Nodejs express and promises not doing what I expect
I am trying to build a login API using NodeJS, but my code is not doing what I expect it to. I am very new to js, promises and all so please simplify any answer if possible.
From what I can see in the output of my code, the first promise part does not wait until the function findUsers(...) is finished.
I have a routes file where I want to run a few functions sequentially:
- Find if user exist in database
- if(1 is true) Hash and salt the inputted password
- ... etc
The routes file now contains:
var loginM = require('../models/login');
var loginC = require('../controllers/login');
var Promise = require('promise');
module.exports = function(app) {
app.post('/login/', function(req, res, next) {
var promise = new Promise(function (resolve, reject) {
var rows = loginM.findUser(req.body, res);
if (rows.length > 0) {
console.log("Success");
resolve(rows);
} else {
console.log("Failed");
reject(reason);
}
});
promise.then(function(data) {
return new Promise(function (resolve, reject) {
loginC.doSomething(data);
if (success) {
console.log("Success 2");
resolve(data);
} else {
console.log("Failed 2");
reject(reason);
}
});
}, function (reason) {
console.log("error handler second");
});
});
}
And the findUser function contains pooling and a query and is in a models file:
var connection = require('../dbConnection');
var loginC = require('../controllers/login');
function Login() {
var me = this;
var pool = connection.getPool();
me.findUser = function(params, res) {
var username = params.username;
pool.getConnection(function (err, connection) {
console.log("Connection ");
if (err) {
console.log("ERROR 1 ");
res.send({"code": 100, "status": "Error in connection database"});
return;
}
connection.query('select Id, Name, Password from Users ' +
'where Users.Name = ?', [username], function (err, rows) {
connection.release();
if (!err) {
return rows;
} else {
return false;
}
});
//connection.on('error', function (err) {
// res.send({"code": 100, "status": "Error in connection database"});
// return;
//});
});
}
}
module.exports = new Login();
The output i get is:
Server listening on port 3000
Something is happening
error handler second
Connection
So what I want to know about this code is twofold:
- Why is the first promise not waiting for
findUserto return before proceeding with the if/else and what do I need to change for this to happen? - Why is
error handler secondoutputed but notFailed?
I feel like there is something I am totally misunderstanding about promises. I am grateful for any answer. Thanks.
Issues with the code
Ok, there are a lot of issues here so first things first.
connection.query('...', function (err, rows) {
connection.release();
if (!err) {
return rows;
} else {
return false;
}
});
This will not work because you are returning data to the caller, which is the database query that calls your callback with err and rows and doesn't care about the return value of your callback.
What you need to do is to call some other function or method when you have the rows or when you don't.
You are calling:
var rows = loginM.findUser(req.body, res);
and you expect to get the rows there, but you won't. What you'll get is undefined and you'll get it quicker than the database query is even started. It works like this:
me.findUser = function(params, res) {
// (1) you save the username in a variable
var username = params.username;
// (2) you pass a function to getConnection method
pool.getConnection(function (err, connection) {
console.log("Connection ");
if (err) {
console.log("ERROR 1 ");
res.send({"code": 100, "status": "Error in connection database"});
return;
}
connection.query('select Id, Name, Password from Users ' +
'where Users.Name = ?', [username], function (err, rows) {
connection.release();
if (!err) {
return rows;
} else {
return false;
}
});
//connection.on('error', function (err) {
// res.send({"code": 100, "status": "Error in connection database"});
// return;
//});
});
// (3) you end a function and implicitly return undefined
}
The pool.getConnection method returns immediately after you pass a function, before the connection to the database is even made. Then, after some time, that function that you passed to that method may get called, but it will be long after you already returned undefined to the code that wanted a value in:
var rows = loginM.findUser(req.body, res);
Instead of returning values from callbacks you need to call some other functions or methods from them (like some callbacks that you need to call, or a method to resolve a promise).
Returning a value is a synchronous concept and will not work for asynchronous code.
How promises should be used
Now, if your function returned a promise:
me.findUser = function(params, res) {
var username = params.username;
return new Promise(function (res, rej) {
pool.getConnection(function (err, connection) {
console.log("Connection ");
if (err) {
rej('db error');
} else {
connection.query('...', [username], function (err, rows) {
connection.release();
if (!err) {
res(rows);
} else {
rej('other error');
}
});
});
});
}
then you'll be able to use it in some other part of your code in a way like this:
app.post('/login/', function(req, res, next) {
var promise = new Promise(function (resolve, reject) {
// rows is a promise now:
var rows = loginM.findUser(req.body, res);
rows.then(function (rowsValue) {
console.log("Success");
resolve(rowsValue);
}).catch(function (err) {
console.log("Failed");
reject(err);
});
});
// ...
Explanation
In summary, if you are running an asynchronous operation - like a database query - then you can't have the value immediately like this:
var value = query();
because the server would need to block waiting for the database before it could execute the assignment - and this is what happens in every language with synchronous, blocking I/O (that's why you need to have threads in those languages so that other things can be done while that thread is blocked).
In Node you can either use a callback function that you pass to the asynchronous function to get called when it has data:
query(function (error, data) {
if (error) {
// we have error
} else {
// we have data
}
});
otherCode();
Or you can get a promise:
var promise = query();
promise.then(function (data) {
// we have data
}).catch(function (error) {
// we have error
});
otherCode();
But in both cases otherCode() will be run immediately after registering your callback or promise handlers, before the query has any data - that is no blocking has to be done.
Summary
The whole idea is that in an asynchronous, non-blocking, single-threaded environment like Node.JS you never do more than one thing at a time - but you can wait for a lot of things. But you don't just wait for something and do nothing while you're waiting, you schedule other things, wait for more things, and eventually you get called back when it's ready.
Actually I wrote a short story on Medium to illustrate that concept: Nonblacking I/O on the planet Asynchronia256/16 - A short story loosely based on uncertain facts.