Split objects into size-limited chunks!

Are you fed up with pesky MQTT payload size limits?
Are you ready to make big objects smaller, perhaps for the purposes of circumventing restrictive network limits?

Then this package is for you!

Overview

This package comes with two modules - one to split an object up into chunks (Splitter), and another to re-assemble said chunks back in to the original object (Receiver).

End-to-end example

const { Splitter, Receiver } = require('@ospin/obj-splitter')

// here is an object we would like to split up
const obj = {
  a: Array(500).fill('a'), // <-- ~2000 bytes
  b: Array(500).fill('b'), // <-- ~2000 bytes
}

/* Splitter.split will break the object up into chunks
 *   each returned chunk will have header data within it
 *   header data can be used later to associate chunks
 */
const chunks = Splitter.split(obj, { maxChunkSize: 2500 })

console.log(chunks.length)
// -> 2

console.log(chunks)
/*
[
  {
    a: [ 'a', ... 499 more items ],
    multiMessage: {
      groupId: '18934ceb-a66d-4bfd-b105-467132b4a9ce',
      totalChunks: 2,
      chunkIdx: 0
    }
  },
  {
    b: [ 'b', ... 499 more items ],
    multiMessage: {
      groupId: '18934ceb-a66d-4bfd-b105-467132b4a9ce',
      totalChunks: 2,
      chunkIdx: 1
    }
  }
}
*/

In the chunks returned, the first has the key + value of the original objects a property, and the second has b. Together, the a and b properties in the original object would have exceeded the options maxChunkSize option. Each chunk returned is under the maxChunkSize (bytes) provided.

The multiMessage key (which will have been added to the chunks) contains header/meta data about the chunk:

multiMessage: {
  groupId: <uuidv4>, // unique identifier for a group of chunks which belong together
  totalChunks: <integer>, // the total chunks the original object was split in to
  chunkIdx: <number>, // this chunks identifier relative to its sibling chunks
}

Using the Receiver, these chunks can be re-combined to form the original object:

// continued from above ...
const [ chunkA, chunkB ] = chunks

const receiver = new Receiver()

const incompleteResult = Receiver.receive(chunkA)

console.log(incompleteResult)
// -> { complete: false, chunksOutstanding: 1 }
// since chunkA was only 1 of 2 chunks needed to fulfill the series, .receive returned a partially completed response

const completeResult = Receiver.receive(chunkB)

console.log(completeResult)
/*
{
  complete: true,
  chunksOutstanding: 0,
  payload: {
    a: [ 'a', ... 499 more items ],
    b: [ 'b', ... 499 more items ],
  }
}
*/

Upon receiving the second (and final) chunk, the receiver combines the chunks, removes the header data, and returns a success object. This returned payload will match the original object that was split up:

const { payload } = completeResult

JSON.stringify(payload) === JSON.stringify(obj)
// true

Splitter.split options

The second argument in splitter.split is an optional argument

Splitter.split(<obj>, {
  maxChunkSize: <number>, // max size in bytes that a chunk will be
  targetKey: <string>, // (optional) key in the first argument <obj>
})

If no targetKey is provided, the splitter will split the object's top level keys only. If a target key is provided, the splitter will split that target key up among several chunks. Each chunk will have all of the top level keys. E.g.:

const obj = {
  a: 'this is a top level value!',
  b: 'this is ALSO a top level value!',
  data: {
    nestedA: Array(500).fill('a'), // <-- ~2000 bytes
    nestedB: Array(500).fill('b'), // <-- ~2000 bytes
  }
}

const opts = {
  maxChunkSize: 2500,
  targetKey: 'data',
}
const chunks = Splitter.split(obj, opts)

console.log(chunks)
/*
[
  {
    a: 'this is a top level value!',
    b: 'this is ALSO a top level value!',
    data: {
      nestedA:  [ 'a', ... 499 more items ],
    },
    multiMessage: {
      groupId: '18934ceb-a66d-4bfd-b105-467132b4a9ce',
      totalChunks: 2,
      chunkIdx: 0
    }
  },
  {
    a: 'this is a top level value!',
    b: 'this is ALSO a top level value!',
    data: {
      nestedB: [ 'b', ... 499 more items ],
    },
    multiMessage: {
      groupId: '18934ceb-a66d-4bfd-b105-467132b4a9ce',
      totalChunks: 2,
      chunkIdx: 1
    }
  },
}
*/

Receiver

The receiver instance will keep track of multiple series of incoming chunks:

const receiver = new Receiver({ timeout: 10000 })
// the receiver opts default to a 10 second timeout (10000 ms)

const objA = { /* data */ }
const [ chunkA1, chunkA2 ] = Splitter.split(objA)

const objB = { /* data */ }
const [ chunkB1, chunkB2, chunkB3 ] = Splitter.split(objB)

receiver.receive(chunkA1)
// currently, the receiver is only keeping track of one group of chunks, the group of chunks that were made from objA

console.log(receiver.chunkPools)
/* {
 *   objA: [ chunkA1, <missing> ]
 * }
 */

receiver.receive(chunkB2)
// the receiver now has two groups of chunks it is waiting to fulfill

console.log(receiver.chunkPools)
/* {
 *   objA: [ chunkA1, <missing> ],
 *   objB: [ <missing>, chunkB2, <missing> ],
 * }
 */

...and it will remove outstanding chunk groups if there has been no chunk added to the pool in a certain amount of time:

// ... continued from above
// 10 seconds is the default duration the receiver will hold on to chunks that are waiting for their siblings to arrive

// wait 5 seconds
receiver.receive(chunkB1)
// wait another 5 seconds
// ...and objA's chunk pool has become stale.
// objB's chunk pool remains as its timer was refreshed when it received another chunk

console.log(receiver.chunkPools)
/* {
 *   objB: [ <missing>, chunkB2, chunkB3 ],
 * }
 */


// wait another 10 seconds and all pools have become stale
// -> { <empty }

Notes

Q: how deep will this split an object? (e.g. will it look multiple keys down)
A: at most, this will split only 1 level deep. I.e., this will not search down the object tree for values to split.

• if no targetKey is provided in the options, this will split the top level object key/values only
• if a targetKey is provided in the options, this will split the targetKey's value up among chunks

Q: I need it to search down the object tree and split some deeply nested values?
A: This can be updated to do that without too much trouble. Get in touch, make a PR, fork it, etc.

Q: if the object I am trying to split has a multiMessage key itself, will this overwrite it?
A: yes. there may also be other unforeseen consequences. As of initial release, there is neither test coverage nor documented expected behavior for objects that already have multiMessage key.

Q: Why was this made?
A: To deal with AWS IoT MQTT payload limits of 128kB

Q: Can it be used for other things
A: You bet

Q: Is the space the header/metadata takes up in multiMessage subtracted from the maxChunkSize option?
A: yes. expect the header/metadata to reserve ~100 bytes of space for itself (it will automatically subtract its requirements from the provided maxChunkSize when breaking up an object in to chunks)

Q: I have further questions re: the implementation
A: see the test coverage!