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ReactJS - How to expose your Component to external events? [duplicate]

I have two components:
Parent component
Child component
I was trying to call Child's method from Parent, I tried this way but couldn't get a result:
class Parent extends Component {
render() {
return (
<Child>
<button onClick={Child.getAlert()}>Click</button>
</Child>
);
}
}
class Child extends Component {
getAlert() {
alert('clicked');
}
render() {
return (
<h1 ref="hello">Hello</h1>
);
}
}
Is there a way to call Child's method from Parent?
Note: Child and Parent components are in two different files.

First off, let me express that this is generally not the way to go about things in React land. Usually what you want to do is pass down functionality to children in props, and pass up notifications from children in events (or better yet: dispatch).
But if you must expose an imperative method on a child component, you can use refs. Remember this is an escape hatch and usually indicates a better design is available.
Previously, refs were only supported for Class-based components.
With the advent of React Hooks, that's no longer the case
Modern React with Hooks (v16.8+)
const { forwardRef, useRef, useImperativeHandle } = React;
// We need to wrap component in `forwardRef` in order to gain
// access to the ref object that is assigned using the `ref` prop.
// This ref is passed as the second parameter to the function component.
const Child = forwardRef((props, ref) => {
// The component instance will be extended
// with whatever you return from the callback passed
// as the second argument
useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({
getAlert() {
alert("getAlert from Child");
}
}));
return <h1>Hi</h1>;
});
const Parent = () => {
// In order to gain access to the child component instance,
// you need to assign it to a `ref`, so we call `useRef()` to get one
const childRef = useRef();
return (
<div>
<Child ref={childRef} />
<button onClick={() => childRef.current.getAlert()}>Click</button>
</div>
);
};
ReactDOM.render(
<Parent />,
document.getElementById('root')
);
<script src="https://unpkg.com/react#16/umd/react.development.js" crossorigin></script>
<script src="https://unpkg.com/react-dom#16/umd/react-dom.development.js" crossorigin></script>
<div id="root"></div>
Documentation for useImperativeHandle() is here:
useImperativeHandle customizes the instance value that is exposed to parent components when using ref.
Legacy API using Class Components (>= react#16.4)
const { Component } = React;
class Parent extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.child = React.createRef();
}
onClick = () => {
this.child.current.getAlert();
};
render() {
return (
<div>
<Child ref={this.child} />
<button onClick={this.onClick}>Click</button>
</div>
);
}
}
class Child extends Component {
getAlert() {
alert('getAlert from Child');
}
render() {
return <h1>Hello</h1>;
}
}
ReactDOM.render(<Parent />, document.getElementById('root'));
<script src="https://unpkg.com/react#16/umd/react.development.js" crossorigin></script>
<script src="https://unpkg.com/react-dom#16/umd/react-dom.development.js" crossorigin></script>
<div id="root"></div>
Callback Ref API
Callback-style refs are another approach to achieving this, although not quite as common in modern React:
const { Component } = React;
const { render } = ReactDOM;
class Parent extends Component {
render() {
return (
<div>
<Child ref={instance => { this.child = instance; }} />
<button onClick={() => { this.child.getAlert(); }}>Click</button>
</div>
);
}
}
class Child extends Component {
getAlert() {
alert('clicked');
}
render() {
return (
<h1>Hello</h1>
);
}
}
render(
<Parent />,
document.getElementById('app')
);
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/15.1.0/react.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/15.1.0/react-dom.min.js"></script>
<div id="app"></div>

You can use another pattern here:
class Parent extends Component {
render() {
return (
<div>
<Child setClick={click => this.clickChild = click}/>
<button onClick={() => this.clickChild()}>Click</button>
</div>
);
}
}
class Child extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.getAlert = this.getAlert.bind(this);
}
componentDidMount() {
this.props.setClick(this.getAlert);
}
getAlert() {
alert('clicked');
}
render() {
return (
<h1 ref="hello">Hello</h1>
);
}
}
What it does is to set the parent's clickChild method when child is mounted. In this way when you click the button in parent it will call clickChild which calls child's getAlert.
This also works if your child is wrapped with connect() so you don't need the getWrappedInstance() hack.
Note you can't use onClick={this.clickChild} in parent because when parent is rendered child is not mounted so this.clickChild is not assigned yet. Using onClick={() => this.clickChild()} is fine because when you click the button this.clickChild should already be assigned.

Alternative method with useEffect:
Parent:
const [refresh, doRefresh] = useState(0);
<Button onClick={() => doRefresh(prev => prev + 1)} />
<Children refresh={refresh} />
Children:
useEffect(() => {
performRefresh(); //children function of interest
}, [props.refresh]);

Here I will give you the four possible combinations that can happen:
Class Parent | Hook Child
Hook Parent | Class Child
Hook Parent | Hook Child
Class Parent | Class Child
1. Class Parent | Hook Child
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
this.myRef = React.createRef()
}
render() {
return (<View>
<Child ref={this.myRef}/>
<Button title={'call me'}
onPress={() => this.myRef.current.childMethod()}/>
</View>)
}
}
const Child = React.forwardRef((props, ref) => {
useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({
childMethod() {
childMethod()
}
}))
function childMethod() {
console.log('call me')
}
return (<View><Text> I am a child</Text></View>)
})
2. Hook Parent | Class Child
function Parent(props) {
const myRef = useRef()
return (<View>
<Child ref={myRef}/>
<Button title={'call me'}
onPress={() => myRef.current.childMethod()}/>
</View>)
}
class Child extends React.Component {
childMethod() {
console.log('call me')
}
render() {
return (<View><Text> I am a child</Text></View>)
}
}
3. Hook Parent | Hook Child
function Parent(props) {
const myRef = useRef()
return (<View>
<Child ref={myRef}/>
<Button title={'call me'}
onPress={() => myRef.current.childMethod()}/>
</View>)
}
const Child = React.forwardRef((props, ref) => {
useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({
childMethod() {
childMethod()
}
}))
function childMethod() {
console.log('call me')
}
return (<View><Text> I am a child</Text></View>)
})
4. Class Parent | Class Child
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
this.myRef = React.createRef()
}
render() {
return (<View>
<Child ref={this.myRef}/>
<Button title={'call me'}
onPress={() => this.myRef.current.childMethod()}/>
</View>)
}
}
class Child extends React.Component {
childMethod() {
console.log('call me')
}
render() {
return (<View><Text> I am a child</Text></View>)
}
}

https://facebook.github.io/react/tips/expose-component-functions.html
for more answers ref here Call methods on React children components
By looking into the refs of the "reason" component, you're breaking encapsulation and making it impossible to refactor that component without carefully examining all the places it's used. Because of this, we strongly recommend treating refs as private to a component, much like state.
In general, data should be passed down the tree via props. There are a few exceptions to this (such as calling .focus() or triggering a one-time animation that doesn't really "change" the state) but any time you're exposing a method called "set", props are usually a better choice. Try to make it so that the inner input component worries about its size and appearance so that none of its ancestors do.

I wasn't satisfied with any of the solutions presented here. There is actually a very simple solution that can be done using pure Javascript without relying upon some React functionality other than the basic props object - and it gives you the benefit of communicating in either direction (parent -> child, child -> parent). You need to pass an object from the parent component to the child component. This object is what I refer to as a "bi-directional reference" or biRef for short. Basically, the object contains a reference to methods in the parent that the parent wants to expose. And the child component attaches methods to the object that the parent can call. Something like this:
// Parent component.
function MyParentComponent(props) {
function someParentFunction() {
// The child component can call this function.
}
function onButtonClick() {
// Call the function inside the child component.
biRef.someChildFunction();
}
// Add all the functions here that the child can call.
var biRef = {
someParentFunction: someParentFunction
}
return <div>
<MyChildComponent biRef={biRef} />
<Button onClick={onButtonClick} />
</div>;
}
// Child component
function MyChildComponent(props) {
function someChildFunction() {
// The parent component can call this function.
}
function onButtonClick() {
// Call the parent function.
props.biRef.someParentFunction();
}
// Add all the child functions to props.biRef that you want the parent
// to be able to call.
props.biRef.someChildFunction = someChildFunction;
return <div>
<Button onClick={onButtonClick} />
</div>;
}
The other advantage to this solution is that you can add a lot more functions in the parent and child while passing them from the parent to the child using only a single property.
An improvement over the code above is to not add the parent and child functions directly to the biRef object but rather to sub members. Parent functions should be added to a member called "parent" while the child functions should be added to a member called "child".
// Parent component.
function MyParentComponent(props) {
function someParentFunction() {
// The child component can call this function.
}
function onButtonClick() {
// Call the function inside the child component.
biRef.child.someChildFunction();
}
// Add all the functions here that the child can call.
var biRef = {
parent: {
someParentFunction: someParentFunction
}
}
return <div>
<MyChildComponent biRef={biRef} />
<Button onClick={onButtonClick} />
</div>;
}
// Child component
function MyChildComponent(props) {
function someChildFunction() {
// The parent component can call this function.
}
function onButtonClick() {
// Call the parent function.
props.biRef.parent.someParentFunction();
}
// Add all the child functions to props.biRef that you want the parent
// to be able to call.
props.biRef {
child: {
someChildFunction: someChildFunction
}
}
return <div>
<Button onClick={onButtonClick} />
</div>;
}
By placing parent and child functions into separate members of the biRef object, you 'll have a clean separation between the two and easily see which ones belong to parent or child. It also helps to prevent a child component from accidentally overwriting a parent function if the same function appears in both.
One last thing is that if you note, the parent component creates the biRef object with var whereas the child component accesses it through the props object. It might be tempting to not define the biRef object in the parent and access it from its parent through its own props parameter (which might be the case in a hierarchy of UI elements). This is risky because the child may think a function it is calling on the parent belongs to the parent when it might actually belong to a grandparent. There's nothing wrong with this as long as you are aware of it. Unless you have a reason for supporting some hierarchy beyond a parent/child relationship, it's best to create the biRef in your parent component.

I hope I'm not repeating anything from above but what about passing a callback prop that sets the function in the parent? This works and is pretty easy. (Added code is between the ////'s)
class Parent extends Component {
/////
getAlert = () => {} // initial value for getAlert
setGetAlertMethod = (newMethod) => {
this.getAlert = newMethod;
}
/////
render() {
return (
<Child setGetAlertMethod={this.setGetAlertMethod}>
<button onClick={this.getAlert}>Click</button>
</Child>
);
}
}
class Child extends Component {
/////
componentDidMount() {
this.props.setGetAlertMethod(this.getAlert);
}
/////
getAlert() => {
alert('clicked');
}
render() {
return (
<h1 ref="hello">Hello</h1>
);
}
}

you can use ref to call the function of the child component from the parent
Functional Component Solution
in functional component, you have to use useImperativeHandle for getting ref into a child like below
import React, { forwardRef, useRef, useImperativeHandle } from 'react';
export default function ParentFunction() {
const childRef = useRef();
return (
<div className="container">
<div>
Parent Component
</div>
<button
onClick={() => { childRef.current.showAlert() }}
>
Call Function
</button>
<Child ref={childRef}/>
</div>
)
}
const Child = forwardRef((props, ref) => {
useImperativeHandle(
ref,
() => ({
showAlert() {
alert("Child Function Called")
}
}),
)
return (
<div>Child Component</div>
)
})
Class Component Solution
Child.js
import s from './Child.css';
class Child extends Component {
getAlert() {
alert('clicked');
}
render() {
return (
<h1>Hello</h1>
);
}
}
export default Child;
Parent.js
class Parent extends Component {
render() {
onClick() {
this.refs.child.getAlert();
}
return (
<div>
<Child ref="child" />
<button onClick={this.onClick}>Click</button>
</div>
);
}
}

I'm using useEffect hook to overcome the headache of doing all this so now I pass a variable down to child like this:
import { useEffect, useState } from "react";
export const ParentComponent = () => {
const [trigger, setTrigger] = useState(false);
return (
<div onClick={() => { setTrigger(trigger => !trigger); }}>
<ChildComponent trigger={trigger}></ChildComponent>
</div>
);
};
export const ChildComponent = (props) => {
const triggerInvokedFromParent = () => {
console.log('TriggerInvokedFromParent');
};
useEffect(() => {
triggerInvokedFromParent();
}, [props.trigger]);
return <span>ChildComponent</span>;
};

We can use refs in another way as-
We are going to create a Parent element, it will render a <Child/> component. As you can see, the component that will be rendered, you need to add the ref attribute and provide a name for it.
Then, the triggerChildAlert function, located in the parent class will access the refs property of the this context (when the triggerChildAlert function is triggered will access the child reference and it will has all the functions of the child element).
class Parent extends React.Component {
triggerChildAlert(){
this.refs.child.callChildMethod();
// to get child parent returned value-
// this.value = this.refs.child.callChildMethod();
// alert('Returned value- '+this.value);
}
render() {
return (
<div>
{/* Note that you need to give a value to the ref parameter, in this case child*/}
<Child ref="child" />
<button onClick={this.triggerChildAlert}>Click</button>
</div>
);
}
}
Now, the child component, as theoretically designed previously, will look like:
class Child extends React.Component {
callChildMethod() {
alert('Hello World');
// to return some value
// return this.state.someValue;
}
render() {
return (
<h1>Hello</h1>
);
}
}
Here is the source code-
Hope will help you !

If you are doing this simply because you want the Child to provide a re-usable trait to its parents, then you might consider doing that using render-props instead.
That technique actually turns the structure upside down. The Child now wraps the parent, so I have renamed it to AlertTrait below. I kept the name Parent for continuity, although it is not really a parent now.
// Use it like this:
<AlertTrait renderComponent={Parent}/>
class AlertTrait extends Component {
// You will need to bind this function, if it uses 'this'
doAlert() {
alert('clicked');
}
render() {
return this.props.renderComponent({ doAlert: this.doAlert });
}
}
class Parent extends Component {
render() {
return (
<button onClick={this.props.doAlert}>Click</button>
);
}
}
In this case, the AlertTrait provides one or more traits which it passes down as props to whatever component it was given in its renderComponent prop.
The Parent receives doAlert as a prop, and can call it when needed.
(For clarity, I called the prop renderComponent in the above example. But in the React docs linked above, they just call it render.)
The Trait component can render stuff surrounding the Parent, in its render function, but it does not render anything inside the parent. Actually it could render things inside the Parent, if it passed another prop (e.g. renderChild) to the parent, which the parent could then use during its render method.
This is somewhat different from what the OP asked for, but some people might end up here (like we did) because they wanted to create a reusable trait, and thought that a child component was a good way to do that.

For functional components easiest way is
Parent Component
parent.tsx
import React, { useEffect, useState, useRef } from "react";
import child from "../../child"
const parent: React.FunctionComponent = () => {
const childRef: any = useRef();
}
const onDropDownChange: any = (event): void => {
const target = event.target;
childRef.current.onFilterChange(target.value);
};
return <child ref={childRef} />
export default parent;
Child Component
child.tsx
import React, { useState, useEffect, forwardRef, useRef, useImperativeHandle, } from "react";
const Child = forwardRef((props, ref) => {
useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({
onFilterChange(id) {
console.log("Value from parent", id)
},
}));
})
Child.displayName = "Child";
export default Child;

The logic is simple.
Create a function in parent using child or use ref.
I prefer the creating function in parent using child. There are multiple ways to do it.
When using functional components
In Parent
function Parent(){
const [functionToCall, createFunctionToCall] = useState(()=>()=>{})
return (
<Child createFunctionToCall={createFunctionToCall} />
)
}
In Child
function Child({createFunctionToCall}){
useEffect(()=>{
function theFunctionToCall(){
// do something like setting something
// don't forget to set dependancies properly.
}
createFunctionToCall(()=>theFunctionToCall)
},[createFunctionToCall])
}

This pattern is similar to #brickingup answer. But in this version you can set as many child actions you want.
import { useEffect } from "react";
export const Parent = () => {
const childEvents = { click: () => {} };
return (
<div onClick={() => childEvents.click()}>
<Child events={childEvents}></Child>
</div>
);
};
export const Child = (props) => {
const click = () => {
alert("click from child");
};
useEffect(() => {
if (props.events) {
props.events.click = click;
}
}, []);
return <span>Child Component</span>;
};

We're happy with a custom hook we call useCounterKey. It just sets up a counterKey, or a key that counts up from zero. The function it returns resets the key (i.e. increment). (I believe this is the most idiomatic way in React to reset a component - just bump the key.)
However this hook also works in any situation where you want to send a one-time message to the client to do something. E.g. we use it to focus a control in the child on a certain parent event - it just autofocuses anytime the key is updated. (If more props are needed they could be set prior to resetting the key so they're available when the event happens.)
This method has a bit of a learning curve b/c it's not as straightforward as a typical event handler, but it seems the most idiomatic way to handle this in React that we've found (since keys already function this way). Def open to feedback on this method but it is working well!
// Main helper hook:
export function useCounterKey() {
const [key, setKey] = useState(0);
return [key, () => setKey(prev => prev + 1)] as const;
}
Sample usages:
// Sample 1 - normal React, just reset a control by changing Key on demand
function Sample1() {
const [inputLineCounterKey, resetInputLine] = useCounterKey();
return <>
<InputLine key={inputLineCounterKey} />
<button onClick={() => resetInputLine()} />
<>;
}
// Second sample - anytime the counterKey is incremented, child calls focus() on the input
function Sample2() {
const [amountFocusCounterKey, focusAmountInput] = useCounterKey();
// ... call focusAmountInput in some hook or event handler as needed
return <WorkoutAmountInput focusCounterKey={amountFocusCounterKey} />
}
function WorkoutAmountInput(props) {
useEffect(() => {
if (counterKey > 0) {
// Don't focus initially
focusAmount();
}
}, [counterKey]);
// ...
}
(Credit to Kent Dodds for the counterKey concept.)

Parent component
import Child from './Child'
export default function Parent(props) {
const [childRefreshFunction, setChildRefreshFunction] = useState(null);
return (
<div>
<button type="button" onClick={() => {
childRefreshFunction();
}}>Refresh child</button>
<Child setRefreshFunction={(f) => {
setChildRefreshFunction(f);
}} />
</div>
)
}
Child component
export default function Child(props) {
useEffect(() => {
props.setRefreshFunction(() => refreshMe);
}, []);
function refreshMe() {
fetch('http://example.com/data.json')....
};
return (
<div>
child
</div>
)
}

You can achieve this easily in this way
Steps-
Create a boolean variable in the state in the parent class. Update this when you want to call a function.
Create a prop variable and assign the boolean variable.
From the child component access that variable using props and execute the method you want by having an if condition.
class Child extends Component {
Method=()=>{
--Your method body--
}
render() {
return (
//check whether the variable has been updated or not
if(this.props.updateMethod){
this.Method();
}
)
}
}
class Parent extends Component {
constructor(){
this.state={
callMethod:false
}
}
render() {
return (
//update state according to your requirement
this.setState({
callMethod:true
}}
<Child updateMethod={this.state.callMethod}></Child>
);
}
}

Another way of triggering a child function from parent is to make use of the componentDidUpdate function in child Component. I pass a prop triggerChildFunc from Parent to Child, which initially is null. The value changes to a function when the button is clicked and Child notice that change in componentDidUpdate and calls its own internal function.
Since prop triggerChildFunc changes to a function, we also get a callback to the Parent. If Parent don't need to know when the function is called the value triggerChildFunc could for example change from null to true instead.
const { Component } = React;
const { render } = ReactDOM;
class Parent extends Component {
state = {
triggerFunc: null
}
render() {
return (
<div>
<Child triggerChildFunc={this.state.triggerFunc} />
<button onClick={() => {
this.setState({ triggerFunc: () => alert('Callback in parent')})
}}>Click
</button>
</div>
);
}
}
class Child extends Component {
componentDidUpdate(prevProps) {
if (this.props.triggerChildFunc !== prevProps.triggerChildFunc) {
this.onParentTrigger();
}
}
onParentTrigger() {
alert('parent triggered me');
// Let's call the passed variable from parent if it's a function
if (this.props.triggerChildFunc && {}.toString.call(this.props.triggerChildFunc) === '[object Function]') {
this.props.triggerChildFunc();
}
}
render() {
return (
<h1>Hello</h1>
);
}
}
render(
<Parent />,
document.getElementById('app')
);
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/16.6.3/umd/react.production.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react-dom/16.6.3/umd/react-dom.production.min.js"></script>
<div id='app'></div>
CodePen: https://codepen.io/calsal/pen/NWPxbJv?editors=1010

Here my demo: https://stackblitz.com/edit/react-dgz1ee?file=styles.css
I am using useEffect to call the children component's methods. I have tried with Proxy and Setter_Getter but sor far useEffect seems to be the more convenient way to call a child method from parent. To use Proxy and Setter_Getter it seems there is some subtlety to overcome first, because the element firstly rendered is an objectLike's element through the ref.current return => <div/>'s specificity.
Concerning useEffect, you can also leverage on this approach to set the parent's state depending on what you want to do with the children.
In the demo's link I have provided, you will find my full ReactJS' code with my draftwork inside's so you can appreciate the workflow of my solution.
Here I am providing you my ReactJS' snippet with the relevant code only. :
import React, {
Component,
createRef,
forwardRef,
useState,
useEffect
} from "react";
{...}
// Child component
// I am defining here a forwardRef's element to get the Child's methods from the parent
// through the ref's element.
let Child = forwardRef((props, ref) => {
// I am fetching the parent's method here
// that allows me to connect the parent and the child's components
let { validateChildren } = props;
// I am initializing the state of the children
// good if we can even leverage on the functional children's state
let initialState = {
one: "hello world",
two: () => {
console.log("I am accessing child method from parent :].");
return "child method achieve";
}
};
// useState initialization
const [componentState, setComponentState] = useState(initialState);
// useEffect will allow me to communicate with the parent
// through a lifecycle data flow
useEffect(() => {
ref.current = { componentState };
validateChildren(ref.current.componentState.two);
});
{...}
});
{...}
// Parent component
class App extends Component {
// initialize the ref inside the constructor element
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.childRef = createRef();
}
// I am implementing a parent's method
// in child useEffect's method
validateChildren = childrenMethod => {
// access children method from parent
childrenMethod();
// or signaling children is ready
console.log("children active");
};
{...}
render(){
return (
{
// I am referencing the children
// also I am implementing the parent logic connector's function
// in the child, here => this.validateChildren's function
}
<Child ref={this.childRef} validateChildren={this.validateChildren} />
</div>
)
}

You can apply that logic very easily using your child component as a react custom hook.
How to implement it?
Your child returns a function.
Your child returns a JSON: {function, HTML, or other values} as the example.
In the example doesn't make sense to apply this logic but it is easy to see:
const {useState} = React;
//Parent
const Parent = () => {
//custome hook
const child = useChild();
return (
<div>
{child.display}
<button onClick={child.alert}>
Parent call child
</button>
{child.btn}
</div>
);
};
//Child
const useChild = () => {
const [clickCount, setClick] = React.useState(0);
{/* child button*/}
const btn = (
<button
onClick={() => {
setClick(clickCount + 1);
}}
>
Click me
</button>
);
return {
btn: btn,
//function called from parent
alert: () => {
alert("You clicked " + clickCount + " times");
},
display: <h1>{clickCount}</h1>
};
};
const rootElement = document.getElementById("root");
ReactDOM.render(<Parent />, rootElement);
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/16.8.4/umd/react.production.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react-dom/16.8.4/umd/react-dom.production.min.js"></script>
<div id="root"></div>

I tried using createRef or useRef. Somehow they all return null.
Secondly, this answer proposes to pass a prop that sets a function that seems the most reasonable to me. But if your child component is used in multiple places, you should add that extra prop to other places. Also if you want to call a method in the grandchild, this method might be too verbose or mouthful.
So I made my own function store in a very primitive way.
Below is functionStore.js file
const fns = {};
export function setFn(componentName, fnName, fn) {
if (fns[componentName]) {
fns[componentName][fnName] = fn;
} else {
fns[componentName] = { fnName: fn };
}
}
export function callFn(componentName, fnName) {
fns[componentName][fnName]();
}
I just set the functions that need to be called from any component.
import { setFn } from "./functionStore";
export class AComponent extends React.Component {
componentDidMount() {
setFn("AComponent", "aFunc", this.aFunc);
}
aFunc = () => { console.log("aFunc is called!"); };
}
Then I just call it from some other component
import { callFn } from "./functionStore";
export class BComponent extends React.Component {
// just call the function
bFunc = () => {
callFn("AComponent", "aFunc");
};
}
One disadvantage is the function to be called should be parameterless. But this might be fixed somehow as well. Currently, I don't need to pass parameters.

I think that the most basic way to call methods is by setting a request on the child component. Then as soon as the child handles the request, it calls a callback method to reset the request.
The reset mechanism is necessary to be able to send the same request multiple times after each other.
In parent component
In the render method of the parent:
const { request } = this.state;
return (<Child request={request} onRequestHandled={()->resetRequest()}/>);
The parent needs 2 methods, to communicate with its child in 2 directions.
sendRequest() {
const request = { param: "value" };
this.setState({ request });
}
resetRequest() {
const request = null;
this.setState({ request });
}
In child component
The child updates its internal state, copying the request from the props.
constructor(props) {
super(props);
const { request } = props;
this.state = { request };
}
static getDerivedStateFromProps(props, state) {
const { request } = props;
if (request !== state.request ) return { request };
return null;
}
Then finally it handles the request, and sends the reset to the parent:
componentDidMount() {
const { request } = this.state;
// todo handle request.
const { onRequestHandled } = this.props;
if (onRequestHandled != null) onRequestHandled();
}

Here's a bug? to look out for:
I concur with rossipedia's solution using forwardRef, useRef, useImperativeHandle
There's some misinformation online that says refs can only be created from React Class components, but you can indeed use Function Components if you use the aforementioned hooks above. A note, the hooks only worked for me after I changed the file to not use withRouter() when exporting the component. I.e. a change from
export default withRouter(TableConfig);
to instead be
export default TableConfig;
In hindsight the withRouter() is not needed for such a component anyway, but usually it doesn't hurt anything having it in. My use case is that I created a component to create a Table to handle the viewing and editing of config values, and I wanted to be able to tell this Child component to reset it's state values whenever the Parent form's Reset button was hit. UseRef() wouldn't properly get the ref or ref.current (kept on getting null) until I removed withRouter() from the file containing my child component TableConfig

React pass function to dynamic created child with additional parameter

I want to dynamically create child components, receiving an onClick event from their parent/grandparent component in React. During the creation I want to add a parameter to the onClick-event. Basically the desired flow is:
When rendering parent component
Pass the reference to the desired function to the creation of the dynamic component
In process of creating the dynamic component I want to add a parameter, defined by the creator
the onClick event in the child should call the onClick function in the parent using the parameter it got from the creator of the dynamic component
For the code: this is the dynamic component creator and the parent
import React from 'react';
// This is the creator of my dynamic components
// It currently sets this.props.name as parameter for the parent function
class CreateComponent extends React.Component {
render(){
return(
<div className="childBox">
// this.props.component is a react component of type ImageBox (see next code block)
{React.cloneElement(this.props.component, {
open: this.props.open(this.props.name),
close: this.props.close,
})}
</div>
)
}
}
// This is the parent component, using the creator and some state to open/close different components
export class DynamicContentGrid extends React.Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = { activeComponent: '' };
}
close() {
this.setState({ activeComponent: '' });
}
open(component) {
this.setState({ activeComponent: component })
}
render() {
console.log(this.props.children);
return(
<div className={css(styles.grid)}>
<div className={css(styles.boxUpperLeft, styles.box)}>
<CreateComponent
component={this.props.children['upperLeft']}
name='upperLeft'
open={() => (name) => this.open(name)}
close={() => this.close()}
/>
</div>
</div>
)
}
}
export default DynamicContentGrid;
And here comes the very basic child component using this.props.close without parameters (they should be set in the creator):
import React from 'react';
export class ImageBox extends React.Component {
render() {
const {title, link, img} = this.props.content.front;
return(
<div>
<h1>{title}</h1>
<h2 onClick={this.props.open}>{link}</h2>
<img src={img} />
</div>
)
}
}
export default ImageBox;
What works
The dynamic rendering of child components works fine.
Where it breaks
As you can see, the magic happens in open={() => (name) => this.open(name)}. What I want is: pass this.open to the creator, set open(name) as parameter and pass on the open function to the child.
Everything works fine, if I said the "name" parameter directly in the parent, but for several reasons I do not want to do this. So I need some kind of currying but I can't figure out, what is wrong. The parameter "name" is not properly set in the creator at the moment.

In CreateComponent set open: () => this.props.open(this.props.name).
Also, remove () => (name) => this.open(name) and replace with this.open and put this.open = this.open.bind(this); into the constructor.

React/ ESLint - JSX props should not use arrow functions

I'm currently creating a component in react and i'm using the ES Lint rule react/jsx-no-bind. My issue here is that I want to be able to pass a parameter to my components function. Here is the code I would like to use to be able to do so:
class LanguageDropdown extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = {};
}
changeLanguage = (lang) => {
console.log(lang)
};
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.props.languages.map(lang => <button onCLick={() => this.changeLanguage(lang)}>{lang}</button>)}
</div>
)
}
...
This pulls up the ESlint error:
JSX props should not use arrow functions
I'm not entirely sure how to achieve this without using an arrow function or using .bind(). I could add a data-attribute to the button element and then just pass in the event into the changeLanguage function and fetch the attribute using event.target() but this doesn't feel like it's the way it should be approached in React.
Can someone tell me what would be the correct way?

You can refactor button into its own component:
class MyButton extends Component {
static propTypes = {
language: PropTypes.string.isRequired,
};
onClick = () => console.log(this.props.language);
render() {
const {language} = this.props;
return (
<button onClick={this.onClick} type="submit">
{language}
</button>);
}
}
and then in your LanguageDropDown class, use MyButton like this:
class LanguageDropdown extends Component {
...
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.props.languages.map(lang => <MyButton key={lang} language={lang}/>)}
</div>
)
}
...
}
A couple of additional things:
You have a typo onCLick should be onClick
You need a key for repeated items

try the below code.
here I tried by taking the value into the state, same can be tried using props.
class LanguageDropdown extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = {languages:['telugu','hindi','english']};
// this.changeLanguage = this.changeLanguage.bind(this);
}
changeLanguage(event,lang){
//event.preventDefault();
console.log('change lang: '+JSON.stringify(lang));
};
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.state.languages.map(lang => <button onClick={(event)=>this.changeLanguage(event,lang)}>{lang}</button>)}
</div>
)
}
}
render(<LanguageDropdown />, document.getElementById('root'));
when you bind the handler in the onClick event where you are passing the value to the handler, then we have to pass that value from the event and collect it to get that value.

Propagate methods from grand-child component

I have a dumb component, List, that has some methods defined like this:
class List extends React.Component {
...
scrollTo() {
...
}
clear() {
...
}
}
I then use it in a Parent Component, let's say UsersList:
class UsersList extends React.Component {
render() {
return <List {...this.props} {...} />;
}
}
Then I have as a Parent I have FriendsPage:
class FriendsPage extends React.Component {
render() {
return (
...
<UsersList ref={(ref) => { this.usersListRef = ref; }} {...} />
);
}
}
I'd like to be able to call this.usersListRef.scrollTo() for example in FriendsPage, without having to define the methods of List in UsersList.
I can pass a prop called listRef and use it as ref={this.props.listRef} but I was wondering if another solution exists.

You can't call functions of a child and that would also be against the idea of react. Ideally your <UserList> component accepts a prop that makes it know where to scroll to. Something like:
class UserList extends React.Component {
componentDidUpdate() {
const {activeItem} = this.props;
this.scrollTo(activeItem);
}
scrollTo = activeItem => {
// calculate position of active item to scroll to
// and scroll to it
}
}
And then your <FriendsPage> could look something like this:
class FriendsPage extends React.Component {
handleSelectionChange = selected => {
// triggered when the selected element in the list changes
this.setState({selected});
}
render() {
const {selected} = this.state;
return <UserList activeItem={selected} {...this.props} />;
}
}
It's hard to tell if this is 100% the approach you need as you did not provide many details about the conditions that lead to scrolling.

Mmmm, I'm not sure if I'm getting It right, but you should read this: https://reactjs.org/docs/thinking-in-react.html
In React, the idea is to go top-down. As you need the UsersList component to do something when user interacts with List component, then you should define the function in UsersList and pass that function as a prop to the List Component.
For example:
class List extends React.Component {
<div onClick={this.props.scrollTo}
}
I then use it in a Parent Component, let's say UsersList:
class UsersList extends React.Component {
scrollTo(){
do something...
}
render() {
return <List scrollTo={() => this.scrollTo()} {...this.props} {...} />;
}
}
Then I have as a Parent I have FriendsPage:
class FriendsPage extends React.Component {
render() {
return (
...
<UsersList {...} />
);
}
}

I forgot to check the documentation on this one, and there is a paragraph about it here: https://reactjs.org/docs/refs-and-the-dom.html#exposing-dom-refs-to-parent-components.
Basically, it is the solution I envisaged in my question, using a listRef and passing it down to wherever my List Component is.
Thanks, everyone!

How can I update the parent's state in React?

My structure looks as follows:
Component 1
- |- Component 2
- - |- Component 4
- - - |- Component 5
Component 3
Component 3 should display some data depending on state of Component 5.
Since props are immutable, I can't simply save its state in Component 1 and forward it, right? And yes, I've read about Redux, but I don't want to use it. I hope that it's possible to solve it just with react. Am I wrong?

For child-parent communication you should pass a function setting the state from parent to child, like this
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
this.handler = this.handler.bind(this)
}
handler() {
this.setState({
someVar: 'some value'
})
}
render() {
return <Child handler = {this.handler} />
}
}
class Child extends React.Component {
render() {
return <Button onClick = {this.props.handler}/ >
}
}
This way the child can update the parent's state with the call of a function passed with props.
But you will have to rethink your components' structure, because as I understand components 5 and 3 are not related.
One possible solution is to wrap them in a higher level component which will contain the state of both component 1 and 3. This component will set the lower level state through props.

This is how to do it with the new useState hook.
Method - Pass the state changer function as a props to the child component and do whatever you want to do with the function:
import React, {useState} from 'react';
const ParentComponent = () => {
const[state, setState]=useState('');
return(
<ChildComponent stateChanger={setState} />
)
}
const ChildComponent = ({stateChanger, ...rest}) => {
return(
<button onClick={() => stateChanger('New data')}></button>
)
}

I found the following working solution to pass the onClick function argument from the child to the parent component:
Version with passing a method()
//ChildB component
class ChildB extends React.Component {
render() {
var handleToUpdate = this.props.handleToUpdate;
return (<div><button onClick={() => handleToUpdate('someVar')}>
Push me
</button>
</div>)
}
}
//ParentA component
class ParentA extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
var handleToUpdate = this.handleToUpdate.bind(this);
var arg1 = '';
}
handleToUpdate(someArg){
alert('We pass argument from Child to Parent: ' + someArg);
this.setState({arg1:someArg});
}
render() {
var handleToUpdate = this.handleToUpdate;
return (<div>
<ChildB handleToUpdate = {handleToUpdate.bind(this)} /></div>)
}
}
if(document.querySelector("#demo")){
ReactDOM.render(
<ParentA />,
document.querySelector("#demo")
);
}
Look at JSFiddle
Version with passing an Arrow function
//ChildB component
class ChildB extends React.Component {
render() {
var handleToUpdate = this.props.handleToUpdate;
return (<div>
<button onClick={() => handleToUpdate('someVar')}>
Push me
</button>
</div>)
}
}
//ParentA component
class ParentA extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
}
handleToUpdate = (someArg) => {
alert('We pass argument from Child to Parent: ' + someArg);
}
render() {
return (<div>
<ChildB handleToUpdate = {this.handleToUpdate} /></div>)
}
}
if(document.querySelector("#demo")){
ReactDOM.render(
<ParentA />,
document.querySelector("#demo")
);
}
Look at JSFiddle

I want to thank the most upvoted answer for giving me the idea of my own problem basically the variation of it with arrow function and passing param from child component:
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
// without bind, replaced by arrow func below
}
handler = (val) => {
this.setState({
someVar: val
})
}
render() {
return <Child handler = {this.handler} />
}
}
class Child extends React.Component {
render() {
return <Button onClick = {() => this.props.handler('the passing value')}/ >
}
}
Hope it helps someone.

I like the answer regarding passing functions around. It's a very handy technique.
On the flip side you can also achieve this using pub/sub or using a variant, a dispatcher, as Flux does. The theory is super simple. Have component 5 dispatch a message which component 3 is listening for. Component 3 then updates its state which triggers the re-render. This requires stateful components, which, depending on your viewpoint, may or may not be an anti-pattern. I'm against them personally and would rather that something else is listening for dispatches and changes state from the very top-down (Redux does this, but it adds additional terminology).
import { Dispatcher } from 'flux'
import { Component } from 'React'
const dispatcher = new Dispatcher()
// Component 3
// Some methods, such as constructor, omitted for brevity
class StatefulParent extends Component {
state = {
text: 'foo'
}
componentDidMount() {
dispatcher.register( dispatch => {
if ( dispatch.type === 'change' ) {
this.setState({ text: 'bar' })
}
}
}
render() {
return <h1>{ this.state.text }</h1>
}
}
// Click handler
const onClick = event => {
dispatcher.dispatch({
type: 'change'
})
}
// Component 5 in your example
const StatelessChild = props => {
return <button onClick={ onClick }>Click me</button>
}
The dispatcher bundles with Flux is very simple. It simply registers callbacks and invokes them when any dispatch occurs, passing through the contents on the dispatch (in the above terse example there is no payload with the dispatch, simply a message id). You could adapt this to traditional pub/sub (e.g., using the EventEmitter from events, or some other version) very easily if that makes more sense to you.

I found the following working solution to pass the onClick function argument from the child to the parent component with a parameter:
Parent class:
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
// Bind the this context to the handler function
this.handler = this.handler.bind(this);
// Set some state
this.state = {
messageShown: false
};
}
// This method will be sent to the child component
handler(param1) {
console.log(param1);
this.setState({
messageShown: true
});
}
// Render the child component and set the action property with the handler as value
render() {
return <Child action={this.handler} />
}}
Child class:
class Child extends React.Component {
render() {
return (
<div>
{/* The button will execute the handler function set by the parent component */}
<Button onClick={this.props.action.bind(this,param1)} />
</div>
)
} }

Whenever you require to communicate between a child to the parent at any level down, then it's better to make use of context. In the parent component define the context that can be invoked by the child, such as:
In the parent component, in your case component 3,
static childContextTypes = {
parentMethod: React.PropTypes.func.isRequired
};
getChildContext() {
return {
parentMethod: (parameter_from_child) => this.parentMethod(parameter_from_child)
};
}
parentMethod(parameter_from_child){
// Update the state with parameter_from_child
}
Now in the child component (component 5 in your case), just tell this component that it wants to use the context of its parent.
static contextTypes = {
parentMethod: React.PropTypes.func.isRequired
};
render() {
return(
<TouchableHighlight
onPress = {() => this.context.parentMethod(new_state_value)}
underlayColor='gray' >
<Text> update state in parent component </Text>
</TouchableHighlight>
)}
You can find the Demo project in this GitHub repository.

It seems that we can only pass data from parent to child as React promotes unidirectional data flow, but to make the parent update itself when something happens in its "child component", we generally use what is called a "callback function".
We pass the function defined in the parent to the child as "props" and
call that function from the child triggering it in the parent
component.
class Parent extends React.Component {
handler = (Value_Passed_From_SubChild) => {
console.log("Parent got triggered when a grandchild button was clicked");
console.log("Parent->Child->SubChild");
console.log(Value_Passed_From_SubChild);
}
render() {
return <Child handler = {this.handler} />
}
}
class Child extends React.Component {
render() {
return <SubChild handler = {this.props.handler}/ >
}
}
class SubChild extends React.Component {
constructor(props){
super(props);
this.state = {
somethingImp : [1,2,3,4]
}
}
render() {
return <button onClick = {this.props.handler(this.state.somethingImp)}>Clickme<button/>
}
}
React.render(<Parent />,document.getElementById('app'));
HTML
----
<div id="app"></div>
In this example we can make data pass from sub child → child → parent by passing function to its direct child.

Most of the answers given previously are for React.Component-based designs. If you are using useState in the recent upgrades of the React library, then follow this answer.

I've used a top rated answer from this page many times, but while learning React, I've found a better way to do that, without binding and without an inline function inside props.
Just look here:
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = {
someVar: value
}
}
handleChange = (someValue) => {
this.setState({someVar: someValue})
}
render() {
return <Child handler={this.handleChange} />
}
}
export const Child = ({handler}) => {
return <Button onClick={handler} />
}
The key is in an arrow function:
handleChange = (someValue) => {
this.setState({someVar: someValue})
}
You can read more here.

Simply pass the parent's setState function via props to the child component.
function ParentComp() {
const [searchValue, setSearchValue] = useState("");
return <SearchBox setSearchValue={setSearchValue} searchValue={searchValue} />;
}
then in child component:
function SearchBox({ searchValue, setSearchValue }) {
return (
<input
id="search-post"
type="text"
value={searchValue}
onChange={(e) => setSearchValue(e.target.value)}
placeholder="Search Blogs ..."
/>
)
}
A second example to handle click from child component:
// We've below function and component in parent component
const clickHandler = (val) => {
alert(`httpRequest sent. \nValue Received: ${val}`);
};
// JSX
<HttpRequest clickHandler={clickHandler} />
this is how you get function from parent component then pass a value and fire clickHandler through it.
function HttpRequest({ clickHandler }) {
const [content, setContent] = useState("initialState");
return (
<button onClick={() => clickHandler(content)}>
Send Request
</button>
);
}
export default HttpRequest;

We can create ParentComponent and with a handleInputChange method to update the ParentComponent state. Import the ChildComponent and we pass two props from the parent to the child component i.e., the handleInputChange function and count.
import React, { Component } from 'react';
import ChildComponent from './ChildComponent';
class ParentComponent extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.handleInputChange = this.handleInputChange.bind(this);
this.state = {
count: '',
};
}
handleInputChange(e) {
const { value, name } = e.target;
this.setState({ [name]: value });
}
render() {
const { count } = this.state;
return (
<ChildComponent count={count} handleInputChange={this.handleInputChange} />
);
}
}
Now we create the ChildComponent file and save it as ChildComponent.jsx. This component is stateless because the child component doesn't have a state. We use the prop-types library for props type checking.
import React from 'react';
import { func, number } from 'prop-types';
const ChildComponent = ({ handleInputChange, count }) => (
<input onChange={handleInputChange} value={count} name="count" />
);
ChildComponent.propTypes = {
count: number,
handleInputChange: func.isRequired,
};
ChildComponent.defaultProps = {
count: 0,
};
export default ChildComponent;

If you want to update the parent component,
class ParentComponent extends React.Component {
constructor(props){
super(props);
this.state = {
page: 0
}
}
handler(val){
console.log(val) // 1
}
render(){
return (
<ChildComponent onChange={this.handler} />
)
}
}
class ChildComponent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = {
page: 1
};
}
someMethod = (page) => {
this.setState({ page: page });
this.props.onChange(page)
}
render() {
return (
<Button
onClick={() => this.someMethod()}
> Click
</Button>
)
}
}
Here onChange is an attribute with "handler" method bound to its instance. We passed the method handler to the Child class component, to receive via the onChange property in its props argument.
The attribute onChange will be set in a props object like this:
props = {
onChange: this.handler
}
and passed to the child component.
So the child component can access the value of name in the props object like this props.onChange.
It's done through the use of render props.
Now the child component has a button “Click” with an onclick event set to call the handler method passed to it via onChange in its props argument object. So now this.props.onChange in the child holds the output method in the parent class.
Reference and credits: Bits and Pieces

If this same scenario is not spread everywhere you can use React's context, especially if you don't want to introduce all the overhead that state management libraries introduce. Plus, it's easier to learn. But be careful; you could overuse it and start writing bad code. Basically you define a Container component (that will hold and keep that piece of state for you) making all the components interested in writing/reading that piece of data to/from its children (not necessarily direct children).
Context - React
You could also use a plain React properly instead.
<Component5 onSomethingHappenedIn5={this.props.doSomethingAbout5} />
Pass doSomethingAbout5 up to Component 1:
<Component1>
<Component2 onSomethingHappenedIn5={somethingAbout5 => this.setState({somethingAbout5})}/>
<Component5 propThatDependsOn5={this.state.somethingAbout5}/>
<Component1/>
If this is a common problem, you should starting thinking moving the whole state of the application to somewhere else. You have a few options, the most common are:
Redux
Flux
Basically, instead of managing the application state in your component you send commands when something happens to get the state updated. Components pull the state from this container as well so all the data is centralized. This doesn't mean you can't use local state any more, but that's a more advanced topic.

We can set the parent state from a child component by passing a function into the child component as props as below:
class Parent extends React.Component{
state = { term : ''}
onInputChange = (event) => {
this.setState({term: event.target.value});
}
onFormSubmit = (event) => {
event.preventDefault();
this.props.onFormSubmit(this.state.term);
}
render(){
return (
<Child onInputChange={this.onInputChange} onFormSubmit=
{this.onFormSubmit} />
)
}
}
class Child extends React.Component{
render(){
return (
<div className="search-bar ui segment">
<form className="ui form" onSubmit={this.props.onFormSubmit}>
<div class="field">
<label>Search Video</label>
<input type="text" value={this.state.term} onChange=
{this.props.onInputChange} />
</div>
</form>
</div>
)
}
}
This way, the child will update the parent state onInputChange and onFormSubmit are props passed from parents. This can be called from event listeners in the child, hence the state will get updated there.

Parent Component
function Parent() {
const [value, setValue] = React.useState("");
function handleChange(newValue) {
setValue(newValue);
}
// We pass a callback to Child
return <Child value={value} onChange={handleChange} />;
}
Child Component
function Child(props) {
function handleChange(event) {
// Here, we invoke the callback with the new value
props.onChange(event.target.value);
}
return <input value={props.value} onChange={handleChange} />
}

Here is a short snippet to get two ways binding data.
The counter show the value from the parent and is updated from the child
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
this.handler = this.handler.bind(this)
this.state = {
count: 0
}
}
handler() {
this.setState({
count: this.state.count + 1
})
}
render() {
return <Child handler={this.handler} count={this.state.count} />
}
}
class Child extends React.Component {
render() {
return <button onClick={this.props.handler}>Count {this.props.count}</button>
}
}
ReactDOM.render(<Parent />, document.getElementById("root"));
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/16.6.3/umd/react.production.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react-dom/16.6.3/umd/react-dom.production.min.js"></script>
<div id="root"></div>

This is the way I do it:
type ParentProps = {}
type ParentState = { someValue: number }
class Parent extends React.Component<ParentProps, ParentState> {
constructor(props: ParentProps) {
super(props)
this.state = { someValue: 0 }
this.handleChange = this.handleChange.bind(this)
}
handleChange(value: number) {
this.setState({...this.state, someValue: value})
}
render() {
return <div>
<Child changeFunction={this.handleChange} defaultValue={this.state.someValue} />
<p>Value: {this.state.someValue}</p>
</div>
}
}
type ChildProps = { defaultValue: number, changeFunction: (value: number) => void}
type ChildState = { anotherValue: number }
class Child extends React.Component<ChildProps, ChildState> {
constructor(props: ChildProps) {
super(props)
this.state = { anotherValue: this.props.defaultValue }
this.handleChange = this.handleChange.bind(this)
}
handleChange(value: number) {
this.setState({...this.state, anotherValue: value})
this.props.changeFunction(value)
}
render() {
return <div>
<input onChange={event => this.handleChange(Number(event.target.value))} type='number' value={this.state.anotherValue}/>
</div>
}
}

As per your question, I understand that you need to display some conditional data in Component 3 which is based on the state of Component 5. Approach:
The state of Component 3 will hold a variable to check whether Component 5's state has that data
An arrow function which will change Component 3's state variable.
Passing an arrow function to Component 5 with props.
Component 5 has an arrow function which will change Component 3's state variable
An arrow function of Component 5 called on loading itself
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/16.6.3/umd/react.production.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react-dom/16.6.3/umd/react-dom.production.min.js"></script>
Class Component3 extends React.Component {
state = {
someData = true
}
checkForData = (result) => {
this.setState({someData : result})
}
render() {
if(this.state.someData) {
return(
<Component5 hasData = {this.checkForData} />
//Other Data
);
}
else {
return(
//Other Data
);
}
}
}
export default Component3;
class Component5 extends React.Component {
state = {
dataValue = "XYZ"
}
checkForData = () => {
if(this.state.dataValue === "XYZ") {
this.props.hasData(true);
}
else {
this.props.hasData(false);
}
}
render() {
return(
<div onLoad = {this.checkForData}>
//Conditional Data
</div>
);
}
}
export default Component5;

To set state of parent in the child you can use callback.
const Child = ({handleClick}) => (
<button on click={() => handleClick('some vale')}>change value</button>
)
const parent = () => {
const [value, setValue] = useState(null)
return <Child handleClick={setValue} />
}
In your structure it seems Components 1 an 3 are brothers. So you has 3 options:
1- Put the state into the parent of them(not recommended for 4 layer parent-child).
2- Use useContext and useRducer(or useState) together.
3- Use state managers like redux, mobx ...

This seem to work for me
Parent:
...
const [open, setOpen] = React.useState(false);
const handleDrawerClose = () => {
setOpen(false);
};
...
return (
<PrimaryNavigationAccordion
handleDrawerClose={handleDrawerClose}
/>
);
Child:
...
export default function PrimaryNavigationAccordion({
props,
handleDrawerClose,
})
...
<Link
to={menuItem.url}
component={RouterLink}
color="inherit"
underline="hover"
onClick={() => handleDrawerClose()}
>
{menuItem.label}
</Link>

You can do it by passing a reference for the parent to child, as:
Having a parent component A in A.js with a method updateAState
Having a child component B in B.js
Having a wrapper function that renders <A><B></B></A> in C.js
In C.js you can use useRef as following:
import React, { useRef } from "react";
export default function C()
{
const parentARef = useRef();
const handleChildBClick = () => parentARef.current.updateAState();
return (
<A ref={parentARef}>
<B onClick={handleChildBClick}>
</B>
</A>
);
}
Guidance Reference: https://stackoverflow.com/a/56496607/1770571

Data cannot be passed from child to parent in React. Data must be passed from parent to child. In this case, you can use either the built-in Context API or a third-party state management solution such as Redux, Mobx, or Apollo GraphQL. However, if your app structure is too small, you can store your data in your parent element and then send it to your child via prop drilling. But if your project is larger, it will be messy.

<Footer
action={()=>this.setState({showChart: true})}
/>
<footer className="row">
<button type="button" onClick={this.props.action}>Edit</button>
{console.log(this.props)}
</footer>
Try this example to write inline setState, it avoids creating another function.