     public AbstractRouter onNotFound(SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler handler) {
         this.notFoundHandler = new SimpleHandler(handler);
         return this;
@@ -53,36 +104,54 @@ public abstract class AbstractRouter {
         return this;
     }
 
+    // ── Lambda handler registration ───────────────────────────────────────────
+
     /**
-     * Registers a route relative to this router's namespace. Return a {@link Response} to replace
-     * it entirely, any other non-null value to set it as the body, or {@code null} to leave it unchanged.
+     * Registers a lambda handler with optional handler-level middlewares.
+     * Router-level middlewares are applied automatically on top.
      */
-    public AbstractRouter register(HttpMethod method, String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler handler) {
-        return addRoute(method, PathUtils.sanitize(path), new SimpleHandler(handler));
+    public AbstractRouter register(HttpMethod method, String path,
+                                   SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler handler,
+                                   Middleware... middlewares) {
+        return addRoute(method, PathUtils.sanitize(path),
+                compile(new SimpleHandler(handler), middlewares));
     }
 
-    public AbstractRouter get(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)     { return register(HttpMethod.GET,     path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter post(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)    { return register(HttpMethod.POST,    path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter put(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)     { return register(HttpMethod.PUT,     path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter delete(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)  { return register(HttpMethod.DELETE,  path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter patch(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)   { return register(HttpMethod.PATCH,   path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter options(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h) { return register(HttpMethod.OPTIONS, path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter head(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)    { return register(HttpMethod.HEAD,    path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter trace(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)   { return register(HttpMethod.TRACE,   path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter connect(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h) { return register(HttpMethod.CONNECT, path, h); }
-    public AbstractRouter purge(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h)   { return register(HttpMethod.PURGE,   path, h); }
+    public AbstractRouter get    (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.GET,     path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter post   (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.POST,    path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter put    (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.PUT,     path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter delete (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.DELETE,  path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter patch  (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.PATCH,   path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter options(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.OPTIONS, path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter head   (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.HEAD,    path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter trace  (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.TRACE,   path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter connect(String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.CONNECT, path, h, m); }
+    public AbstractRouter purge  (String path, SimpleHandler.FunctionalHandler h, Middleware... m) { return register(HttpMethod.PURGE,   path, h, m); }
 
-    /** Registers a class-based handler; the class must be annotated with {@link Route @Route}. */
-    public AbstractRouter register(RequestHandler handler) {
+    // ── Class-based handler registration ─────────────────────────────────────
+
+    /**
+     * Registers a class-based handler with optional handler-level middlewares.
+     * The class must carry a {@link Route @Route} annotation declaring method and path.
+     * Router-level middlewares are applied automatically on top.
+     */
+    public AbstractRouter register(RequestHandler handler, Middleware... middlewares) {
         Route annotation = handler.getClass().getAnnotation(Route.class);
-        if (annotation != null) {
-            addRoute(HttpMethod.valueOf(annotation.method()), annotation.path(), handler);
-        }
+        if (annotation != null)
+            addRoute(annotation.method(), annotation.path(),
+                    compile(handler, middlewares));
         return this;
     }
 
+    // ── Routing ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
     public abstract RequestHandler route(Request request);
 
+    /**
+     * Stores a pre-compiled handler in the underlying routing structure.
+     * The handler passed here is already fully wrapped — implementations must not
+     * apply any additional middleware logic.
+     */
     protected abstract AbstractRouter addRoute(HttpMethod method, String path, RequestHandler handler);
 
     protected static void setPathParams(Request request, String[] names, ByteView source, int[] starts, int[] lens) {
diff --git a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouter.java b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouter.java
index 5cd3d65..9a009cd 100644
--- a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouter.java
+++ b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/GlobalRouter.java
@@ -20,7 +20,14 @@ import java.util.Map;
 public class GlobalRouter extends AbstractRouter {
     private final Map<String, AbstractRouter> subRoutersMap = new HashMap<>();
     private final List<AbstractRouter> sortedSubRouters = new ArrayList<>();
-    private final AbstractRouter internalRouter = new FastPathRouterImpl();
+    private final AbstractRouter internalRouter;
+
+    public GlobalRouter(Middleware... middlewares) {
+        super(middlewares);
+        this.internalRouter = new FastPathRouterImpl();
+    }
+
+    public GlobalRouter() { this(new Middleware[0]); }
 
     public void mount(String namespace, AbstractRouter router) {
         String sanitized = PathUtils.sanitize(namespace);
diff --git a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/Route.java b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/Route.java
index ba34b82..efdfd1e 100644
--- a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/Route.java
+++ b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/Route.java
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 package dev.relism.routing;
 
+import dev.relism.http.HttpMethod;
+
 import java.lang.annotation.ElementType;
 import java.lang.annotation.Retention;
 import java.lang.annotation.RetentionPolicy;
@@ -17,6 +19,6 @@ import java.lang.annotation.Target;
 @Retention(RetentionPolicy.RUNTIME)
 @Target(ElementType.TYPE)
 public @interface Route {
-    String method() default "GET";
+    HttpMethod method() default HttpMethod.GET;
     String path();
 }
diff --git a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImpl.java b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImpl.java
index 98089c8..bb9464a 100644
--- a/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImpl.java
+++ b/flash/src/main/java/dev/relism/routing/routers/fastpathrouter/FastPathRouterImpl.java
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import dev.relism.http.HttpMethod;
 import dev.relism.models.Request;
 import dev.relism.models.RequestHandler;
 import dev.relism.routing.AbstractRouter;
+import dev.relism.routing.Middleware;
 import dev.relism.routing.PathUtils;
 
 /**
@@ -22,6 +23,9 @@ public class FastPathRouterImpl extends AbstractRouter {
     private volatile FastPathRouter<ByteView, RequestHandler> router;
     private          String[]                                 cachedParamNames;
 
+    public FastPathRouterImpl(Middleware... middlewares) { super(middlewares); }
+    public FastPathRouterImpl()                          { super(); }
+
     private static final class FastPathRouterContext {
         private static final ThreadLocal<MatchResult<RequestHandler>> RESULT_HOLDER =
                 ThreadLocal.withInitial(() -> new MatchResult<>(32, 128));