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Get and check a value from JSON read in NodeJS

I'm trying to check if a user exists (registered on a json file).
Unfortunately I don't find a valid solution in all Stack Overflow that gives me a simple "true" in a callback.
The version closest to a solution
Experiment V1 :
let userExist;
function check(){
console.log("CHECK!");
return userExist = true;
}
// check(); if this, return true... obvious.
//// check if user exist
server.readFileSync(filepath, 'utf8', (err, data) =>
{
let json = JSON.parse(data),
userlist = json.allusers;
for (let key in userlist)
{
if ( userlist[key].email == req.body.user_email )
{
console.log("FINDED EQUAL");
check(); // return undefined ???
}
}
});
console.log("userExist value : "+userExist);
differently formulated the debugs also appear, but "true" never returns.
note: yes, JSON is read correctly. If everything works inside the readfile, you immediately notice the same emails.
output: "undefined"
Log: total bypassed
Experiment V2 :
In this case (with asynchronous reading) it returns all the debugging (but the "true" remains undefined)
The problem with the asynchronous is that I have to wait for it to check to continue with the other functions.
//// check if user exist
server.readFile(filepath, 'utf8', (err, data) =>
{
let json = JSON.parse(data),
userlist = json.allusers;
for (let key in userlist)
{
if (/* json.allusers.hasOwnProperty(key) &&*/ userlist[key].email == req.body.user_email )
{
console.log("FINDED EQUAL");
check();
}
}
});
var userExist;
function check(userExist){
console.log("CHECK!");
return userExist=true;
}
console.log("userExist value : "+userExist+"");
server listening on: 8080
userExist value : undefined
CHECK!
FINDED EQUAL
Experiment V3 :
after the various suggestions I come to a compromise by using the syntax for the async functions.
This allowed to reach an ordered code, but despite this it is not possible to wait for the results and export them out of the same function (this is because node itself is asynchronous! Therefore it has already gone on!)
using a "message" variable to check if it could return an object I did so:
//simple output tester
var message;
// create a promise
let loopusers = new Promise( (resolve)=>{
server.readFile( filepath, 'utf8',
(err, data) => {
let json = JSON.parse(data),
userlist = json.allusers,
findedequal;
console.log("CHECK USERS IN DB...for "+userlist.length+" elements");
// loop all items
for (let key in userlist)
{
console.log("Analyzed key ::: "+key);
if ( userlist[key].email == req.body.user_email )
{
console.log("CHECK : user isn't free");
findedequal=true;
resolve(true); // return the result of promise
}
else if(key >= userlist.length-1 && !findedequal )
{
console.log("CHECK : User is free ;)");
resolve(false); // return the result of promise
}
}
// call the action
createuser();
});
});
// when promise finished --> start action
async function createuser(message)
{
let userExist = await loopusers;
console.log("userExist: "+userExist);
if(userExist)
{
message = { Server: "This user already exists, Try new e-mail..."};
}
else
{
message = { Server: "Registration user -> completed..."};
}
// return values
return message;
};
It is also possible to use the classic syntax via "then". For exemple:
//simple output tester
var message;
// create a promise
let loopusers = new Promise( (resolve)=>{
...
});
loopusers.then( (response)=>{
...
})
Then I realized that it was easy to simplify even more by calling the functions directly from the initial one:
var message;
// create a promise --> check json items
server.readFile( filepath, 'utf8',
(err, data) => {
let json = JSON.parse(data),
userlist = json.allusers,
findedequal;
console.log("CHECK USERS IN DB...for "+userlist.length+" elements");
for (let key in userlist)
{
console.log("Analyzed key ::: "+key);
if ( userlist[key].email == req.body.user_email )
{
console.log("CHECK : user isn't free");
findedequal=true;
createuser(true); // call direct function whit params true
}
else if(key >= userlist.length-1 && !findedequal )
{
console.log("CHECK : User is free ;)");
createuser(false); // call direct function whit params false
}
}
});
// start action
function createuser(userExist)
{
if(userExist)
{
message = { Server: "This user already exists, Try new e-mail..."};
}
else
{
message = { Server: "Registration user -> completed!"};
}
// return values
return message;
};
debugging is taken and written
the message is lost outside the aSync function
Experiment V4 Final! :
Finally, after many attempts the solution! (Yes... But know it's not Async)
If we allocate in a variable the reading becomes synchronous the whole model and we return to the simple one
let message,
file = server.readFileSync(filepath, 'utf8'), // read sync
json = JSON.parse(file), // now parse file
userlist = json.allusers, // get your target container object
userExist,
findedequal;
console.log("CHECK USERS IN DB...for "+userlist.length+" elements");
for (let key in userlist)
{
console.log("Analyzed key ::: "+key);
if ( userlist[key].email == req.body.user_email )
{
console.log("CHECK : finded equal value on key ["+key+"] - user isn't free");
findedequal=true;
userExist = true;
}
else if(key >= userlist.length-1 && !findedequal )
{
console.log("CHECK : User is free ;)");
userExist = false;
}
}
if(userExist)
{
console.log("└ EXIT TO CHECK --> Can't create user, function stop.");
message = { Server: "This user already exists, Try new e-mail..."};
}
else
{
console.log("└ Exit to check --> New user registration ...");
message = { Server: "Registration user -> completed!"};
}
}
return message;
Now:
It's all sync and all log is perfect
all var is checked
all return... return
** Final conclusions: **
Is it possible to retrieve an ASync variable in node?
As far as I understand so far ... no.
Node is async by its nature, therefore recovering information that is not saved and then recovered from a DB is left behind among the things to do, becoming unrecoverable if you use it as in this post.
However ... if the purpose is to make reading a file synchronous, the answer was simpler than expected.
A special thanks to: Barmar; Austin Leehealey; C.Gochev;

The problem is that you are calling console.log("userExist value : "+userExist+"");
too early. At the moment that you call that line, userExist is not defined yet. This is because the server.readFile() function requires a callback and that callback function is executed once it has read the file. However, reading files often take time and so the program keeps going. It executes console.log("userExist value : "+userExist+""); and then goes back to the callback function and defines userExist as true.
If you want more information on what callbacks are look at the link below. Callbacks are a defining feature of Nodejs and understanding them is essential to any Node website.
https://medium.com/better-programming/callbacks-in-node-js-how-why-when-ac293f0403ca
Try something like this.
let userExist;
function check(){
console.log("CHECK!");
return userExist = true;
}
// check(); if this, return true... obvious.
//// check if user exist
server.readFileSync(filepath, 'utf8', (err, data) =>
{
let json = JSON.parse(data),
userlist = json.allusers;
for (let key in userlist)
{
if ( userlist[key].email == req.body.user_email )
{
console.log("FINDED EQUAL");
check(); // return undefined ???
console.log("userExist value : "+userExist);
}
}
});

looping the callback function in node js

This is a piece of code which writes data to a ble device and reads data from it. data is written to the device in the form of a buffer. the value in 'mydata' (AAAD0000) is the command to be written in order to read the data.
function named chara3() consists of write and read function which is a callback function in which the command is passed read back.
My requirement is the 'mydata' value which i said earlier, the last two zeros is the memory address. i need to read the data in different memory addresses starting from zero to 59. That is AAAD0000 to AAAD0059. so of course i need to run a loop. If I'm reading the zeroth location, the code is quite fine and i got the output as well but when i tried to make it inside a loop, the code is all a mess. the read part is not executing.
can any one suggest a better way to read data from zeroth memory location to 59th memory location (AAAD0000 to AAAD0059)???
first command writes to it
then reads data
memory location incremented by 1
this should repeat up to 59
var mydata = 'AAAD0000';
function chara3() {
var buff2 = new Buffer(mydata, 'hex');
SensorCharacteristic.write(buff2, false, function(error) { //[0x002d]
console.log('Writing command SUCCESSFUL',mydata);
if (!error) {
SensorCharacteristic.read((error, data) => {
console.log("i just entered");
if (data.toString('hex') != '0000') {
console.log('Temperature History: ', data.toString('hex'));
enter();
}
else {
console.log('contains null value');
} //else
});
}
function enter()
{
mydata = (parseInt(mydata, 16) + 00000001).toString(16);
}
}); //.write
} //chara3
there's no error. But some part of the code is not executing.

You can use the recursion by wrapping your methods into a promise
async function chara3(mydata = 'AAAD0000') {
if (mydata === 'AAAD0059') {
return;
}
var buff2 = new Buffer(mydata, 'hex');
return new Promise((resolve) => {
SensorCharacteristic.write(buff2, false, function (error) { //[0x002d]
console.log('Writing command SUCCESSFUL', mydata);
if (!error) {
SensorCharacteristic.read(async (error, data) => {
console.log("i just entered");
if (data.toString('hex') != '0000') {
console.log('Temperature History: ', data.toString('hex'));
let next = await chara3(enter())
return resolve(next);
}
else {
console.log('contains null value');
return resolve();
} //else
});
}
}); //.write
});
} //chara3
function enter() {
return (parseInt(mydata, 16) + 00000001).toString(16);
}
Also if you can convert your methods SensorCharacteristic.write and SensorCharacteristic.read into promises you can simply map
function chara3(mydata) {
var buff2 = new Buffer(mydata, 'hex');
await SensorCharacteristic.write(buff2, false);
console.log('Writing command SUCCESSFUL', mydata);
let data = await SensorCharacteristic.read();
if (data.toString('hex') != '0000') {
console.log('Temperature History: ', data.toString('hex'));
enter();
} else {
console.log('contains null value');
}
};
let promiseArray = Array(60).fill().map((_, i) => (parseInt('AAAD0000', 16) + i).toString(16)).map(chara3);
Promise.all(promiseArray).then(() => console.log('done'));

Express.js - foreach array of data and store them in the database

I'm using expressjs, bookshelf.js and I want to post array of data, foreach such data and save it.
I'm not exactly sure where the issue is (express, bookshelf or just plain old javascript), but here's the scenario: when I post the said array and try to iterate through it, I get the correct amount of saves into the database, but all have the value of the last item in array.
Here's the code:
router.post('/save/', function(req, res){
var data = req.body;
var result = [];
for (var i in data) {
var d = data[i];
if (d.user_id == -1) d.user_id = null;
new Term().where({'date_of_driving': d.day})
.fetch()
.then(function(terms){
if (terms != null) {
return new Term({'id':terms.id}).save(d).then(function(item_updated){});
} else {
return new Term().save(d).then(function(item_saved){});
}
})
.catch(function(error){
console.log(error);
});
}
res.send({'saved': 'ok'});
});
My understanding is, that these calls are asynchronous and always operate on the last data, because for sentence is quicker than save. Am I onto something?
What are some of the best, easiest and most correct solutions to this problem?

It's not clear from your code whether you want to the queries to be run in parallel or sequentially.
I am assuming parallel, but you can replace .map with .each and it will run sequentially
router.post('/save/', function(req, res){
Promise.map(req.body, function(d) {
if (d.user_id == -1) d.user_id = null;
return new Term().where({'date_of_driving': d.day}).fetch().then(function(terms){
if (terms != null) {
return new Term({'id':terms.id}).save(d);
} else {
return new Term().save(d);
}
});
}).then(function() {
res.send({'saved': 'ok'});
}).catch(Promise.OperationalError, function(e) {
// Note that stack reveals internal server code so you might
// not want to send it over in production
res.status(400).send({stack: e.stack, message: e.message});
});
});
There is no need to catch an error only to log it so I removed it. Only catch an error when you can handle it.

Essentially, the 'then' function will be executed asynchronously, and the loop will continue its execution independently, as you suspected.
I believe one solution is to define a function that will essentially take the parameter d as a reference and execute the asynchronous stuff with that. So this should work:
router.post('/save/', function(req, res){
var data = req.body;
var result = [];
for (var i in data) {
var d = data[i];
if (d.user_id == -1) d.user_id = null;
doTheThing(d);
}
res.send({'saved': 'ok'});
});
function doTheThing(d) {
new Term().where({'date_of_driving': d.day})
.fetch()
.then(function(terms){
if (terms != null) {
return new Term({'id':terms.id}).save(d).then(function(item_updated){});
} else {
return new Term().save(d).then(function(item_saved){});
}
})
.catch(function(error){
console.log(error);
});
}

Javascript async in nested for loop MongoDB

I have an asynchronous function inside a for loop nested in another for loop.
// recipesArray is an array of arrays of objects
// recipeObject is an array of objects
// currentRecipe is an object
connectToDb(function(){
// LOOP 1
for (var i=0, l=recipesArray.length; i < l; i++) {
// recipeObject is an
var recipeObject = recipesArray[i];
// LOOP 2
for (var x=0, y=recipeObject.length; x < y; x++) {
var currentRecipe = recipeObject[x];
// this is an asynchronous function
checkRecipe(currentRecipe, function (theRecipe) {
if (theRecipe === undefined) {
console.log('RECIPE NOT FOUND');
} else {
console.log('RECIPE FOUND', theRecipe);
}
});
}
}
});
I need to add data to the recipesArray based on the results of the checkRecipe function.
I've been trying different things...
- do i try to keep track of i and x...
- do i try to have multiple callbacks...
- do i even need to do all of that, or is there some other way....
I also tried using the async library for node(which actually has been very helpful with other situations), but the forEach doesn't take objects(only an array).
Stuck.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Assuming checkRecipe() can be run in parallel with no limits, here's how you might use async.each():
connectToDb(function() {
async.each(recipesArray, function(subArray, callback) {
async.each(subArray, function(currentRecipe, callback2) {
checkRecipe(currentRecipe, function(theRecipe) {
if (theRecipe === undefined)
return callback2(new Error('Recipe not found'));
callback2();
});
}, callback);
}, function(err) {
if (err)
return console.error('Error: ' + err);
// success, all recipes found
});
});

How to ensure that function a has been run before function b..?

I'm having some trouble with the following javascript code..
var returnValue = false;
function hasItem(id) {
//I want this entire function to run first
db.transaction(function(tx) {
tx.executeSql("SELECT * FROM library WHERE id == "+id,[],function(tx, results) {
returnvalue = results.rows.length>0;
},errorCB);
},errorCB,successCB);
//then this
return returnvalue;
}
But the sql-function appears to run in a separate thread, making the function return false all the time.. is there any way "to force a wait"..?

is there any way "to force a wait"..?
No. What you must do is change your hasItem function so that it accepts a callback that provides the information, instead of returning a value.
It's a bit tricky not knowing what your errorCB and successCB callbacks do, but something along these lines:
function hasItem(id, callback) {
var returnValue = false;
db.transaction(function(tx) {
tx.executeSql("SELECT * FROM library WHERE id == "+id,[],function(tx, results) {
returnValue = results.rows.length > 0;
},failed);
},failed,function() {
successCB();
callback(returnValue);
});
function failed() {
errorCB();
callback(null); // Or whatever you want to use to send back the failure
}
}
Then, instead of this
if (hasItem("foo")) {
// Do something knowing it has the item
}
else {
// Do something knowing it doesn't have the item
}
You use it like this:
hasItem("foo", function(flag) {
if (flag) {
// Do something knowing it has the item
}
else {
// Do something knowing it doesn't have the item
// (or the call failed)
}
});
If you want to tell, in the callback, whether the call failed:
hasItem("foo", function(flag) {
if (flag === null) {
// The call failed
}
else if (flag) {
// Do something knowing it has the item
}
else {
// Do something knowing it doesn't have the item
}
});