Node define unique variable that I need to use across the modules - javascript

Currently I am just passing my fileNamePrefix like that:
let shortid = require('shortid');
let fileNamePrefix = shortid.generate();
module1.run(fileNamePrefix); //generating a file based on `fileNamePrefix` `xxxxx.f1.json`
module2.run(fileNamePrefix); //generating a file based on `fileNamePrefix` `xxxxx.f2.json`
module3.run(fileNamePrefix); //generating a file based on `fileNamePrefix` `xxxxx.f3.js
Which I think in not quite right, I might need to pass more things to my modules later on, so I want to avoid to pass that as function params.
What is the best way to approach that in nodejs?
Will global object like global.fileNamePrefix = shortid.generate(); will do in that case or would you approach that different? I just read that global is not good...

You can use either singleton approach or approach suggested by #Сергей Тертичный
Singleton :
//shortid.js
var fileSingleTon = module.exports = {
fileNamePrefix: null,
getFileNamePrefix: function() {
return fileSingleTon.fileNamePrefix || fileSingleTon.generate()
},
generate: function() {
console.log('generating..');
return fileSingleTon.fileNamePrefix = 'your_file_prefix';
}
}
//module1.js
var fileNamePrefix = require('./shortid').getFileNamePrefix();
//do stuff for module1
//module2/js
var fileNamePrefix = require('./shortid').getFileNamePrefix();
//do stuff for module1
and so on..
Even now you are calling require('./shortid').getFileNamePrefix(); multiple times, generate function is getting called only once.
Node Caching approach :
Consider you have shortid.js as following :
// A: block of code to do some manipulations
// B : module.exports = manipulation result.
So basically in node js "modules" core module which is responsible for giving us module.export functionality executes whatever is here above export(in abode example the part A) only for the first time and caches it even if you have required in in multiple other files. However, it only executes the functions or block of code in every require which is inside export. So you can use this approach where your A block will have login to generate fileNamePrefix and then B just returns it.

Just create module like that:
// unicname.js
let shortid = require('shortid');
let fileName = shortid.generate();
module.exports = {fname: fileName};
//module1.js
const {fname} = require('./unicname.js');
....
Since the node.js caching the modules the value will be calculated only one time so you can get same value in all your modules.

Related

Node.JS Module/Object that spans several files?

I am working on supporting a REST API that literally has thousands of functions/objects/stats/etc., and placing all those calls into one file does not strike me as very maintainable. What I want to do is have a 'base' file that has the main constructor function, a few utility and very common functions, and then files for each section of API calls.
The Problem: How do you attach functions from other files to the 'base' Object so that referencing the main object allows for access from the subsections you have added to your program??
Let me try and illustrate what I am looking to do:
1) 'base' file has the main constructor:
var IPAddr = "";
var Token = "";
exports.Main = function(opts) {
IPAddr = opts.IPAddr;
Token = opts.Token;
}
2) 'file1' has some subfunctions that I want to define:
Main.prototype.Function1 = function(callback) {
// stuff done here
callback(error, data);
}
Main.prototype.Function2 = function(callback) {
// stuff done here
callback(error,data);
}
3) Program file brings it all together:
var Main = require('main.js');
var Main?!? = require('file1.js');
Main.Function1(function(err,out) {
if(err) {
// error stuff here
}
// main stuff here
}
Is there a way to combine an Object from multiple code files?? A 120,000 line Node.JS file just doesn't seem to be the way to go to me....not to mention it takes too long to load! Thanks :)
SOLUTION: For those who may stumble upon this in the future... I took the source code for Object.assign and back ported it to my v0.12 version of Node and got it working.
I used the code from here: https://github.com/sindresorhus/object-assign/blob/master/index.js and put it in a separate file that I just require('./object-assign.js') without assigning it to a var. Then my code looks something like this:
require('./object-assign.js');
var Main = require('./Main.js');
Object.assign(Main.prototype, require('./file1.js'));
Object.assign(Main.prototype, require('./file2.js'));
And all my functions from the two files show up under the Main() Object...too cool :)
At first each file works in its own scope, so all local variables are not shared.
However, as hacky approach, you may just add Main into global scope available everywhere by writing global.Main = Main right after you define it, please make sure that you require main file first in list of requires.
The better(who said?) approach is to extend prototype of Main later, but in this case you may need to update a lot of code. Just mix-in additional functionality into base class
file1.js
module.exports = {
x: function() {/*****/}
}
index.js
var Main = require('main.js');
Object.assign(Main.prototype, require('file1.js'));
Shure.
constructor.js
module.exports = function(){
//whatever
};
prototype.js
module.exports = {
someMethod(){ return "test";}
};
main.js
const Main = require("./constructor.js");
Object.assign( Main.prototype, require("./prototype.js"));

js - avoiding namespace conflict

Thus far I've worked only with relatively small projects (and mostly alone), but this time I have to collaborate with other programmers... basically because of that I must plan the structure of the website very carefully for the avoidance of spending hours debugging the code.
At this point I suppose doing that in the following manner. I divide my code in modules and store each module in a separate file inside an object (or a function) with a made-up name (lzheA, lzheB, lzheC etc.) to avoid conflicts whether an object with the same name was used in an another piece of code. When the document is loaded, I declare a variable (an object) that I use as a main namespace of the application. Properties of the object are the modules I defined before.
// file BI.lib.js
var lzheA = {
foo: function() {
},
bar: function() {
},
}
// file BI.init.js
function lzheK() {
BI.loadPage();
}
// file BI.loadPage.js
function lzheC() {
var result = document.getElementById('result');
result.innerHTML = "that worked";
}
// and so on
var lzheA,lzheB,lzheD,lzheE,lzheF,lzheG,lzheH,lzheI,lzheJ;
// doing the following when the document is loaded
var BI = {
lib: lzheA,
menu: lzheB,
loadPage: lzheC,
customScripts: lzheD,
_index: lzheE,
_briefs: lzheF,
_shop: lzheG,
_cases: lzheH,
_blog: lzheI,
_contacts: lzheJ,
init: lzheK,
}
BI.init();
https://jsfiddle.net/vwc2og57/2/
The question... is this way of structuring worth living or did I miss something because of lack of experience? Would the made-up names of the modules confuse you regardless of the fact that each one used only twice - while declaring the variable and assigning it to a property?
I consider the namespaces a good option when you want to modularize applications in Javascript. But I declare them in a different way
var myModule = myModule || {}; // This will allow to use the module in other places, declaring more than one specificComponent in other js file for example
myModule.specificComponent = (function(){
// Private things
var myVar = {};
var init = function() {
// Code
};
return {
init: init // Public Stuff
};
})();
If you want to call the init method, you would call it like this
myModule.specificComponent.init();
With this approach, i guarantee that the module will not be overwritten by another declaration in another place, and also I can declare internal components into my namespaces.
Also, the trick of just exposing what you want inside the return block, will make your component safer and you will be encapsulating your code in a pretty way.
Hope it helps

Function declaration and calls in nodejs files

I am reading some source files and see that functions have been written and called in two different patterns. I am going to describe the two patterns first and then how they are called in the main file.
First pattern :
File module1.js:
function a(req,res,next){
//do somethin
}
module.exports.a = a;
seconds pattern :
File module2.js
module.exports = function(){
return function(req,res,next){
/* do something here */
}
}
File main.js
var mod1 = require('module1');
var mod2 = require('module2');
server.use(mod1.a);
server.use(mod2());
What confuses me is why mod1 and mod2 have been written so differently. What is the right way of writing these
The second pattern is useful if you need to pass in a configuration object or other information (e.g. a database instance) to the middleware that it will use for requests.
Either way is acceptable, it just depends on your needs.

Node.js make initialized object available in all modules

I have an initialized object that I initialized in app.js file and I would like to make this initialized object is available in all modules. How could I do that? Passing this object to every modules is one way to do and I'm wondering if I'm missing anything or there should be done in difference ways?
I saw mongoose actually support default connection, which I need to init in app.js one time and anywhere in other modules, I can just simply use it without requiring passing it around. Is there any I can do the same like this?
I also checked global object doc from node.js http://nodejs.org/api/globals.html, and wondering I should use global for issue.
Thanks
A little advice:
You should only very rarely need to use a global. If you think you need one, you probably don't.
Singletons are usually an anti-pattern in Node.js, but sometimes (logging, config) they will get the job done just fine.
Passing something around is sometimes a useful and worthwhile pattern.
Here's an example of how you might use a singleton for logging:
lib/logger.js
var bunyan = require('bunyan'),
mixIn = require('mout/object/mixIn'),
// add some default options here...
defaults = {},
// singleton
logger,
createLogger = function createLogger(options) {
var opts;
if (logger) {
return logger;
}
opts = mixIn({}, defaults, options);
logger = bunyan.createLogger(opts);
return logger;
};
module.exports = createLogger;
lib/module.js
var logger = require('./logger.js'),
log = logger();
log.info('Something happened.');
Hope that helps.
The solution, as you suggest is to add the object as a property to the global object. However, I would recommend against doing this and placing the object in its own module that is required from every other module that needs it. You will gain benefits later on in several ways. For one, it is always explicit where this object comes from and where it is initialized. You will never have a situation where you try to use the object before it is initialized (assuming that the module that defines it also initializes it). Also, this will help make your code more testable,
There are multiple solutions to the problem, depends upon how large your application is. The two solutions that you have mentioned are the most obvious ones. I would rather go for the third which is based on re-architecturing your code. The solution that I am providing looks alot like the executor pattern.
First create actions which require your common module that are in this particular form -
var Action_One = function(commonItems) {
this.commonItems = commonItems;
};
Action_One.prototype.execute = function() {
//..blah blah
//Your action specific code
};
var Action_Two = function(commonItems) {
this.commonItems = commonItems;
};
Action_Two.prototype.execute = function() {
//..blah blah
//Your action_two specific code
};
Now create an action initializer which will programmatically initialize your actions like this -
var ActionInitializer = function(commonItems) {
this.commonItems = commonItems;
};
ActionInitializer.prototype.init = function(Action) {
var obj = new Action(this.commonItems);
return obj;
};
Next step is to create an action executor -
//You can create a more complex executor using `Async` lib or something else
var Executor = function(ActionInitializer, commonItems) {
this.initializer = new ActionInitializer(commonItems);
this.actions = [];
};
//Use this to add an action to the executor
Executor.prototype.add = function(action) {
var result = this.initializer.init(action);
this.actions.push(result);
};
//Executes all the actions
Executor.prototype.executeAll = function() {
var result = [];
for (var i = this.action.length - 1; i >= 0; i--) {
result[i] = this.action[i].execute();
}
this.action = []
return result;
};
The idea was to decouple every module so that there is only one module Executor in this case which is dependent on the common properties. Now lets see how it would work -
var commonProperties = {a:1, b:2};
//Pass the action initilizer class and the common property object to just this one module
var e = new Executor(ActionInitializer, commonProperties);
e.add(Action_One);
e.add(Action_Two);
e.executeAll();
console.log(e.results);
This way your program will be cleaner and more scalable. Shoot questions if it's not clear. Happy coding!

Load and execute external js file in node.js with access to local variables?

Is it easy/possible to do a simple include('./path/to/file') type of command in node.js?
All I want to do is have access to local variables and run a script. How do people typically organize node.js projects that are bigger than a simple hello world? (A fully functional dynamic website)
For example I'd like to have directories like:
/models
/views
... etc
Just do a require('./yourfile.js');
Declare all the variables that you want outside access as global variables.
So instead of
var a = "hello" it will be
GLOBAL.a="hello" or just
a = "hello"
This is obviously bad. You don't want to be polluting the global scope.
Instead the suggest method is to export your functions/variables.
If you want the MVC pattern take a look at Geddy.
You need to understand CommonJS, which is a pattern to define modules. You shouldn't abuse GLOBAL scope that's always a bad thing to do, instead you can use the 'exports' token, like this:
// circle.js
var PI = 3.14; // PI will not be accessible from outside this module
exports.area = function (r) {
return PI * r * r;
};
exports.circumference = function (r) {
return 2 * PI * r;
};
And the client code that will use our module:
// client.js
var circle = require('./circle');
console.log( 'The area of a circle of radius 4 is '
+ circle.area(4));
This code was extracted from node.js documentation API:
http://nodejs.org/docs/v0.3.2/api/modules.html
Also, if you want to use something like Rails or Sinatra, I recommend Express (I couldn't post the URL, shame on Stack Overflow!)
If you are writing code for Node, using Node modules as described by Ivan is without a doubt the way to go.
However, if you need to load JavaScript that has already been written and isn't aware of node, the vm module is the way to go (and definitely preferable to eval).
For example, here is my execfile module, which evaluates the script at path in either context or the global context:
var vm = require("vm");
var fs = require("fs");
module.exports = function(path, context) {
var data = fs.readFileSync(path);
vm.runInNewContext(data, context, path);
}
Also note: modules loaded with require(…) don't have access to the global context.
If you are planning to load an external javascript file's functions or objects, load on this context using the following code – note the runInThisContext method:
var vm = require("vm");
var fs = require("fs");
var data = fs.readFileSync('./externalfile.js');
const script = new vm.Script(data);
script.runInThisContext();
// here you can use externalfile's functions or objects as if they were instantiated here. They have been added to this context.
Expanding on #Shripad's and #Ivan's answer, I would recommend that you use Node.js's standard module.export functionality.
In your file for constants (e.g. constants.js), you'd write constants like this:
const CONST1 = 1;
module.exports.CONST1 = CONST1;
const CONST2 = 2;
module.exports.CONST2 = CONST2;
Then in the file in which you want to use those constants, write the following code:
const {CONST1 , CONST2} = require('./constants.js');
If you've never seen the const { ... } syntax before: that's destructuring assignment.
Sorry for resurrection. You could use child_process module to execute external js files in node.js
var child_process = require('child_process');
//EXECUTE yourExternalJsFile.js
child_process.exec('node yourExternalJsFile.js', (error, stdout, stderr) => {
console.log(`${stdout}`);
console.log(`${stderr}`);
if (error !== null) {
console.log(`exec error: ${error}`);
}
});

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