Related
Here is my simple form:
<form id="loginformA" action="userlogin" method="post">
<div>
<label for="email">Email: </label>
<input type="text" id="email" name="email"></input>
</div>
<input type="submit" value="Submit"></input>
</form>
Here is my Express.js/Node.js code:
app.post('/userlogin', function(sReq, sRes){
var email = sReq.query.email.;
}
I tried sReq.query.email or sReq.query['email'] or sReq.params['email'], etc. None of them work. They all return undefined.
When I change to a Get call, it works, so .. any idea?
Things have changed once again starting Express 4.16.0, you can now use express.json() and express.urlencoded() just like in Express 3.0.
This was different starting Express 4.0 to 4.15:
$ npm install --save body-parser
and then:
var bodyParser = require('body-parser')
app.use( bodyParser.json() ); // to support JSON-encoded bodies
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ // to support URL-encoded bodies
extended: true
}));
The rest is like in Express 3.0:
Firstly you need to add some middleware to parse the post data of the body.
Add one or both of the following lines of code:
app.use(express.json()); // to support JSON-encoded bodies
app.use(express.urlencoded()); // to support URL-encoded bodies
Then, in your handler, use the req.body object:
// assuming POST: name=foo&color=red <-- URL encoding
//
// or POST: {"name":"foo","color":"red"} <-- JSON encoding
app.post('/test-page', function(req, res) {
var name = req.body.name,
color = req.body.color;
// ...
});
Note that the use of express.bodyParser() is not recommended.
app.use(express.bodyParser());
...is equivalent to:
app.use(express.json());
app.use(express.urlencoded());
app.use(express.multipart());
Security concerns exist with express.multipart(), and so it is better to explicitly add support for the specific encoding type(s) you require. If you do need multipart encoding (to support uploading files for example) then you should read this.
Security concern using express.bodyParser()
While all the other answers currently recommend using the express.bodyParser() middleware, this is actually a wrapper around the express.json(), express.urlencoded(), and express.multipart() middlewares (http://expressjs.com/api.html#bodyParser). The parsing of form request bodies is done by the express.urlencoded() middleware and is all that you need to expose your form data on req.body object.
Due to a security concern with how express.multipart()/connect.multipart() creates temporary files for all uploaded files (and are not garbage collected), it is now recommended not to use the express.bodyParser() wrapper but instead use only the middlewares you need.
Note: connect.bodyParser() will soon be updated to only include urlencoded and json when Connect 3.0 is released (which Express extends).
So in short, instead of ...
app.use(express.bodyParser());
...you should use
app.use(express.urlencoded());
app.use(express.json()); // if needed
and if/when you need to handle multipart forms (file uploads), use a third party library or middleware such as multiparty, busboy, dicer, etc.
Note: this answer is for Express 2. See here for Express 3.
If you're using connect/express, you should use the bodyParser middleware: It's described in the Expressjs guide.
// example using express.js:
var express = require('express')
, app = express.createServer();
app.use(express.bodyParser());
app.post('/', function(req, res){
var email = req.param('email', null); // second parameter is default
});
Here's the original connect-only version:
// example using just connect
var connect = require('connect');
var url = require('url');
var qs = require('qs');
var server = connect(
connect.bodyParser(),
connect.router(function(app) {
app.post('/userlogin', function(req, res) {
// the bodyParser puts the parsed request in req.body.
var parsedUrl = qs.parse(url.parse(req.url).query);
var email = parsedUrl.email || req.body.email;;
});
})
);
Both the querystring and body are parsed using Rails-style parameter handling (qs) rather than the low-level querystring library. In order to parse repeated parameters with qs, the parameter needs to have brackets: name[]=val1&name[]=val2. It also supports nested maps. In addition to parsing HTML form submissions, the bodyParser can parse JSON requests automatically.
Edit: I read up on express.js and modified my answer to be more natural to users of Express.
This will do it if you want to build the posted query without middleware:
app.post("/register/",function(req,res){
var bodyStr = '';
req.on("data",function(chunk){
bodyStr += chunk.toString();
});
req.on("end",function(){
res.send(bodyStr);
});
});
That will send this to the browser
email=emailval&password1=pass1val&password2=pass2val
It's probably better to use middleware though so you don't have to write this over and over in each route.
Note for Express 4 users:
If you try and put app.use(express.bodyParser()); into your app, you'll get the following error when you try to start your Express server:
Error: Most middleware (like bodyParser) is no longer bundled with Express and must be installed separately. Please see https://github.com/senchalabs/connect#middleware.
You'll have to install the package body-parser separately from npm, then use something like the following (example taken from the GitHub page):
var express = require('express');
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
var app = express();
app.use(bodyParser());
app.use(function (req, res, next) {
console.log(req.body) // populated!
next();
})
Given some form:
<form action='/somepath' method='post'>
<input type='text' name='name'></input>
</form>
Using express
app.post('/somepath', function(req, res) {
console.log(JSON.stringify(req.body));
console.log('req.body.name', req.body['name']);
});
Output:
{"name":"x","description":"x"}
req.param.name x
Backend:
import express from 'express';
import bodyParser from 'body-parser';
const app = express();
app.use(bodyParser.json()); // add a middleware (so that express can parse request.body's json)
app.post('/api/courses', (request, response) => {
response.json(request.body);
});
Frontend:
fetch("/api/courses", {
method: 'POST',
body: JSON.stringify({ hi: 'hello' }), // convert Js object to a string
headers: new Headers({ "Content-Type": "application/json" }) // add headers
});
app.use(express.bodyParser());
Then for app.post request you can get post values via req.body.{post request variable}.
Update for Express 4.4.1
Middleware of the following is removed from Express.
bodyParser
json
urlencoded
multipart
When you use the middleware directly like you did in express 3.0. You will get the following error:
Error: Most middleware (like urlencoded) is no longer bundled with Express and
must be installed separately.
In order to utilize those middleware, now you need to do npm for each middleware separately.
Since bodyParser is marked as deprecated, so I recommend the following way using json, urlencode and multipart parser like formidable, connect-multiparty. (Multipart middleware is deprecated as well).
Also remember, just defining urlencode + json, the form data will not be parsed and req.body will be undefined. You need to define a middleware handle the multipart request.
var urlencode = require('urlencode');
var json = require('json-middleware');
var multipart = require('connect-multiparty');
var multipartMiddleware = multipart();
app.use(json);
app.use(urlencode);
app.use('/url/that/accepts/form-data', multipartMiddleware);
Update
As of Express version 4.16+, their own body-parser implementation is now included in the default Express package so there is no need for you to download another dependency.
You may have added a line to your code that looks like the following:
app.use(bodyparser.json()); //utilizes the body-parser package
If you are using Express 4.16+ you can now replace that line with:
app.use(express.json()); //Used to parse JSON bodies
This should not introduce any breaking changes into your applications since the code in express.json() is based on bodyparser.json().
If you also have the following code in your environment:
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({extended: true}));
You can replace that with:
app.use(express.urlencoded()); //Parse URL-encoded bodies
A final note of caution: There are still some very specific cases where body-parser might still be necessary but for the most part Express’ implementation of body-parser is all you will need for the majority of use cases.
(See the docs at expressjs/bodyparser for more details).
I was searching for this exact problem. I was following all the advice above but req.body was still returning an empty object {}. In my case, it was something just as simple as the html being incorrect.
In your form's html, make sure you use the 'name' attribute in your input tags, not just 'id'. Otherwise, nothing is parsed.
<input id='foo' type='text' value='1'/> // req = {}
<input id='foo' type='text' name='foo' value='1' /> // req = {foo:1}
My idiot mistake is your benefit.
For Express 4.1 and above
As most of the answers are using to Express, bodyParser, connect; where multipart is deprecated. There is a secure way to send post multipart objects easily.
Multer can be used as replacement for connect.multipart().
To install the package
$ npm install multer
Load it in your app:
var multer = require('multer');
And then, add it in the middleware stack along with the other form parsing middleware.
app.use(express.json());
app.use(express.urlencoded());
app.use(multer({ dest: './uploads/' }));
connect.json() handles application/json
connect.urlencoded() handles application/x-www-form-urlencoded
multer() handles multipart/form-data
You shoudn't use app.use(express.bodyParser()). BodyParser is a union of json + urlencoded + mulitpart. You shoudn't use this because multipart will be removed in connect 3.0.
To resolve that, you can do this:
app.use(express.json());
app.use(express.urlencoded());
It´s very important know that app.use(app.router) should be used after the json and urlencoded, otherwise it does not work!
Express v4.17.0
app.use(express.urlencoded( {extended: true} ))
app.post('/userlogin', (req, res) => {
console.log(req.body) // object
var email = req.body.email;
}
express.urlencoded
Demo Form
Another Answer Related
Written at Express version 4.16
Inside the router function you can use req.body property to access the post variable. For example if this was the POST route of your form, it would send back what you input:
function(req,res){
res.send(req.body);
//req.body.email would correspond with the HTML <input name="email"/>
}
P.S. for those who are familiar with PHP: In order to access PHP's $_GET variable we use req.query and to access PHP's $_POST variable we use req.body in Node.js.
Request streaming worked for me
req.on('end', function() {
var paramstring = postdata.split("&");
});
var postdata = "";
req.on('data', function(postdataChunk){
postdata += postdataChunk;
});
I could find all parameters by using following code for both POST and GET requests.
var express = require('express');
var app = express();
const util = require('util');
app.post('/', function (req, res) {
console.log("Got a POST request for the homepage");
res.send(util.inspect(req.query,false,null));
})
from official doc version 4
const express = require('express')
const app = express()
app.use(express.json());
app.use(express.urlencoded({ extended: true }))
app.post('/push/send', (request, response) => {
console.log(request.body)
})
var express = require("express");
var bodyParser = require("body-parser");
var app = express();
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false }));
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.get('/',function(req,res){
res.sendfile("index.html");
});
app.post('/login',function(req,res){
var user_name=req.body.user;
var password=req.body.password;
console.log("User name = "+user_name+", password is "+password);
res.end("yes");
});
app.listen(3000,function(){
console.log("Started on PORT 3000");
})
Post Parameters can be retrieved as follows:
app.post('/api/v1/test',Testfunction);
http.createServer(app).listen(port, function(){
console.log("Express server listening on port " + port)
});
function Testfunction(request,response,next) {
console.log(request.param("val1"));
response.send('HI');
}
Use express-fileupload package:
var app = require('express')();
var http = require('http').Server(app);
const fileUpload = require('express-fileupload')
app.use(fileUpload());
app.post('/', function(req, res) {
var email = req.body.email;
res.send('<h1>Email :</h1> '+email);
});
http.listen(3000, function(){
console.log('Running Port:3000');
});
You are using req.query.post with wrong method req.query.post works with method=get, method=post works with body-parser.
Just try this by changing post to get :
<form id="loginformA" action="userlogin" method="get">
<div>
<label for="email">Email: </label>
<input type="text" id="email" name="email"></input>
</div>
<input type="submit" value="Submit"></input>
</form>
And in express code use 'app.get'
Other answers talk about the middleware to use on the server side. My answer attempt to provide developers with a simple playbook to debug the problem themselves.
In this question, the situation is:
You have a form on the client side
The data is sent by clicking on Submit button and you don't use JavaScript to send requests (so no fetch, axios, xhr,... but we can extend the solution for these cases later)
You use Express for the server side
You cannot access data in your Express code. req.body is undefined
There are some actions that you can do to find the solution by yourself:
Open the Network tab and search for your request.
Check the request header Content-Type. In this situation (form submit), the header is likely application/x-www-form-urlencoded or multipart/form-data if you send a file (with enctype="multipart/form-data" in the form tag)
Now check your Express code if you use the appropriate middleware to parse incoming requests.
If your Content-Type is application/x-www-form-urlencoded then you should have app.use(express.urlencoded({extended: true})) in your code.
If your Content-Type is multipart/form-data: because Express doesn't have a built-in middleware to parse this kind of request, you should another library for that. multer is a good one.
If you have done all the steps above, now you can access data in req.body :). If you have problems with the syntax, you should check the Express document page. The syntax could be changed because this question is posted a long time ago.
Now, we can extend this simple playbook for other cases that involve JavaScript code. The key is to check the request Content-Type. If you see application/json then you should use app.use(express.json()) in your code.
In summary, find your request Content-Type, then use the appropriate middleware to parse it.
when you are using POST method in HTML forms, you need to catch the data from req.body in the server side i.e. Node.js.
and also add
var bodyParser = require('body-parser')
app.use( bodyParser.json() );
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({extended: false}));
OR
use method='GET' in HTML and and catch the data by req.query in the server side i.e. Node.js
I'm trying to take a json collection of data and send it with postman or Advanced REST Client. The biggest thing I'm getting stuck with with is where the data is. I can't seem to find it in any part of the request. Note this must be done using express.
app.put('/api/', function (req, res) {
//Get data and replace table in database
res.send("RECEIVED");
});
You can use body-parser to parse the request and provide you all that submited data through request.body.data if you send you data as a form-data or request.params.data if you send your data as a query parameter.
npm install body-parser --save
And import it and use it as a middleware
var bodyParser = require("body-parser");
// some other code goes here like
// var express = require("express"):
// var app = express()
// and here attach the body-parser middleware like thiss
// parse application/x-www-form-urlencoded
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false }))
// parse application/json
app.use(bodyParser.json())
when you make a request with any Advanced REST client each key in the JSON that you pass to the request body will be accessible as request.body.key you can learn more about body-parser body-parser doc
I'm using express 4 with body-parser like so
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
...
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({
extended: true
}));
When I added dicer it's like body parser stops working. I no longer have any post params in req.params or req.body or req.query.
Is there a way to use body parser manually? Does body parser check for multipart forms data and just do nothing ... assume another lib will handle it?
Also, I feel I should note, that I am using dicer to parse the multipart form data for a reason and I don't want to use busboy or multer or xyz if possible.
To answer your question "Is there a way to use body-parser manually?"
the answer is yes and it is the recommended way of using it. Referring to the body-parser documentation:
express route-specific
This example demonstrates adding body parsers specifically to the routes that need them. In general, this is the most recommend way to use body-parser with express.
(I added some semi-colons because they would keep me up at night)
var express = require('express');
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
var app = express();
// create application/json parser
var jsonParser = bodyParser.json();
// create application/x-www-form-urlencoded parser
var urlencodedParser = bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false });
// POST /login gets urlencoded bodies
app.post('/login', urlencodedParser, function (req, res) {
if (!req.body) return res.sendStatus(400);
res.send('welcome, ' + req.body.username);
})
// POST /api/users gets JSON bodies
app.post('/api/users', jsonParser, function (req, res) {
if (!req.body) return res.sendStatus(400);
// create user in req.body
})
So depending on which routes you need body-parser for, you can implement it with some custom middleware. Now, I have not tested this, but I'm assuming you could also implement it in the same way as other express middleware:
// URL encoded bodies
app.use('/api/url/encoded/endpoint', bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false }));
// JSON encoded bodies
app.use('/api/json/encoded/endpoint', bodyParser.json());
Where any routes that match the above endpoints, such as
app.use('/api/url/encoded/endpoint/test', function (req, res) { ... });
would be parsed using the appropriate middleware as long as they are below the middleware declarations in your code.
To try to answer your whole question, I would say that it would be safe to try not using either parser globally. Keep your parsers api endpoint specific and you shouldn't run into any problems.
Edit:
So your question is a little unclear. You would like to use body parser for multipart/form-data? "Body-parser does not handle multipart bodies, due to their complex and typically large nature." Again, I haven't tried it but maybe you could give the bodyParser.raw({ type: ... }) function a try if that's the case. If not, then you need to use dicer in a custom middleware function in which you check for the correct content type.
I am using express 4.0 and I'm aware that body parser has been taken out of the express core, I am using the recommended replacement, however I am getting
body-parser deprecated bodyParser: use individual json/urlencoded middlewares server.js:15:12
body-parser deprecated urlencoded: explicitly specify "extended: true" for extended parsing node_modules/body-parser/index.js:74:29
Where do I find this supposed middlewares? or should I not be getting this error?
var express = require('express');
var server = express();
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
var mongoose = require('mongoose');
var passport = require('./config/passport');
var routes = require('./routes');
mongoose.connect('mongodb://localhost/myapp', function(err) {
if(err) throw err;
});
server.set('view engine', 'jade');
server.set('views', __dirname + '/views');
server.use(bodyParser());
server.use(passport.initialize());
// Application Level Routes
routes(server, passport);
server.use(express.static(__dirname + '/public'));
server.listen(3000);
It means that using the bodyParser() constructor has been deprecated, as of 2014-06-19.
app.use(bodyParser()); //Now deprecated
You now need to call the methods separately
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded());
app.use(bodyParser.json());
And so on.
If you're still getting a warning with urlencoded you need to use
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({
extended: true
}));
The extended config object key now needs to be explicitly passed, since it now has no default value.
If you are using Express >= 4.16.0, body parser has been re-added under the methods express.json() and express.urlencoded().
Want zero warnings? Use it like this:
// Express v4.16.0 and higher
// --------------------------
const express = require('express');
app.use(express.json());
app.use(express.urlencoded({
extended: true
}));
// For Express version less than 4.16.0
// ------------------------------------
const bodyParser = require('body-parser');
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({
extended: true
}));
Explanation: The default value of the extended option has been deprecated, meaning you need to explicitly pass true or false value.
Note for Express 4.16.0 and higher: body parser has been re-added to provide request body parsing support out-of-the-box.
If you're using express > 4.16, you can use express.json() and express.urlencoded()
The express.json() and express.urlencoded() middleware have been added to provide request body parsing support out-of-the-box. This uses the expressjs/body-parser module module underneath, so apps that are currently requiring the module separately can switch to the built-in parsers.
Source Express 4.16.0 - Release date: 2017-09-28
With this,
const bodyParser = require('body-parser');
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
app.use(bodyParser.json());
becomes,
const express = require('express');
app.use(express.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
app.use(express.json());
Don't use body-parser
If you are using Express 4.16+ You can do it just like this with express:
app.use(express.urlencoded({extended: true}));
app.use(express.json()) // To parse the incoming requests with JSON payloads
You can now uninstall body-parser using npm uninstall body-parser
To get the POST content, you can use req.body
app.post("/yourpath", (req, res)=>{
var postData = req.body;
//Or if this doesn't work
var postData = JSON.parse(req.body);
});
I hope this helps
Even I faced the same issue. The below change I mentioned resolved my problem.
If you're using Express 4.16+ version, then
You may have added a line to your code that looks like the following:
app.use(bodyparser.json()); //utilizes the body-parser package
You can now replace the above line with:
app.use(express.json()); //Used to parse JSON bodies
This should not introduce any breaking changes into your applications since the code in express.json() is based on bodyparser.json().
If you also have the following code in your environment:
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({extended: true}));
You can replace the above line with:
app.use(express.urlencoded()); //Parse URL-encoded bodies
If you're getting a warning saying that you still need to pass extended to express.urlencoded() then, do update the above code as:
app.use(express.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
A final note of caution:
You might not need to install the additional body-parser package to your application if you are using Express 4.16+. There are many tutorials that include the installation of body-parser because they are dated prior to the release of Express 4.16.
In older versions of express, we had to use:
app.use(express.bodyparser());
because body-parser was a middleware between node and
express. Now we have to use it like:
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false }));
app.use(bodyParser.json());
body-parser is a piece of express middleware that
reads a form's input and stores it as a javascript
object accessible through req.body
'body-parser' must be installed (via npm install --save body-parser) For more info see: https://github.com/expressjs/body-parser
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
app.use(bodyParser.json()); // support json encoded bodies
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true })); // support encoded bodies
When extended is set to true, then deflated (compressed) bodies will be inflated; when extended is set to false, deflated bodies are rejected.
Instead of bodyParser.json(), simply use express.json(),
You don't want to install body-parser
For an instance,
const express = require("express");
const app = express();
app.use(express.json());
I found that while adding
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({
extended: true
}));
helps, sometimes it's a matter of your querying that determines how express handles it.
For instance, it could be that your parameters are passed in the URL rather than in the body
In such a case, you need to capture both the body and url parameters and use whichever is available (with preference for the body parameters in the case below)
app.route('/echo')
.all((req,res)=>{
let pars = (Object.keys(req.body).length > 0)?req.body:req.query;
res.send(pars);
});
What is your opinion to use express-generator it will generate skeleton project to start with, without deprecated messages appeared in your log
run this command
npm install express-generator -g
Now, create new Express.js starter application by type this command in your Node projects folder.
express node-express-app
That command tell express to generate new Node.js application with the name node-express-app.
then Go to the newly created project directory, install npm packages and start the app using the command
cd node-express-app && npm install && npm start
body-parser deprecated bodyParser: use individual json/urlencoded middlewares node_modules\express\lib\router\layer.js:95:5
express deprecated req.host: Use req.hostname instead node_modules\body-parser\index.js:100:29
body-parser deprecated undefined extended: provide extended option node_modules\body-parser\index.js:105:29
No need to update express or body-parser
These errors will be removed. Follow these steps :-
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({extended: true})); // This will help in encoding.
app.use(bodyParser.json()); // this will support json format
It will run.
Happy Coding!
Check this answer
Stripe webhook error: No signatures found matching the expected signature for payload
// Use JSON parser for all non-webhook routes
app.use((req, res, next) => {
if (req.originalUrl === '/webhook') {
next();
} else {
express.json()(req, res, next);
}
});
// Stripe requires the raw body to construct the event
app.post('/webhook', express.raw({type: 'application/json'}), (req, res) => {
const sig = req.headers['stripe-signature'];
let event;
try {
event = stripe.webhooks.constructEvent(req.body, sig, webhookSecret);
} catch (err) {
// On error, log and return the error message
console.log(`❌ Error message: ${err.message}`);
return res.status(400).send(`Webhook Error: ${err.message}`);
}
// Successfully constructed event
console.log('✅ Success:', event.id);
// Return a response to acknowledge receipt of the event
res.json({received: true});
});
In my case it was typescript + vs code marking it wrongly as deprecated:
But if you check the source code:
/** #deprecated */
declare function bodyParser(
options?: bodyParser.OptionsJson & bodyParser.OptionsText & bodyParser.OptionsUrlencoded,
): NextHandleFunction;
declare namespace bodyParser {
you see it should be the constructor, not the namespace.
So either typescript or vs code is getting it wrong.
All good, there's no deprecation happening in this case (bodyParser as namespace=
I have this as configuration of my Express server
app.use(app.router);
app.use(express.cookieParser());
app.use(express.session({ secret: "keyboard cat" }));
app.set('view engine', 'ejs');
app.set("view options", { layout: true });
//Handles post requests
app.use(express.bodyParser());
//Handles put requests
app.use(express.methodOverride());
But still when I ask for req.body.something in my routes I get some error pointing out that body is undefined. Here is an example of a route that uses req.body :
app.post('/admin', function(req, res){
console.log(req.body.name);
});
I read that this problem is caused by the lack of app.use(express.bodyParser()); but as you can see I call it before the routes.
Any clue?
UPDATE July 2020
express.bodyParser() is no longer bundled as part of express. You need to install it separately before loading:
npm i body-parser
// then in your app
var express = require('express')
var bodyParser = require('body-parser')
var app = express()
// create application/json parser
var jsonParser = bodyParser.json()
// create application/x-www-form-urlencoded parser
var urlencodedParser = bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false })
// POST /login gets urlencoded bodies
app.post('/login', urlencodedParser, function (req, res) {
res.send('welcome, ' + req.body.username)
})
// POST /api/users gets JSON bodies
app.post('/api/users', jsonParser, function (req, res) {
// create user in req.body
})
See here for further info
original follows
You must make sure that you define all configurations BEFORE defining routes. If you do so, you can continue to use express.bodyParser().
An example is as follows:
var express = require('express'),
app = express(),
port = parseInt(process.env.PORT, 10) || 8080;
app.configure(function(){
app.use(express.bodyParser());
});
app.listen(port);
app.post("/someRoute", function(req, res) {
console.log(req.body);
res.send({ status: 'SUCCESS' });
});
Latest versions of Express (4.x) has unbundled the middleware from the core framework. If you need body parser, you need to install it separately
npm install body-parser --save
and then do this in your code
var bodyParser = require('body-parser')
var app = express()
// parse application/x-www-form-urlencoded
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false }))
// parse application/json
app.use(bodyParser.json())
Express 4, has built-in body parser. No need to install separate body-parser. So below will work:
export const app = express();
app.use(express.json());
No. You need to use app.use(express.bodyParser()) before app.use(app.router). In fact, app.use(app.router) should be the last thing you call.
The Content-Type in request header is really important, especially when you post the data from curl or any other tools.
Make sure you're using some thing like application/x-www-form-urlencoded, application/json or others, it depends on your post data. Leave this field empty will confuse Express.
First make sure , you have installed npm module named 'body-parser' by calling :
npm install body-parser --save
Then make sure you have included following lines before calling routes
var express = require('express');
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
var app = express();
app.use(bodyParser.json());
As already posted under one comment, I solved it using
app.use(require('connect').bodyParser());
instead of
app.use(express.bodyParser());
I still don't know why the simple express.bodyParser() is not working...
Add in your app.js
before the call of the Router
const app = express();
app.use(express.json());
The question is answered. But since it is quite generic and req.body undefined is a frequent error, especially for beginners, I find this is the best place to resume all that I know about the problem.
This error can be caused by the following reasons:
1. [SERVER side] [Quite often] Forget or misused parser middleware
You need to use appropriate middleware to parse the incoming requests. For example, express.json() parses request in JSON format, and express.urlencoded() parses request in urlencoded format.
const app = express();
app.use(express.urlencoded())
app.use(express.json())
You can see the full list in the express documentation page
If you can't find the right parser for your request in Express (XML, form-data...), you need to find another library for that. For example, to parse XML data, you can use this library
You should use the parser middleware before the route declaration part (I did a test to confirm this!). The middleware can be configured right after the initialization express app.
Like other answers pointed out, bodyParser is deprecated since express 4.16.0, you should use built-in middlewares like above.
2. [CLIENT side] [Rarely] Forget to send the data along with the request
Well, you need to send the data...
To verify whether the data has been sent with the request or not, open the Network tabs in the browser's devtools and search for your request.
It's rare but I saw some people trying to send data in the GET request, for GET request req.body is undefined.
3. [SERVER & CLIENT] [Quite often] Using different Content-Type
Server and client need to use the same Content-Type to understand each other. If you send requests using json format, you need to use json() middleware. If you send a request using urlencoded format, you need to use urlencoded()...
There is 1 tricky case when you try to upload a file using the form-data format. For that, you can use multer, a middleware for handling multipart/form-data.
What if you don't control the client part? I had a problem when coding the API for Instant payment notification (IPN). The general rule is to try to get information on the client part: communicate with the frontend team, go to the payment documentation page... You might need to add appropriate middleware based on the Content-Type decided by the client part.
Finally, a piece of advice for full-stack developers :)
When having a problem like this, try to use some API test software like Postman. The object is to eliminate all the noise in the client part, this will help you correctly identify the problem.
In Postman, once you have a correct result, you can use the code generation tool in the software to have corresponded code. The button </> is on the right bar. You have a lot of options in popular languages/libraries...
app.use(express.json());
It will help to solve the issue of req.body undefined
// Require body-parser (to receive post data from clients)
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false }))
// parse application/json
app.use(bodyParser.json())
Looks like the body-parser is no longer shipped with express. We may have to install it separately.
var express = require('express')
var bodyParser = require('body-parser')
var app = express()
// parse application/x-www-form-urlencoded
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: false }))
// parse application/json
app.use(bodyParser.json())
// parse application/vnd.api+json as json
app.use(bodyParser.json({ type: 'application/vnd.api+json' }))
app.use(function (req, res, next) {
console.log(req.body) // populated!
Refer to the git page https://github.com/expressjs/body-parser for more info and examples.
In case anyone runs into the same issue I was having; I am using a url prefix like
http://example.com/api/
which was setup with router
app.use('/api', router);
and then I had the following
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
What fixed my issue was placing the bodyparser configuration above app.use('/api', router);
Final
// setup bodyparser
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
//this is a fix for the prefix of example.com/api/ so we dont need to code the prefix in every route
app.use('/api', router);
Most of the time req.body is undefined due to missing JSON parser
const express = require('express');
app.use(express.json());
could be missing for the body-parser
const bodyParser = require('body-parser');
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({extended: true}));
and sometimes it's undefined due to cros origin so add them
const cors = require('cors');
app.use(cors())
The middleware is always used as first.
//MIDDLEWARE
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.use(cors());
app.use(cookieParser());
before the routes.
//MY ROUTES
app.use("/api", authRoutes);
express.bodyParser() needs to be told what type of content it is that it's parsing. Therefore, you need to make sure that when you're executing a POST request, that you're including the "Content-Type" header. Otherwise, bodyParser may not know what to do with the body of your POST request.
If you're using curl to execute a POST request containing some JSON object in the body, it would look something like this:
curl -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d #your_json_file http://localhost:xxxx/someRoute
If using another method, just be sure to set that header field using whatever convention is appropriate.
Use app.use(bodyparser.json()); before routing. // .
app.use("/api", routes);
History:
Earlier versions of Express used to have a lot of middleware bundled with it. bodyParser was one of the middleware that came with it. When Express 4.0 was released they decided to remove the bundled middleware from Express and make them separate packages instead. The syntax then changed from app.use(express.json()) to app.use(bodyParser.json()) after installing the bodyParser module.
bodyParser was added back to Express in release 4.16.0, because people wanted it bundled with Express like before. That means you don't have to use bodyParser.json() anymore if you are on the latest release. You can use express.json() instead.
The release history for 4.16.0 is here for those who are interested, and the pull request is here.
Okay, back to the point,
Implementation:
All you need to add is just add,
app.use(express.json());
app.use(express.urlencoded({ extended: true}));
app.use(app.router); // Route will be at the end of parser
And remove bodyParser (in newer version of express it is not needed)
app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
And Express will take care of your request. :)
Full example will looks like,
const express = require('express')
const app = express()
app.use(express.json())
app.use(express.urlencoded({ extended: true}));
app.post('/test-url', (req, res) => {
console.log(req.body)
return res.send("went well")
})
app.listen(3000, () => {
console.log("running on port 3000")
})
You can try adding this line of code at the top, (after your require statements):
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({extended: true}));
As for the reasons as to why it works, check out the docs: https://www.npmjs.com/package/body-parser#bodyparserurlencodedoptions
Firsl of all, ensure you are applying this middleware (express.urlencoded) before routes.
let app = express();
//response as Json
app.use(express.json());
//Parse x-www-form-urlencoded request into req.body
app.use(express.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
app.post('/test',(req,res)=>{
res.json(req.body);
});
The code express.urlencoded({extended:true}) only responds to x-www-form-urlencoded posts requests, so in your ajax/XMLHttpRequest/fetch, make sure you are sending the request.setRequestHeader('Content-type', 'application/x-www-form-urlencoded'); header.
Thats it !
in Express 4, it's really simple
const app = express()
const p = process.env.PORT || 8082
app.use(express.json())
This occured to me today. None of above solutions work for me. But a little googling helped me to solve this issue. I'm coding for wechat 3rd party server.
Things get slightly more complicated when your node.js application requires reading streaming POST data, such as a request from a REST client. In this case, the request's property "readable" will be set to true and the POST data must be read in chunks in order to collect all content.
http://www.primaryobjects.com/CMS/Article144
Wasted a lot of time:
Depending on Content-Type in your client request
the server should have different, one of the below app.use():
app.use(bodyParser.text({ type: 'text/html' }))
app.use(bodyParser.text({ type: 'text/xml' }))
app.use(bodyParser.raw({ type: 'application/vnd.custom-type' }))
app.use(bodyParser.json({ type: 'application/*+json' }))
Source: https://www.npmjs.com/package/body-parser#bodyparsertextoptions
Example:
For me,
On Client side, I had below header:
Content-Type: "text/xml"
So, on the server side, I used:
app.use(bodyParser.text({type: 'text/xml'}));
Then, req.body worked fine.
To work, you need to app.use(app.router) after app.use(express.bodyParser()), like that:
app.use(express.bodyParser())
.use(express.methodOverride())
.use(app.router);
var bodyParser = require('body-parser');
app.use(bodyParser.json());
This saved my day.
I solved it with:
app.post('/', bodyParser.json(), (req, res) => {//we have req.body JSON
});
In my case, it was because of using body-parser after including the routes.
The correct code should be
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({extended:true}));
app.use(methodOverride("_method"));
app.use(indexRoutes);
app.use(userRoutes);
app.use(adminRoutes);
As I get the same problem, although I know BodyParser is no longer used
and I already used the app.use(express.json())
the problem was {FOR ME}:
I was placing
app.use(express.json())
after
app.use('api/v1/example', example) => { concerns the route }
once I reorder those two lines;
1 - app.use(express.json())
2 - app.use('api/v1/example', example)
It worked perfectly
If you are using some external tool to make the request, make sure to add the header:
Content-Type: application/json
This is also one possibility: Make Sure that you should write this code before the route in your app.js(or index.js) file.
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true }));
app.use(bodyParser.json());