Execute node command from UI - node.js

I am not very much familiar with nodejs but, I need some guidance in my task. Any help would be appreciated.
I have nodejs file which runs from command line.
filename arguments and that do some operation whatever arguments I have passed.
Now, I have html page and different options to select different operation. Based on selection, I can pass my parameters to any file. that can be any local node js file which calls my another nodejs file internally. Is that possible ? I am not sure about what would be my approach !
I always have to run different command from terminal to execute different task. so, my goal is to reduce that overhead. I can select options from UI and do operations through nodejs file.

I was bored so I decided to try to answer this even though I'm not totally sure it's what you're asking. If you mean you just need to run a node script from a node web app and you normally run that script from the terminal, just require your script and run it programmatically.
Let's pretend this script you run looks like this:
// myscript.js
var task = process.argv[2];
if (!task) {
console.log('Please provide a task.');
return;
}
switch (task.toLowerCase()) {
case 'task1':
console.log('Performed Task 1');
break;
case 'task2':
console.log('Performed Task 2');
break;
default:
console.log('Unrecognized task.');
break;
}
With that you'd normally do something like:
$ node myscript task1
Instead you could modify the script to look like this:
// Define our task logic as functions attached to exports.
// This allows our script to be required by other node apps.
exports.task1 = function () {
console.log('Performed Task 1');
};
exports.task2 = function () {
console.log('Performed Task 2');
};
// If process.argv has more than 2 items then we know
// this is running from the terminal and the third item
// is the task we want to run :)
if (process.argv.length > 2) {
var task = process.argv[2];
if (!task) {
console.error('Please provide a task.');
return;
}
// Check the 3rd command line argument. If it matches a
// task name, invoke the related task function.
if (exports.hasOwnProperty(task)) {
exports[task]();
} else {
console.error('Unrecognized task.');
}
}
Now you can run it from the terminal the same way:
$ node myscript task1
Or you can require it from an application, including a web application:
// app.js
var taskScript = require('./myscript.js');
taskScript.task1();
taskScript.task2();
Click the animated gif for a larger smoother version. Just remember that if a user invokes your task script from your web app via a button or something, the script will be running on the web server and not the user's local machine. That should be obvious but I thought I'd remind you anyway :)
EDIT
I already did the video so I'm not going to redo it, but I just discovered module.parent. The parent property is only populated if your script was loaded from another script via require. This is a better way to test if your script is being run directly from the terminal or not. The way I did it might have problems if you pass an argument in when you start your app.js file, such as --debug. It would try to run a task called "--debug" and then print out "Unrecognized task." to the console when you start your app.
I suggest changing this:
if (process.argv.length > 2) {
To this:
if (!module.parent) {
Reference: Can I know, in node.js, if my script is being run directly or being loaded by another script?

Related

Save value out of nodejs server

Is there a way where I can save a timestamp out of my application / object, so when I restart the nodeserver I can get that value?
I need this for my cronjob. I need to save the last synching even though I restart the server.
There are all sorts of ways to save this sort of information so you can load it when you restart your node process. One is to write it to a file in your file system, then read it when you start your program.
To write the current timestamp to a file do this.
const fs = require('fs')
...
fs.writeFile('timestamp.txt', Date.now().toString(), err => {console.error(err)})
To read it do this.
const fs = require('fs')
...
const timestamp = Number(fs.readFileSync('timestamp.txt'))
Obviously there's more programming to do to put the file in the correct directory, to handle errors, and to cope with the case where you attempt to read the file before writing it. But that's the idea.
You can also store it in some kind of database. But this should do you for now. Unless you're using a system like Heroku where the files don't always get saved from run to run.
When a process dies, all data stored in its working memory (such as variables and functions) die with it.
I recently wrote an npm package cashola that makes it easier to store this data across process restarts.
You can run this example script twice and see how the print statements differ each time.
import { rememberSync } from 'cashola';
const myState = rememberSync('timestamp-example');
console.log('Before:', myState);
// First run: {}
// Second run: { <timeString1>: 'hi! }
myState[new Date.getTime().toString()] = 'hi!';
console.log('After:', myState);
// First run: { <timeString1>: 'hi! }
// Second run: { <timeString1>: 'hi!, <timeString2>: 'hi! }

Simulating Command Line Entries For Node Tests

I am writing some tests for a Node/MongoDB project that runs various modules via command line entries. My question is, for the tests, is there a way I can simulate a command line entry? For instance, if what I write in the command line is:
TASK=run-comparison node server
... is there a way I can effectively simulate that within my tests?
The common practice here as far as I know, is to wrap as much of your app as you can within a function/class where you pass the arguments, so you can easily test it with unit tests:
function myApp(args, env){
// My app code with given args and env variables
}
In your test file:
// Run app with given env variable
myApp("", { TASK: "run-comparison"});
In your particular case, if all your tasks are set through env variables, through editing of process.env, mocks, or .env files you may be able to test that without modifications on your code.
If that is not enough for your case (i.e. you really need to exactly simulate command line execution) I wrote a small library to solve this exact issue some time ago: https://github.com/angrykoala/yerbamate (I'm not sure if there are other alternatives available now).
With the example you provided, A test case could be something like this:
const yerbamate = require('yerbamate');
// Gets the package.json information
const pkg = yerbamate.loadPackage(module);
//Test the given command in the package.json root dir
yerbamate.run("TASK=run-comparison node server", pkg.dir, {}, function(code, out, errs) {
// This callback will be called once the script finished
if (!yerbamate.successCode(code)) console.log("Process exited with error code!");
if (errs.length > 0) console.log("Errors in process:" + errs.length);
console.log("Output: " + out[0]); // Stdoutput
});
In the end, this is a fairly simple wrapper of native child_process which you could also use to solve your problem by directly executing subprocesses.

detect if Kofax launched custom module or User

When the custom module gets launched I can use
if (Environment.UserInteractive)
{
// Run as WinForms app
}
else
{
// Run as service
}
to switch between a background service and a WinForms app. But I can also run the .exe file without launching Kofax.
Is it possible to check if Kofax launched the module? My example code would look like
if (Environment.UserInteractive)
{
// Run as WinForms app
if (Application.LaunchedByKofax)
{
// Do something additional
}
}
else
{
// Run as service
}
The only context in which Kofax Capture launches your custom module is when a user tries to process a batch from Batch Manager, and that batch is currently in the queue for your custom module. If you are referring to something other than that, then you'll need to clarify your question.
When that happens, the path registered for your custom module is called with additional parameters, the most notable of which is -B###, where ### is the decimal batch ID. For more details on this see Kofax KB article 1713, which is old but still applicable for current versions.
Thus you can use a function like this to check for the expected parameters.
public bool LaunchedFromBatchManager()
{
var args = Environment.GetCommandLineArgs();
//args[0] will contain the path to your exe, subsquent items are the actual args
if (args.Count() > 1)
{
// When a user tries to process a batch from batch manager,
// it launches the module with -B###, where ### is the decimal batch ID
// see: http://knowledgebase.kofax.com/faqsearch/results.aspx?QAID=1713
if (args[1].StartsWith("-B"))
{
return true;
}
}
return false;
}

Electron app installed but doesn't appear in start menu

I've created an app using Electron, and bundled it in an .exe file with electron-builder.
When I run the generated executable, the application starts with the default installation GIF used by electron-builder, as expected.
After the GIF finishes, the app restarts and works properly. It even appears in control panel's programs list.
However, if I look for it in the start menu applications, it isn't there (and searching it by its name only returns the aforementioned .exe installer).
Because of this, once the app is closed, the only way to open it back is running again the installer.
Why does this happen? Is there any way to make it appear with the other programs?
The electron-builder installer (and electron-windows-installer) use Squirrel for handling the installation. Squirrel launches your application on install with arguments that you need to handle. An example can be found on the windows installer github docs
Handling Squirrel Events
Squirrel will spawn your app with command line flags on first run, updates, and uninstalls. it is very important that your app handle these events as early as possible, and quit immediately after handling them. Squirrel will give your app a short amount of time (~15sec) to apply these operations and quit.
The electron-squirrel-startup module will handle the most common events for you, such as managing desktop shortcuts. Just add the following to the top of your main.js and you're good to go:
if (require('electron-squirrel-startup')) return;
You should handle these events in your app's main entry point with something such as:
const app = require('app');
// this should be placed at top of main.js to handle setup events quickly
if (handleSquirrelEvent()) {
// squirrel event handled and app will exit in 1000ms, so don't do anything else
return;
}
function handleSquirrelEvent() {
if (process.argv.length === 1) {
return false;
}
const ChildProcess = require('child_process');
const path = require('path');
const appFolder = path.resolve(process.execPath, '..');
const rootAtomFolder = path.resolve(appFolder, '..');
const updateDotExe = path.resolve(path.join(rootAtomFolder, 'Update.exe'));
const exeName = path.basename(process.execPath);
const spawn = function(command, args) {
let spawnedProcess, error;
try {
spawnedProcess = ChildProcess.spawn(command, args, {detached: true});
} catch (error) {}
return spawnedProcess;
};
const spawnUpdate = function(args) {
return spawn(updateDotExe, args);
};
const squirrelEvent = process.argv[1];
switch (squirrelEvent) {
case '--squirrel-install':
case '--squirrel-updated':
// Optionally do things such as:
// - Add your .exe to the PATH
// - Write to the registry for things like file associations and
// explorer context menus
// Install desktop and start menu shortcuts
spawnUpdate(['--createShortcut', exeName]);
setTimeout(app.quit, 1000);
return true;
case '--squirrel-uninstall':
// Undo anything you did in the --squirrel-install and
// --squirrel-updated handlers
// Remove desktop and start menu shortcuts
spawnUpdate(['--removeShortcut', exeName]);
setTimeout(app.quit, 1000);
return true;
case '--squirrel-obsolete':
// This is called on the outgoing version of your app before
// we update to the new version - it's the opposite of
// --squirrel-updated
app.quit();
return true;
}
};
Notice that the first time the installer launches your app, your app will see a --squirrel-firstrun flag. This allows you to do things like showing up a splash screen or presenting a settings UI. Another thing to be aware of is that, since the app is spawned by squirrel and squirrel acquires a file lock during installation, you won't be able to successfully check for app updates till a few seconds later when squirrel releases the lock.
In this example you can see it run Update.exe (a squirrel executable) with the argument --create-shortcut that adds start menu and desktop shortcuts.
It's 2021 and I am still having a very similar problem.
My app installs correctly and with the script above it also successfully adds a Desktop link to my app. BUT: There is no Shortcut being added to the Windows Start Menu.
With the script above this should also be added to the Start Menu, right?
One comment above says:
// Install desktop and start menu shortcuts
spawnUpdate(['--createShortcut', exeName]);
What am I missing? Any hint highly appreciated...
For me it helped to add icon and setupIcon to the package.json file, where the makers, are configured. Before my app didnt show up in the Start menu, and with the maker config as below, it does. I am not sure why though.
"makers": [
{
"name": "#electron-forge/maker-squirrel",
"config": {
"name": "cellmonitor",
"icon": "favicon.ico",
"setupIcon": "favicon.ico"
}
}
]

Use Node.js as Shell

How might I set up node.js as a shell replacement for bash? For example I should be able to run vi('file') to open a file and cd('location') to change between directories.
Is this even possible?
Sure you can! It will become much less straightforward to use your computer, though.
First off, you will need to know how to set this up. While you could likely set your user shell in Linux to usr/bin/node, this will leave you with only a Node.js REPL with no additional programs set up. What you're going to want to do is write a setup script that can do all of the below setup/convenience steps for you, essentially something that ends with repl.start() to produce a REPL after setting everything up. Of course, since UNIX shell settings can't specify arguments, you will need to write a small C program that executes your shell with those arguments (essentially, exec("/usr/bin/node", "path/to/setup/script.js");) and set that as your UNIX shell.
The main idea here is that any commands that you use beyond the very basics must be require()d into your shell - e.g. to do anything with your filesystem, execute
var fs = require("fs")
and do all of your filesystem calls from the fs object. This is analogous to adding things to your PATH. You can get basic shell commands by using shelljs or similar, and to get at actual executable programs, use Node's built-in child_process.spawnSync for a foreground task or child_process.spawn for a background task.
Since part of your requirement is that you want to call each of your programs like a function, you will need to produce these functions yourself, getting something like:
function ls(path) {
child_process.spawnSync('/bin/ls', [path], { stdio: 'inherit' });
}
for everything you want to run. You can probably do this programmatically by iterating through all the entries in your PATH and using something involving eval() or new Function() to generate execute functions for each, assigning them to the global object so that you don't have to enter any prefixes.
Again, it will become much less straightforward to use your computer, despite having these named functions. Lots of programs that cheat and use bash commands in the background will likely no longer work. But I can certainly see the appeal of being able to leverage JavaScript in your command-line environment.
ADDENDUM: For writing this setup script, the REPLServer object returned by repl.start() has a context object that is the same as the global object accessible to the REPL session it creates. When you write your setup script, you will need to assign everything to the context object:
const context = repl.start('> ').context;
context.ls = function ls(path) { /* . . . */ }
context.cd = function cd(path) { /* . . . */ }
I think it would be an intersting proposition. Create a test account and tell it to use node as it's shell. See 'man useradd' for all options
$ useradd -s /usr/bin/node test
$ su - test
This works on mac and linux.
require('child_process').spawnSync('vi', ['file.txt'], { stdio: 'inherit' })
You could bootstrap a repl session with your own commands, then run the script
#!/bin/bash
node --experimental-repl-await -i -e "$(< scripts/noderc.js)"`
This allows for things like:
> ls()
> run('vi','file.txt')
> await myAsyncFunc()
I think you're looking for something like this https://youtu.be/rcwcigtOwQ0 !
If so.... YES you can!
If you like I can share my code. But I need to fix some bugs first!
tell me if you like.
my .sh function:
const hey = Object.create(null),
sh = Object.create(null);;
hey.shell = Object.create(null);
hey.shell.run = require('child_process').exec;
sh.help = 'Execute an OS command';
sh.action = (...args) => {
// repl_ is the replServer
// the runningExternalProgram property is one way to know if I should
// render the prompt and is not needed. I will create a better
// way to do this (action without if/decision)!
repl_.runningExternalProgram = true;
hey.shell.run(args.join(' '),
(...args) => {
['error', 'log'].forEach((command, idx) => {
if (args[idx]) {
console[command](args[idx]);
}
});
repl_.runningExternalProgram = false;
});
};
PS: to 'cd' into some directory you just need to change the process.cwd (current working directory)
PS2: to avoid need to write .sh for every OS program/command you can use Proxy on the global object.

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