fork-child

fork-child is an easy-to-use Node.js module that provides a simple wrapper around the fork function of the child_process module. It enables seamless function invocation between parent and child processes using asynchronous messaging and supporting both ESM and CommonJS environments.

Features

• 🚀 Easy inter-process function calls: Call functions in a child process from the parent process asynchronously.
• 🔄 Supports synchronous and asynchronous functions: Execute functions and return results, including promises.
• 📡 Seamless messaging: Handles communication between processes internally.
• 🔧 Minimal setup required: Simply register functions in the child process and call them from the parent.

Installation

npm install fork-child

Usage

Child Process (child.js)

import { register } from 'fork-child';

function one() {
  console.log('one');
}

function two() {
  return 'two';
}

async function three() {
  return new Promise((resolve) => {
    setTimeout(() => {
      resolve('three');
    }, 1000);
  });
}

register([one, two, three]);

Parent Process (parent.js)

import { fork } from 'fork-child';

const { functions } = fork('./child.js');

await functions.one();
console.log(await functions.two());
console.log(await functions.three());

How It Works

1. The child process registers functions using register().
2. The parent process forks the child process using fork().
3. Calls to registered functions are automatically serialized and sent to the child.
4. The child executes the function and returns the result to the parent.
5. Errors in the child process are propagated back to the parent.

Benefits

• Simplifies inter-process communication.
• Reduces boilerplate for managing child processes.
• Provides a structured way to handle async tasks in child processes.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.

Author

Developed by Ahmed Ali 🚀