@ryanflorence/persist-form
v1.1.0
Published
Form persistence for browser applications
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815
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@ryanflorence/persist-form
Brings the browser's default HTML form value persistence to client side rendering with both a Custom Element or a React Hook.
Installation
npm install @ryanflorence/persist-formUsage
Custom Element
First register the custom element:
import "@ryanflorence/persist-form/html";Then render it inside a form.
<form>
<rf-persist-form key="some-form" />
</form>If no key is given, window.location.pathname is used.
<html>
<body>
<button>Toggle form</button>
<div id="target"></div>
<template id="my-form">
<form method="post" class="login-form">
<!-- rendering this persists the form across attach/detach -->
<rf-persist-form key="login" />
<input name="name" />
<input name="email" type="email" />
<button type="submit">Submit</button>
</form>
</template>
<script type="module">
// import the custom element
import "https://esm.sh/@ryanflorence/persist-form/html.js";
// some silly stuff to attach/detach a form from the dom to see it restore
document.querySelector("button").addEventListener("click", () => {
let target = document.querySelector("#target");
let form = document.querySelector(".login-form");
if (form) {
target.removeChild(form);
} else {
target.appendChild(
document.querySelector("#my-form").content.cloneNode(true),
);
}
});
</script>
</body>
</html>React Router Integration
With React 19 you can use a ref:
import { usePersistedForm } from "@ryanflorence/persist-form/react";
function MyForm() {
let { persistFormRef } = usePersistedForm();
return (
<form ref={persistFormRef} method="post">
<input name="name" />
<input name="email" type="email" />
<button type="submit">Submit</button>
</form>
);
}Or use the hooks for more control (and if you're on React 18):
import { usePersistedForm } from "@ryanflorence/persist-form/react";
function MyForm() {
const { persist, restore, clear } = usePersistedForm();
return (
<form
// restore when the form mounts
ref={node => node && restore(node)}
// persist on change of form elements
onChange={e => persist(e.currentTarget)}
// clear after submission
onSubmit={e => {
e.preventDefault();
clear();
}}
>
{/* form fields */}
</form>
);
}Custom Key
By default the location.key is used, but you can provide a custom key.
// not attached to locations
usePersistedForm("login-form");
// use the URL instead of location.key
usePersistedForm(location.pathname);Core Package
Integrate with any setup:
import { persist, restore, clear } from "@ryanflorence/persist-form";
// Save form state
let form = document.querySelector("form");
persist("my-form", form);
// Restore form state
restore("my-form", form);
// Clear saved state
clear("my-form");
// Example with event handlers
form.addEventListener("change", () => {
persist("my-form", form);
});
document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => {
restore("my-form", form);
});Notes
- Uses sessionStorage, so form data persists only for the current browser session
- For React Router integration, form data is keyed by location.key, so the same form can be persisted with different data across the history stack
- Handles all form input types including text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons, etc. (Files aren't supported due to browser limitations)
License
MIT