Skeletor Express Plugin

The purpose of this plugin is to run a local Express server.

This is a functioning plugin that can be installed as-is to a Skeletor-equipped project.

To learn more about Skeletor, go here.

Getting Started

After you have cloned this repository, run npm install in a terminal to install some necessary tools, including a testing framework (Jest) and a linter (ESLint).

Source Code

The primary source code for this sample plugin is located in the index.js file.

Running Tests

This sample plugin is pre-configured with the Jest testing framework and an example test.

From a terminal, run npm test. You should see one test pass and feel pleased.

Test code can be found in the index.test.js file.

Skeletor Plugin API

For a Skeletor plugin to function within the Skeletor ecosystem, it must expose a simple API that the Skeletor task runner will interact with. The method signatures of the API are as follows:

run(config)

The run() method executes a plugin's primary task. It is the primary way (and, currently, the only way) that the Skeletor task runner interacts with a plugin.

Config Options

{
    "port": 3001,
    "https": true,
    "currentDirectory": __dirname,
    "entryPoints": [
        {
            "entry": '../dist',
            "route": '/app'
        }
    ],
    "middleware": [{
        "route": "",
        "fn": () => {}
    }]
}

port

Type: Number

Default: 0 (system will select port)

The port that the server should use. If the desired port is busy, the next-available port number will be used instead. This is an optional config

https

Type: Boolean

Default: true

Creates a development certificate and runs a local HTTPS server. The devcert utility is used to create the certificate.

currentDirectory

Type: String

Value: __dirname

The path to the project directory on the user's machine. This should always be the node variable __dirname.

entryPoints

Type: Object[]

A list of entry points to route to.

And entryPoints object consists of:

• entry: the relative path to the directory or file that will be the entry point to the server. This path should be relative to the config file.
• route: the url path to get to this file. If none is provided, / will be used. HOWEVER, if multiple entry points use the default route, they will override each other.

middleware

Type: Object[]

A list of middleware objects to be used for server. See middleware for more details.

Middleware

route

Type: String

Default: /

The route for which the middleware function applies.

fn

Type: Function

The middleware functions. Usually loaded from a separate file using the require() syntax

Example middleware obj:

{
    "route": "/hello",
    "fn": require('../source/middleware/testMiddleware')
}

where the testMiddleware file looks like this:

const middleware = function(req, res, next) {
    req.greeting = 'Hello World';

    res.send(req.greeting);
}

module.exports = middleware;

For more information about writing middleware for Express, see their documentation

Return Value

A Promise that resolves to a Status object.

status

Type: String

Possible Values: 'running', 'error'

Contains the status of the plugin.

message

Type: String

Contains any additional information regarding the status of the plugin.

Required Add-Ins

path

a module that provides utilities for working with file and directory paths

express

A minimal and flexible Node.js framework with HTTP utility methods and middleware support

opn

A node module that opens websites, files, and executables. Has cross-platform support