Hey reader👋Hope you are doing well😊
In the last post we have discussed about how to get started with NodeJS. In this post we are going to see Modules in NodeJS.
So let’s get started🔥
What are Modules?
Consider modules as JavaScript libraries that provides different functionalities for development. Modules can be a single file or a collection of multiple files/folders. The reason programmers are heavily reliant on modules is because of their reusability as well as the ability to break down a complex piece of code into manageable chunks.
Node.js treats each file in a Node project as a module that can export values and functions from the file.
Here utility.js is a module but it is not exporting anything right now.
exports in NodeJS -:
We can export functions and properties either by using module.exports or exports. The exports keyword is a reference to the exports object in the modules object.
Different types of NodeJS Modules
There are three types of modules-:
Core Modules
Local Modules
Third Party Modules
Core Modules
Node.js has many built-in modules that are part of the platform and come with Node.js installation. These modules can be loaded into the program by using the required function.
const module=require(module_name)
The require() function will return a JavaScript type depending on what the particular module returns.
Some of the Core modules are -:
http -: creates an HTTP server in Node.js.
https -: creates an HTTPs server in Node.js.
fs -: used to handle file system.
path -: includes methods to deal with file paths.
os -: provides information about the operating system.
process -: provides information and control about the current Node.js process.
querystring -: utility used for parsing and formatting URL query strings.
url -: module provides utilities for URL resolution and parsing.
assert -: set of assertion functions useful for testing.
tls -: to implement TLS and SSL protocols.
net -: to create servers and clients.
crypto -: to handle OpenSSL cryptographic functions.
These are some of the important built-in modules.
Local Modules
We can create our own module too apart from built-in and third party modules.
Let’s create a simple calculation module-:
Step1 -> Create Calculation.js file-:
Let me show you module object here-:
You can see that we are exporting four functionalities here.
Step 2 -> Use the module in script.js file -:
Here we have imported the module using require keyword.
Third-party modules
Third-party modules are modules that are available online using the Node Package Manager(NPM). These modules can be installed in the project folder or globally. Some of the popular third-party modules are Mongoose, express, angular, and React.
Example -:
npm install express
npm install mongoose
npm install -g @angular/cli
So this was all about modules. I hope you have understood this blog. In the next blog we will see one another way of using module in a file. Till then stay connected and don’t forget to follow me.
Thankyou🤍
