Author: Zhang Zhang
In this post, we'll discuss eight Node .js WebSocket libraries you should consider in 2022.
- SockJS[1]
- ws[2]
- Socket.IO[3]
- Faye WebSocket[4]
- SocketCluster[5]
- Sockette[6]
- Feathers[7]
To start using any of these libraries, you need to install npm and Node .js on your local machine. Before we begin, let's take a look at some important background on WebSockets.
How does WebSockets work?
Traditionally, clients and servers communicate by following a request/response cycle. However, WebSockets allow you to communicate between the client and the server in a non-standard manner.
WebSockets provide an open connection between the server and the client, allowing simple, immediate two-way communication between the server and the client without having to poll the server. WebSockets are especially useful for building real-time applications such as real-time messaging, live streaming, push notifications, tracking, financial updates, sports updates, and more.
Now that we know how WebSockets works, let's take a look at some node .js libraries that you can use to make it easier to develop with WebSockets.
SockJS
SockJS is a JavaScript library that provides communication between clients and servers in a manner similar to the native WebSockets API. The functionality of SockJS[8] corresponds to a server in the form of sockjs-node[9], and SockJS-client[10], a JavaScript client library.
At the time of writing, SockJS has over 7,000 stars on GitHub and nearly 7 million downloads per week on npm, making it one of the best WebSocket libraries in Node .js. SockJS follows the rules of the HTML5 WebSocket API and provides WebSocket-like objects.
ws
With over 17,500 stars on GitHub and about 35 million weekly downloads on npm, ws is one of the most popular Node .js WebSocket libraries available.
ws is a fast, easy-to-use, well-documented, and thoroughly tested WebSocket client and server implementation that supports virtually all browsers. As a result, ws is the favorite library of choice for many developers, which means its community is active and strong.
Installing ws is very simple and can be done with one of the following commands:
复制npm install ws
//
npm i ws
1.2.3. To get started with the ws WebSocket library, check out the documentation [11].
复制npm install --save-optional bufferutil
1. The above command allows you to effectively perform operations such as masking and unblocking the data payload of a WebSocket frame.
复制npm install --save-optional utf-8-validate
1. To effectively check whether the message contains a valid UTF-8, run the above command.
Socket.IO
Created in 2010, Socket.IO[12] is a popular WebSocket library used by several large companies such as Trello and Microsoft. Socket.IO is reliable, providing load balancing, support for binary streaming, processing proxies, and more.
However, the primary purpose of Socket.IO is to facilitate real-time, bidirectional, and event-based communication between the browser and the server. Like ws, Socket.IO has a Node.js server, and a JavaScript client library.
In addition, Socket.IO includes features such as support for connections made with a proxy or load balancer and broadcasting over the network. WebSocket does not support both activities.
Socket.IO has nearly 55,000 stars on GitHub and about 3 million downloads per week on npm, making it a good library to watch in 2022. The documentation is very simple and straightforward, which means that even inexperienced developers should be able to get started in a very small amount of time.
Faye WebSocket
Faye WebSocket[13] was extracted from the Faye project and is a multi-purpose WebSocket that makes it easy to command pre-existing WebSocket connections in Node.js applications.
Faye WebSocket provides only the standard WebSocket API and the classes needed to build WebSocket clients and servers in Node .js. It does not provide the server itself or any other abstraction.
To install Faye WebSocket, run npm install faye-WebSocket. The README section of the Faye project provides the necessary documentation to get started.
SocketCluster
https://socketcluster.io/
SocketCluster[14] is a highly extensible framework and real-time HTTP server engine that enables you to build multi-process live servers using all available CPU cores at once. With SocketCluster, the backend avoids running Node .js servers as single-threaded, working more efficiently and remaining resilient.
The SocketCluster framework supports client-server and group communication over pub/sub channels. It uses a local area network (LAN) to connect the components of the cluster. SocketCluster is optimized to easily recover from a failure or disconnection without data loss.
At the time of writing, SocketCluster has nearly 6,000 stars on GitHub and 7,000 downloads per week on npm.
Sockette
Sockette[15] is a WebSocket wrapper that allows you to reuse instances without having to declare all event listeners multiple times. Sockette is a very lightweight library, with only about 367 bytes according to the GitHub page. If the connection is lost, Sockette automatically reconnects.
Considering that Sockette is a gadget, it is best to declare all event listeners at initialization time. To install and start using Sockette, run the following command:
复制npm install -- save sockette
1. At the time of writing, Sockette has approximately 2k stars on GitHub and 9k weekly downloads on npm. This documentation is a good resource.
Feathers
The Feathers[16] framework uses Socket.IO modules so that you can receive and deliver updates in real time. It also gives you control over your data through sockets, flexible plugins, and RESTful APIs and resources.
Feathers offers the ultimate combination of automation and control. With Feathers, you have full control over how your APIs behave while still benefiting from the tools provided.
At the time of writing, the project has nearly 14,000 stars on GitHub and 26,000 downloads per week on npm. Feathers also includes an excellent documentation and is known for its lightweight and ease of integration with different databases.
To install the Feathers .js library, run the following command:
复制npm install -g @feathersjs/cli
1. Original: https://blog.logrocket.com/top-websocket-libraries-nodejs-2022/
By Oyinkansola Awosan
Source: Front-end full-stack developer