Develop Reference

How to properly render Component after this.setState in React

I have this React component
import React, { Component } from "react";
export default class ResourceForField extends Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = {
resources: [],
};
}
componentDidMount() {
// get the resources from the Link props and save it into the state
this.setState({
resources: this.props.location.resources,
});
}
// This component gets the id of current learningField from the url
// and the rest(like the resources) from the Link component
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.state.resources.map(res => (
<div>test</div>
))}
</div>
);
}
}
It gets the resources from the Link component, and that works fine. If I check out the state of the Component from the dev tools, the state looks right. And I thought with my logic this should work. So firstly, the state is empty, the component gets rendered, since the state is empty it doesn't render any components. Then, setState gets called, it gets all the resources and saves them into the state, and then the component would re-render, and it should work, but it doesn't. I'm getting a TypeError: Cannot read property 'map' of undefined error. What is the correct way to do this and how do I fix this?

Try this code:
import React, { Component } from "react";
export default class ResourceForField extends Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = {
resources: this.props && this.props.location && this.props.location.resources?this.props.location.resources:[],
};
}
componentDidMount() {
}
// This component gets the id of current learningField from the url
// and the rest(like the resources) from the Link component
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.state.resources.map(res => (
<div>test</div>
))}
</div>
);
}
}
Or use directly props
import React, { Component } from "react";
export default class ResourceForField extends Component {
constructor() {
super();
}
// This component gets the id of current learningField from the url
// and the rest(like the resources) from the Link component
render() {
return (
<div>
{
this.props && this.props.location &&
this.props.location.resources
?this.props.location.resources.map(res => (
<div>test</div>
))
:null
}
</div>
);
}
}
Or use componentWillReceiveProps or getDerivedStateFromProps life cycle methods.
Check this.props.location.resources is array.
See more: https://hackernoon.com/replacing-componentwillreceiveprops-with-getderivedstatefromprops-c3956f7ce607

For first check is this.props.location.resources array, or if data type changes you can add checking, you can use lodash isArray or with js like this:
import React, { Component } from "react";
export default class ResourceForField extends Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = {
resources: [],
};
}
componentDidMount() {
// get the resources from the Link props and save it into the state
Array.isArray(this.props.location.resources) {
this.setState({
resources: this.props.location.resources,
});
}
}
// This component gets the id of current learningField from the url
// and the rest(like the resources) from the Link component
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.state.resources.map(res => (
<div>test</div>
))}
</div>
);
}
}
Or you can just use hooks like this:
import React, { useState, useEffect } from "react";
export default function ResourceForField({location}) {
const [ resources, setResources ] = useState([]);
useEffect(() => {
if (location && Array.isArray(location.resources)) {
setResources(location.resources)
}
}, [location]);
return (
<div>
{resources.map(res => (
<div>test</div>
))}
</div>
);
}

If the internal state of ResourceForField doesn't change and always equals to its prop, you shouldn't save the prop in the state. You can instead create a pure functional component.
Also note that there's nothing preventing you from initializing the state from the props in constructor method. i.e. you're not required to wait for the component to mount in order to access the props.
So, I'd write the following component for ResourceForField:
function ResourceForField({resources = []}) {
return (
<div>
{
resources.map(res => (<div>test</div>))
}
</div>
);
}

React: parent component props in child without passing explicitly

Is it possible to have the props of the parent component to be available in child component without passing them down?
I am trying to implement a provider pattern, so that to access all the provider props in its child components.
EX:
Suppose the below provider comp FetchProvider will fetch the data and theme props on its own, and when any child component is enclosed by it, I want to access both props "data" and "theme" in the child component as well. How can we achieve it?
class FetchProvider
{
proptypes= {
data: PropTypes.shape({}),
theme: PropTypes.shape({})
}
render()
{
// do some
}
mapStateToProps()
{
return {data, theme};
}
}
class ChildComponent
{
proptypes= {
name: PropTypes.shape({})
}
render()
{
const{data, them} = this.props; // is this possible here?
// do some
}
}
and if I try to above components as below.
<FetchProvider>
<ChildComponent name="some value"/> //how can we access parent component props here? without passing them down
<FetchProvider/>

This is exactly what react context is all about.
A Consumer can access data the a Provider exposes no matter how deeply nested it is.
// Context lets us pass a value deep into the component tree
// without explicitly threading it through every component.
// Create a context for the current theme (with "light" as the default).
const ThemeContext = React.createContext('light');
class App extends React.Component {
render() {
// Use a Provider to pass the current theme to the tree below.
// Any component can read it, no matter how deep it is.
// In this example, we're passing "dark" as the current value.
return (
<ThemeContext.Provider value="dark">
<Toolbar />
</ThemeContext.Provider>
);
}
}
// A component in the middle doesn't have to
// pass the theme down explicitly anymore.
function Toolbar(props) {
return (
<div>
<ThemedButton />
</div>
);
}
function ThemedButton(props) {
// Use a Consumer to read the current theme context.
// React will find the closest theme Provider above and use its value.
// In this example, the current theme is "dark".
return (
<ThemeContext.Consumer>
{theme => <Button {...props} theme={theme} />}
</ThemeContext.Consumer>
);
}
Here is a small running example:
Note This is the react v16 context API.

Your use case can be solved with the usage of React context. With the help of Context, any child that is wrapped by a provided can be a consumer for the data that is provided by the Provider
In your case, you can use it like
context.js
export const FetchContext = React.createContext();
Provider.js
import { FetchContext } from 'path/to/context.js';
class FetchProvider extends React.Component
{
proptypes= {
data: PropTypes.shape({}),
theme: PropTypes.shape({})
}
render()
{
const { data, theme, children } = this.props;
return (
<FetchContext.Provider value={{ data, theme}}>
{children}
</FetchContext.Provider>
)
}
mapStateToProps()
{
return {data, theme};
}
}
ChildComponent.js
class ChildComponent extends React.Component
{
proptypes= {
name: PropTypes.shape({})
}
render()
{
const{data, them} = this.props; // use it from props here
// do some
}
}
export default (props) => (
<FetchContext.Consumer>
{({ data, theme }) => <ChildComponent {...props} data={data} theme={theme} />}
</FetchContext.Consumer>
)
However given the fact that you are already using Redux, which is build on the concept of Context, you might as well use redux and access the values within the child component since they are the same values that are supplied from the Redux store to the child by parent.
class ChildComponent extends React.Component
{
proptypes= {
name: PropTypes.shape({})
}
render()
{
const{data, them} = this.props; // use it from props here
// do some
}
}
const mapStateToProps = (state) => {
return {
data: state.data,
theme: state.theme
}
}

You can use React.Children to iterate over the children and pass whatever props you want to send to the new cloned elements using React.cloneElement.
EX:
class Parent extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
}
render() {
const { children } = this.props;
const newChildren = React.Children.map(children, child =>
React.cloneElement(child, { myProp: 'test' }));
return(
<View>
{newChildren}
</View>
)
}
}

Are you looking for:
class MyParent extends Component {
render() {
return <MyChild {...this.props}>
// child components
</MyChild>
}
}
This would pass all of the props passed into MyParent to the MyChild being rendered.

React-Chat-Widget props not forwarded

I am using the react-chat-widget and trying to call a function in the base class of my application from a custom component rendered by the renderCustomComponent function of the widget.
Here is the code for the base class:
import React, { Component } from 'react';
import { Widget, handleNewUserMessage, addResponseMessage, addUserMessage, renderCustomComponent } from 'react-chat-widget';
import 'react-chat-widget/lib/styles.css';
import Reply from './Reply.js';
class App extends Component {
handleNewUserMessage = (newMessage) => {
renderCustomComponent(Reply, this.correct);
}
correct = () => {
console.log("success");
}
render() {
return (
<div className="App">
<Background />
<Widget
handleNewUserMessage={this.handleNewUserMessage}
/>
</div>
);
}
}
export default App;
And here is the code for the custom component Reply:
import React, { Component } from 'react';
import { Widget, addResponseMessage, renderCustomComponent, addUserMessage } from 'react-chat-widget';
class Reply extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
}
sendQuickReply = (reply) => {
console.log(this.props); //returns empty object
//this.props.correct(); <-- should be called
};
render() {
return (
<div className="message">
<div key="x" className={"response"}onClick={this.sendQuickReply.bind(this, "xx")}>xx</div>
</div>)
}
}
export default Reply;
According to ReactJS call parent method this should work. However, when I print the this.props object it is empty, although the documentation of the renderCustomComponent method states that the second argument of the component to render are the props that the component needs (in this case the parent class function).
Where have I gone wrong?

The second parameter is considered as props, but it is expected to be an object. you would pass it like
handleNewUserMessage = (newMessage) => {
renderCustomComponent(Reply, {correct: this.correct});
}

setState/use State in external function react

Considering this pseudocode:
component.js
...
import {someFunc} from "./common_functions.js"
export default class MyComp extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.someFunc = someFunc.bind(this);
this.state = {...};
}
_anotherFunc = () = > {
....
this.someFunc();
}
render() {
...
}
}
common_functions.js
export function someFunc() {
if(this.state.whatever) {...}
this.setState{...}
}
How would I bind the function someFunc() to the context of the Component? I use it in various Components, so it makes sense to collect them in one file. Right now, I get the error "Cannot read whatever of undefined". The context of this is unknown...

You can't setState outside of the component because it is component's local state. If you need to update state which is shared, create a store (redux store).
In your case, you can define someFunction at one place and pass it the specific state variable(s) or entire state. After you are done in someFunction, return the modified state and update it back in your component using setState.
export function someFunc(state) {
if(state.whatever) {...}
const newState = { ...state, newValue: whateverValue }
return newState
}
_anotherFunc = () = > {
....
const newState = this.someFunc(this.state);
this.setState({newValue: newState});
}

it's not a React practice and it may cause lot of problems/bugs, but js allows to do it:
Module A:
export function your_external_func(thisObj, name, val) {
thisObj.setSate((prevState) => { // prevState - previous state
// do something with prevState ...
const newState = { // new state object
someData: `This is updated data ${ val }`,
[name]: val,
};
return newState
});
}
Then use it in your react-app module:
import { your_external_func } from '.../your_file_with_functions';
class YourReactComponent extends React.Component {
constructor(props, context) {
super(props, context);
this.state={
someName: '',
someData: '',
};
}
handleChange = (e) => {
const { target } = event;
const { name } = target;
const value = target.type === 'checkbox' ? target.checked : target.value;
your_external_func(this, name, value);
}
render() {
return (<span>
{ this.state.someData }
<br />
<input
name='someName'
value={ this.state.someName }
onChange={ this.handleChange }
/>
</span>);
}
}
It's a stupid example :) just to show you how you can do it

The best would obviously to use some kind of external library that manages this. As others have suggested, Redux and MobX are good for this. Using a high-order component to wrap all your other components is also an option.
However, here's an alternative solution to the ones above:
You could use a standard javascript class (not a React component) and pass in this to the function that you are calling from that class.
It's rather simple. I've created a simple example below where the state is changed from a function of another class; take a look:
class MyApp extends React.Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = {number: 1};
}
double = () => {
Global.myFunc(this);
}
render() {
return (
<div>
<p>{this.state.number}</p>
<button onClick={this.double}>Double up!</button>
</div>
);
}
}
class Global {
static myFunc = (t) => {
t.setState({number: t.state.number*2});
}
}
ReactDOM.render(<MyApp />, document.getElementById("app"));
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/15.1.0/react.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/15.1.0/react-dom.min.js"></script>
<div id="app"><div>

There is a functional form of setState that can even be used outside of a component.
This is possible since the signature of setState is:
* #param {object|function} partialState Next partial state or function to
* produce next partial state to be merged with current state.
* #param {?function} callback Called after state is updated.
See Dan's tweet: https://twitter.com/dan_abramov/status/824308413559668744

This all depends on what you are trying to achieve. At first glance I can see 2 options for you. One create a child component and two: use redux as redux offers a singular state between all of your child components.
First option:
export default class parentClass extends Component {
state = {
param1: "hello".
};
render() {
return (
<Child param1={this.state.param1}/>
);
}
}
class Child extends Component {
render() {
console.log(this.props.param1);
return (
<h1>{this.props.param1}</h1>
);
}
}
Now the above child component will have the props.param1 defined from the props passed from it's parent render function.
The above would work but I can see you're trying to establish a 'common' set of functions. Option 2 sort of provides a way of doing that by creating a singular state for your app/project.
If you've haven't used redux before it's pretty simple to use once you've got the hang of it. I'll skip out the setup for now http://redux.js.org/docs/basics/UsageWithReact.html.
Make a reducer like so:
import * as config from './config';//I like to make a config file so it's easier to dispatch my actions etc
//const config.state = {param1: null}
//const config.SOME_FUNC = "test/SOME_FUNC";
export default function reducer(state = config.state, action = {}) {
switch(action.type) {
case config.SOME_FUNC:
return Object.assign({}, state, {
param1: action.param1,
});
break;
default:
return state;
}
}
}
Add that to your reducers for your store.
Wrap all your components in the Provider.
ReactDOM.render(
<Provider store={store} key="provider">
<App>
</Provider>,
element
);
Now you'll be able to use redux connect on all of the child components of the provider!
Like so:
import React, {Component} from 'react';
import {connect} from 'react-redux';
#connect(
state => (state),
dispatch => ({
someFunc: (param1) => dispatch({type: config.SOME_FUNC, param1: param1}),
})
)
export default class Child extends Component {
eventFunction = (event) => {
//if you wanted to update the store with a value from an input
this.props.someFunc(event.target.value);
}
render() {
return (
<h1>{this.props.test.param1}</h1>
);
}
}
When you get used to redux check this out https://github.com/redux-saga/redux-saga. This is your end goal! Sagas are great! If you get stuck let me know!

Parent component example where you define your callback and manage a global state :
export default class Parent extends Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = {
applyGlobalCss: false,
};
}
toggleCss() {
this.setState({ applyGlobalCss: !this.state.applyGlobalCss });
}
render() {
return (
<Child css={this.state.applyGlobalCss} onToggle={this.toggleCss} />
);
}
}
and then in child component you can use the props and callback like :
export default class Child extends Component {
render() {
console.log(this.props.css);
return (
<div onClick={this.props.onToggle}>
</div>
);
}
}
Child.propTypes = {
onToggle: PropTypes.func,
css: PropTypes.bool,
};

Well for your example I can see you can do this in a simpler way rather than passing anything.
Since you want to update the value of the state you can just return it from the function itself.
Just make the function you are using in your component async and wait for the function to return a value and set the state to that value.
import React from "react"
class MyApp extends React.Component {
constructor() {
super();
this.state = {number: 1};
}
theOnlyFunction = async() => {
const value = await someFunctionFromFile( // Pass Parameters );
if( value !== false ) // Just for your understanding I am writing this way
{
this.setState({ number: value })
}
}
render() {
return (
<div>
<p>{this.state.number}</p>
<button onClick={this.double}>Double up!</button>
</div>
);
}
}
And in SomeOtherFile.js
function someFunctionFromFile ( // catch params) {
if( //nah don't wanna do anything ) return false;
// and the blahh blahh algorithm
}

you should use react Context
Context lets us pass a value deep into the component tree without explicitly threading it through every component.
here is a use case from react docs : create a context for the current theme (with "light" as the default).
const ThemeContext = React.createContext('light');
class App extends React.Component {
render() {
// Use a Provider to pass the current theme to the tree below.
// Any component can read it, no matter how deep it is.
// In this example, we're passing "dark" as the current value.
return (
<ThemeContext.Provider value="dark">
<Toolbar />
</ThemeContext.Provider>
);
}
}
// A component in the middle doesn't have to
// pass the theme down explicitly anymore.
function Toolbar() {
return (
<div>
<ThemedButton />
</div>
);
}
class ThemedButton extends React.Component {
// Assign a contextType to read the current theme context.
// React will find the closest theme Provider above and use its value.
// In this example, the current theme is "dark".
static contextType = ThemeContext;
render() {
return <Button theme={this.context} />;
}
}
resource: https://reactjs.org/docs/context.html

React propTypes component class?

How can I validate that the supplied prop is a component class (not instance)?
e.g.
export default class TimelineWithPicker extends React.PureComponent {
static propTypes = {
component: PropTypes.any, // <-- how can I validate that this is a component class (or stateless functional component)?
};
render() {
return (
<this.props.component {...this.props} start={this.state.start}/>
);
}
}

For anyone using PropTypes >= 15.7.0 a new PropTypes.elementType was added in this pull request and was released on february 10, 2019.
This prop type supports all components (native components, stateless components, stateful components, forward refs React.forwardRef, context providers/consumers).
And it throws a warning when is not any of those elements, it also throws a warning when the prop passed is an element (PropTypes.element) and not a type.
Finally you can use it like any other prop type:
const propTypes = {
component: PropTypes.elementType,
requiredComponent: PropTypes.elementType.isRequired,
};

EDITED: Added React's FancyButton example to codesandbox as well as a custom prop checking function that works with the new React.forwardRef api in React 16.3. The React.forwardRef api returns an object with a render function. I'm using the following custom prop checker to verify this prop type. - Thanks for Ivan Samovar for noticing this need.
FancyButton: function (props, propName, componentName) {
if(!props[propName] || typeof(props[propName].render) != 'function') {
return new Error(`${propName}.render must be a function!`);
}
}
You'll want to use PropTypes.element. Actually... PropType.func works for both stateless functional components and class components.
I've made a sandbox to prove that this works... Figured this was needed considering I gave you erroneous information at first. Very sorry about that!
Working sandbox example!
Here is the code for the test in case link goes dead:
import React from 'react';
import { render } from 'react-dom';
import PropTypes from "prop-types";
class ClassComponent extends React.Component {
render() {
return <p>I'm a class component</p>
}
}
const FancyButton = React.forwardRef((props, ref) => (
<button ref={ref} className="FancyButton">
{props.children}
</button>
));
// You can now get a ref directly to the DOM button:
const ref = React.createRef();
<FancyButton ref={ref}>Click me!</FancyButton>;
const FSComponent = () => (
<p>I'm a functional stateless component</p>
);
const Test = ({ ClassComponent, FSComponent, FancyButton }) => (
<div>
<ClassComponent />
<FSComponent />
<FancyButton />
</div>
);
Test.propTypes = {
ClassComponent: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
FSComponent: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
FancyButton: function (props, propName, componentName) {
if(!props[propName] || typeof(props[propName].render) != 'function') {
return new Error(`${propName}.render must be a function!`);
}
},
}
render(<Test
ClassComponent={ ClassComponent }
FSComponent={ FSComponent }
FancyButton={ FancyButton } />, document.getElementById('root'));